It is time for all our readers to keep their wallets ready since June promises to be a month full of new releases. Our favourites Benyamin and Akhil Katyal return with a new work of fiction and a poetry anthology respectively. June also brings us a new book of Rumi’s translated poetry, real-life anecdotes from people on both sides of the Naxalist movement as well as a behind-the-scenes narrative of what took place in the aftermath of the 2019 state elections in Maharashtra. This list of anticipated books by Indian authors releasing in June 2020 brings us all of this, and so much more.
01
You People
Nikita Lalwani
Nikita Lalwani’s latest novel is set in an Italian restaurant in London. What is unique about this restaurant is that the chefs making traditional pizzas are Sri Lankan while half of the kitchen staff are illegal immigrants. And then there is Tuli, the owner of the restaurant who always helps those in need. When Tuli steps in to help Nia escape from her family and to help Shan find his, he ends up guiding them into dangerous territory where they are faced with an impossible choice. Set in 2003, the novel is a poignant take on the problems faced by illegal immigrants and how they navigate a world where the law is against them.
Releasing on June 01, 2020. Buy it here.
02
A Burning
Megha Majumdar
An attack on a train leaves 104 people dead, and the lives of three people change forever. Jivan wants to rise above poverty, but one comment on Facebook makes her appear guilty of planning the attacks. Jivan’s former high school teacher joins a right-wing party in the hope of climbing up the ladder of his aspirations, but his success depends on Jivan’s fall. Then, there is Lovely, a hijra, who wants to become a Bollywood star, and can prove Jivan’s innocence, but her court appearance has unexpected consequences. Megha Majumdar is all set to dazzle us with her debut novel about power and greed.
Releasing on June 15, 2020. Buy it here.
03
Checkmate: How The BJP Won And Lost Maharashtra
Sudhir Suryawanshi
The political drama that took place in Maharashtra in the month of November 2019 could have given the TV shows in India a run for their money. The state election results were in, and no party had a majority. The BJP and Shiv Sena clashed, and their union was broken, leading to the implementation of Presidential Rule in the state. But over the course of only a few days, there were two different governments being sworn into office, one after the other. What exactly happened behind the scenes during this high voltage drama? With explosive information through private conversations and inside sources, this book is perfect for every political aficionado in the country.
Releasing on June 15, 2020. Buy it here.
04
Anxiety: Overcome It And Live Without Fear
Sonali Gupta
Anxiety has been skyrocketing in Indians, particularly amongst millennials and the Gen Z population. We are also prone to panic attacks during anxiety, and social media really does not help here. In Anxiety, clinical psychologist Sonali Gupta discusses unique strategies and techniques that are aimed at relieving us of our constant anxiety along with ways to reclaim our mental health.
Releasing on June 15, 2020. Buy it here.
05
Momspeak: The Funny, Bittersweet Story Of Motherhood In India
Pooja Pande
There are mothers, and then there are Indian mothers who aren’t given the space or freedom to be a woman, a human being, or anything apart from the glorified label of ‘mother’. In this thought-provoking yet funny book, Pooja Pande talks about how Indian mothers have the right to be their own entity, with their own emotions and desires. In this book, she uses anecdotes from her personal experiences, along with those of other mothers (including divorced, single, queer, and adoptive mothers), to provide a different perspective on the human known as a mother.
Releasing on June 22, 2020. Buy it here.
06
Body And Blood
Benyamin, Swarup B.R. (Tr.)
Benyamin, the acclaimed author and winner of the 2018 JCB Prize For Literature, brings us a new story, this time from the underbelly of the organ trading black market. This thriller follows the people who are caught in the greedy paws of those looking to make money off of poor and helpless people. The organ trade market in India has reached new heights of orchestrated accidents and induced comas in order to harvest organs from the poor. At the same time, it is impossible to ignore the role of organised religion when it comes to such heinous practices. Just like his other works of fiction, Benyamin’s Body And Blood is a treat for literature lovers.
Releasing on June 22, 2020. Buy it here.
07
Why Men Rape: An Indian Undercover Investigation
Tara Kaushal
In Why Men Rape, Tara Kaushal sets out to understand the psychology behind rape through interviews and a thorough investigation. She interviews child rapists, gang rapists and a rapist who doesn’t believe such a thing as rape exists. Not only that, she also interviews rape survivors, psychological experts, a jail inmate who observes the world of rapists from the inside, and others. This book is not meant for the faint of heart, but is an extremely important one at the same time and guarantees to provide deep insight into one of the world’s worst crimes.
Releasing on June 22, 2020. Buy it here.
08
The World That Belongs To Us: An Anthology Of Queer Poetry From South Asia
Aditi Angiras & Akhil Katyal (Eds.)
The World That Belongs To Us brings together South Asia’s best contemporary queer poets and is an anthology unlike any other. The anthology features amazing poets like Hoshang Merchant, Kazim Ali and Ruth Vanita among others, along with the various diasporas they are a part of. It also features queer poets from Bangalore to Boston, Chennai to Dhaka and Lahore to New York City, as well as works in English, Marathi, Manipuri, and Punjabi, amongst many others. With poems on desire to heartbreak and caste and language, this collection will keep you company for days on end.
Releasing on June 22, 2020. Buy it here.
09
The Coronavirus: What You Need To Know About The Global Pandemic
Dr Swapneil Parikh, Maherra Desai & Dr Rajesh Parikh
COVID-19 continues to ravage the world, and shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. This virus, which has infected millions and killed thousands, has no vaccine and no cure. In a densely populated country like India, it has become increasingly important to get our facts straight in order to understand the best ways to protect ourselves from this deadly virus. The Coronavirus addresses the evolution of this pandemic along with the myths and facts surrounding it, and is an essential read during these times.
Releasing on June 22, 2020. Buy it here.
10
Once There Was Me: The Extraordinary Life Of An Unknown Indian
Bobby Sachdeva
A 14-year-old Bobby Sachdeva is forced to watch in horror as his house is burned down during the anti-Sikh riots in Delhi in 1984. As he tries to recover from this trauma, Sachdeva travels the world and builds his business in places untainted by religious hostility. He experiences a different form of religious trouble when he files a petition in court asking all religious institutes to donate their funds to the poor – a move that turns some people against him. Having seen both sides of the religious spectrum – involvement and distance – Sachdeva begins to question the role of religion in our lives. Filled with memories of a traumatic past and questions of an unknown future, Once There Was Me should be read by anyone looking to gain a perspective on India’s religious culture.
Releasing on June 23, 2020. Buy it here.
11
The Death Script: Dreams And Delusions In Naxal Country
Ashutosh Bhardwaj
The Red Corridor refers to the area that has seen a huge amount of Naxalite-Maoist infiltration in India, and is one of the most terrifying places in the country. Ashutosh Bhardwaj brings us a hard-hitting reminder of the conditions prevalent in this area, of the atrocities committed on and by both the sides, and his own experiences of living through the constant attacks from both sides. The Death Script is based on Bhardwaj’s dairy entries, interviews, and the stories of the men and women surviving on both sides of the battle and makes for a highly intriguing read.
Releasing on June 25, 2020. Buy it here.
12
The Dharma Forest
Keerthik Sasidharan
The Mahabharata was one of the most brutal wars described in Hindu mythology and occurred due to a culmination of political greed and evil intentions. The death and destruction that it left in its wake was enough to make even the mightiest of the mighty shudder. The Dharma Forest shows us the complex characters who were an integral part of the war, and the way they manoeuvred the circumstances of the war. There was Bhishma, the man who could not die, but had to live with constant death surrounding him; there’s Draupadi, the queen who is as much a part of the war as her warrior husbands; and the famed Arjuna, who questions if the war is worth the loss of his loved ones upon seeing them standing on the opposite side of the battlefield. All of this, and much more, awaits you in The Dharma Forest.
Releasing on June 30, 2020. Buy it here.
13
Rumi: A New Collection
Farrukh Dhondy
Rumi, the famed Persian poet and Sufi mystic, has touched the hearts of people across time and place with his poetry. Farrukh Dhondy attempts to capture the original magic of Rumi in this translation, while also retaining the essence of the latter’s religious background intact in his writing. Combining ghazals, and Rumi’s famed poems from Masnavi and Diwan-E-Shams, this collection is a treat for every poetry aficionado.
Releasing on June 30, 2020. Buy it here.
14
Getting Competitive: A Practitioner’s Guide For India
R. C. Bhargava
Following Independence, the then-Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru envisaged India’s economic growth as being the key to develop a just society. With manufacturing industries providing both employment and growth prospects, they became an important part of the overall economic growth. But the absence of a competitive spirit in the industry led to an overall decline of its contribution to India’s economy. In this revelatory book, R. C. Bhargava guides us on how to create a competitive atmosphere within the local industry in order to support growth and how to implement an Eastern management culture in the country instead of mimicking our Western counterparts, among others. This is a must-read for those interested in seeing how competition can ultimately lead to a nation’s growth.
Releasing on June 30, 2020. Buy it here.
Disclaimer: Some of these books were previously available on Kindle or as international editions which were available for import. This list features Indian editions of these books, which tend to be more affordable. The information featured here is accurate as of May 28, 2020.
