Train to Pakistan - Khushwant Singh

Reviewer’s Note: Before you read the book, I would recommend having some sort of understanding of the history of the Indian freedom struggle and the partition of India and Pakistan to fully understand the premise of the book and the extent of the political instability depicted in it.

Trigger warning: There are some graphic depictions of violence, sex, sexual assault, riots. If that is not something you would like to read, skip this.

Book Review:

The book is set during the time of the India-Pakistan Partition and the protests and violence that ensued during that period, in a small village called Mano Majra. It tells the story of a morally right dacoit, a political activist, a morally grey magistrate, and the villagers and their actions and mindsets during the violent riots set ablaze by increasing communalism. It is a brutally honest depiction of the realities of the time veiled under the tag of fiction. The writing style is decent, not the most beautiful prose, but this book is carried forward entirely by the plot and characters, and so the language can be overlooked. The author puts the characters in interesting scenarios, forcing them to confront their feelings and make decisions that ultimately reflect the struggles of morality, helplessness, and powerlessness during this mass destabilization of lakhs of people. The true extent of the blinded communal hatred can be seen in the brutal and gruesome killings, rapes, and thefts of the people from and of both the communities involved in the riots.

This book paints a very realistic picture of the full extent of the physical and psychological trauma and the social and political upheaval of the partition, the ghosts of which can still be seen lingering in the current day society of both the countries. An excellent insight with some subtle social commentary, this story will force you to see the cracks in the society that exist, even to this day, and will most likely haunt you for days after you’ve finished it.

If you decide to pick this up, we hope you enjoy it.

Happy Reading!