It's not always easy to do so, but Pakistani journalist-writer Mohammed Hanif of 'A Case of Exploding Mangoes' fame has turned his mind off from the grim truths confronting his country with a love story that touches on terror and trauma.
An extract from Hanif's new novel, Butt and Bhatti was published in the Pakistan Granta 112, a special issue of the magazine devoted to the country. The roller-coaster tale weaves itself around a policeman, Teddy Butt, and a nurse, Alice Bhatti.
'This is the first time I am trying to write a love story. It is one of those great Pakistani civilian love stories,' Hanif, who was in Kerala to attend the Kovalam Literary Festival, told IANS.
The book will be published next year in Britain and India. The inspiration for the book comes from what is going on in the country.
'I am a journalist by profession and I am grounded in realities. I have to write 1,200 words about them often. But when you are writing a book - in a way you are trying to escape what is happening around you, our darker side. It is a grown up thing to do, because one can't really go back to being a child - not at my age,' said Hanif, born in 1964.
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