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Journalist Harinder Baweja unveils new book, shares four decades of conflict reporting
At the launch of her memoir, They Will Shoot You, Madam: My Life Through Conflict in Delhi on Sunday, she shared stories that read like a thriller.
What does it take to report from conflict-ridden places in India and beyond? Journalist-author Harinder Baweja has spent four decades finding out. At the launch of her memoir, They Will Shoot You, Madam: My Life Through Conflict in Delhi on Sunday, she shared stories that read like a thriller.
The evening opened with former Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh recalling their first meeting after Operation Blue Star in 1984. Singh shared that he had saved Baweja from being knocked down in a crowd after police firing caused panic. “‘Who are you?’ I asked,” he said. “She replied, ‘I’m Harinder Baweja. I work for a newspaper.’ That was the start of it.” Baweja added, “My religion is journalism. My editors sent me to difficult places, and I went because courage and luck matter when digging for facts.”
Fearless encounters, risky interviews
Baweja recounted being sent to Pakistan ten days after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks and flying to Malaysia to interview underworld don Chhota Rajan. She also recalled an incident where she went to Kashmir to interview separatist leader Yasin Malik in the ‘90s. Malik ignored her questions and instead asked, “Would you be my friend?” Baweja later described the encounter as “harassment.”
The panel also included Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and journalist Rajdeep Sardesai.
