1971: A People’s History from Bangladesh, Pakistan and India
£18.00£20.90 (-14%)
The year 1971 exists everywhere in Bangladesh-on its roads, in sculptures, in its museums and oral history projects, in its curriculum, in people’s homes and their stories, and in political discourse. It marks the birth of the nation, its liberation. More than 1000 miles away, in Pakistan too, 1971 marks a watershed moment, its memories sitting uncomfortably in public imagination. It is remembered as the ‘Fall of Dacca’, the dismemberment of Pakistan or the third Indo-Pak war. In India, 1971 represents something else-the story of humanitarian intervention, of triumph and valour that paved the way for India’s rise as a military power, the beginning of its journey to becoming a regional superpower.
Navigating the widely varied terrain that is 1971 across Pakistan, Bangladesh and India, Anam Zakaria sifts through three distinct state narratives, and studies the institutionalization of the memory of the year and its events. Through a personal journey, she juxtaposes state narratives with people’s history on the ground, bringing forth the nuanced experiences of those who lived through the war. Using intergenerational interviews, textbook analyses, visits to schools and travels to museums and sites commemorating 1971, Zakaria explores the ways in which the year is remembered and forgotten across countries, generations and communities.
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Additional information
| Publisher | Vintage Books (1 Nov. 2021) |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 402 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 014345403X |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0143454038 |
| Dimensions | 12.7 x 2.69 x 20.32 cm |
by Abhijit
This is a deeply engaging book that deals with the events of the 1971 war which led to the creation of Bangladesh. The book is divided into 4 sections tracing the background historical events as well as giving an in-depth insight into the personal history of those affected. At times the experience can be somewhat harrowing. Clearly, the author has undertaken a lot of background work and research. After reading the book, once can understand the link between the overarching political events and the consequent problems on the ground. This book is a timely warning for people in the Indian subcontinent (and elsewhere) where relationship between people and their governments continues to be adversarial in some ways. The book is also unbiased just like the author’s previous works.
There is some repetition in the text particularly when giving a background to a given event but this usually is just a sentence only and it might even help readers who take their time to go though the chapters because the repetition serves as a reminder.
I strongly recommend this book for those interested in the post-partition history of the subcontinent and the events of 1971 from ordinary people’s perspective rather than just an official account of history.
by Imran Chowdhury BEM
It’s an eye opener as to how the whole Pakistan and its machinery is still ignoring the truth. The truth of their heinous genocide on us Bengalis.
Well, I personally don’t expect anything better from them. Either.
I am not sure about the writers perspective though.
Nevertheless, I thank her for penning this book.
Still, not sure about the hidden agenda.
Pakistan will never learn as to how to say Sorry to the Bengalis….. how ironic !!!
Blaming India is not going to overturn History.
Bengalis will never forgive them.