“Our moon has these blood clots, and it is no use hiding them”: In conversation with Rahul Pandita

Abstract

ABSTRACT Rahul Pandita is an acclaimed Indian writer and journalist. He is a 2015 Yale World Fellow, and the author of multiple bestselling non-fiction books, including Hello, Bastar: The Untold Story of India’s Maoist Movement (2011) and Our Moon Has Blood Clots: The Exodus of the Kashmiri Pandits (2013). He is known chiefly for his reportage on Maoist insurgencies in central and eastern India and the issues pertaining to Kashmiri Pandits in Northern India. His works focus on violence, displacement, and life for those with experience of forced migration. Our Moon Has Blood Clots is one of the first books to portray the events of the Kashmiri Pandit exodus and its aftermath. This conversation focuses on Pandita’s perspective on his writings and the plight of the exiled Kashmiri Pandits. It also covers the trauma experienced by the community, especially in exile, and the question of their approach towards a better future.