“I write not to bore the readers,” said politician and former actor Smriti Zubin Irani during her conversation with Vir Sanghvi at an evening hosted by Jaipur Literature Festival

New Delhi:  Politician and former actor Smriti Zubin Irani launched her debut novel, Lal Salaam, an action-packed thriller, at an evening hosted by the iconic Jaipur Literature Festival. The book was unveiled in the capital by Vir Sanghvi and S. Prasannarajan, Editor, Open Magazine, amidst a large number of book-lovers. Inspired by the tragic killings of 76 CRPF personnel in Dantewada in April 2010, the book is a tribute to the exceptional men and women who have given a lifetime of service to the country, especially in confronting the challenges in the red corridor. Published by Westland Publications (an Amazon company), the book is now available on stores and online e-tailing platforms.

Expressing her views about the book, Smriti Zubin Irani said, “I write not to bore. For me it was essential not to have a moment in the book where the readers felt the need to put down the book. I need to ensure that I capture the attention and imagination of my readers. I want them to enjoy and feel every emotion in the book. Before even writing the book, I had the entire plot in my mind and that didn’t change even once when I started to finally write. I finished the novel in eight months.”

The upcoming 15th edition of Jaipur Literature Festival, a haven for literature-lovers and festival-goers, will run on-ground from 28th January to 1st February 2022 and virtual sessions will go live from 28th January to 6th February with an extended online experience. The evening, celebrating the book Lal Salaam, was a pre-cursor to the upcoming Festival that will combine the optimism and the sheer joy that only books can bring – and deliver a unique experience both online & on-ground.

Lal Salaam is the story of a young officer, Vikram Pratap Singh, and the challenges an idealistic law-enforcer faces when the system is steeped in backroom politics and corruption. It is the gripping tale of a struggle against overwhelming odds, and of men and women who fight these odds with courage, ingenuity and resilience.

About the Author 

Smriti Zubin Irani is a seasoned politician, former TV actress and producer. She represents the constituency of Amethi in the Lok Sabha, to which she was elected in 2019. Earlier, she was a member of the Rajya Sabha, representing the state of Gujarat, between 2011 and 2019. She is currently the Union Minister for Women and Child Development. She has also served as the Union Minister for Human Resource Development, Minister for Information and Broadcasting and Minister for Textiles.

About the Book 

The manner of his arrival in the dusty little village of Ambuja, in Chhattisgarh, instantly establishes SP Yikram Singh as a man to watch out for. Over the next few weeks, as he attempts to bring order to a long-neglected police station and motivate his less-than-enthusiastic crew, Yikram can feel those eyes everywhere, following his every move, watching and waiting for the first misstep. At stake for him is the truth behind the vengeful killing of his old friend and fellow officer, Darshan—and the very idea of justice. Yikram knows he cannot rest until he solves the case, but every day there is a new challenge: a local businessman with vested interests in both bureaucracy and Naxalism, an influential academic in Delhi at whose doorstep the trail runs cold, a young widow and her journalist friend, who quickly take centre stage in his vexed new life Inspired by the unfortunate killings of seventy-six CRPF personnel in Dantewada in April 2010, Lal Salaam seeks to humanise the daily conflicts and ethical dilemmas that confront people in the poorest and most troubled regions of our country. It is also a story of the brave men who serve the law even when the law fails to serve them.