Controversy sells. That was clearly proven on Wednesday afternoon when Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen drew unprecedented crowds at the Delhi Book Fair.
And she stoutly defended her writing, saying banning books, her's or anyone else's could never help. She also asserted that she would continue to write despite threats from fundamentalists.
"India is the biggest democracy in the world and a ban on books here is unjustified. Banning of books not only amounts to violation of the rights of the writer but also of the readers", said Taslima who was here to launch the Hindi edition of her biography Woh Andhere Din (Those Dark Days).
"The ban holds no meaning as the books are available online and thousands of people across the globe are already reading it", Taslima said.
Nasreen, who was exiled from Bangladesh because of her book Lajja, said "my books are banned because of fear of communal riots. Those against my work think Muslims are 'illiterate' and would revolt if they read something against their religion".
"When a book is banned in Bangladesh it does not create much of a flutter but when there is a controversy about a book in India, the impact can be seen all over the world", said Taslima, whose another book Dwikhandito was banned by the West Bengal government last year.
of the 28 books she has written to date, four have been banned in Bangladesh.
When asked about the source of her inspiration, she said, "I write about the atrocities which a woman faces daily and they are my inspiration".
of the 28 books she has written to date, four have been banned in Bangladesh.
When asked about the source of her inspiration, she said, "I write about the atrocities which a woman faces daily and they are my inspiration".
Expressing solidarity with Taslima, noted Hindi writer Ashok Vajpeyi said at the book launch function, "The Bangladeshi author has very effectively faced fundamentalists and so called 'moralists'. She has set an example for the writer's community."
Citing examples of suspension of two government officials in Madhya Pradesh for selling anti-RSS books and attack on a Pune-based institute from where a foreign author had recently sourced material about a book on Shivaji, Vajpeyi said, "More and more of history books and even biographies are being banned. This has to be stopped and for that we need courage like that of Taslima."
Nasreen was in Delhi for a brief visit to release the Hindi version of her book.