In this episode of India Booked, host Ayushi Mona talks to Veio Pou, about his brilliant new debut novel, Waiting for the Dust to Settle, published by Speaking Tiger Books.
Set in Manipur, Waiting for the Dust to Settle is a moving novel about the human cost of the violence that the Naga. Mona and Pou discuss what people have endured since the 1980s telling the story of Operation Bluebird—one of the darkest yet little discussed moments in the history of the Indian Army in the northeast.
Above everything else, Waiting for the Dust to Settle is a deeply human portrait of an entire people as it talks about the human cost of the violence that the Naga people have endured since the 1980s. It tells the story of Operation Bluebird—one of the darkest yet little discussed moments in the history of the Indian Army in the northeast. A moving, timely book that is surely to arrest and impress you in the way that Veio intersperses fictional narratives with the stark reality of life. Tune in below or on the platform of your choice!
Waiting for the Dust to Settle has also been reviewed here, and here’s what Kirtana Menon writes: “Three words come to mind when thinking of this book: Simple, Heartfelt and Thoughtful. The writing is extremely simple, but accurately captures the mood of the story. Rakovei becomes the voice of all the ordinary Nagas who wonder in vain when the endless struggle will end, if it ever does. As readers, we witness Rakovei change from an idealistic, naive boy to a dispirited and disillusioned adult, struggling to reconcile the world he sees with the happy childhood he remembered. A lot of historical events are mentioned in the book, less for the event itself and more for the impact it had on daily life, really bringing to life the toil it takes on those caught in the crossfire.”
