The book opens with a poem by the famous Urdu poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz, a dear friend of Eqbal's, titled - Subh-e-Azadi (August-47) (English: Dawn of Freedom). The poem, as you may have guessed is based on the Partition that came with the Indian and Pakistani Independence from the East India Company or the British Raj in August 1947. Faiz, in his verse, searches for the promised freedom, a dawn of hope that is nowhere in sight. He is reflecting the win that has come with independence and the loss that the Partition brought with itself.
The poem serves as an apt prologue to the book that follows Eqbal Ahmad as he is interviewed by David Barsamian on a variety of subjects ranging from Nationalism, Distorted Politics, the impact of Nuclear Power in South Asia (a very new reality at the time of the interview), Poetry and Revolutions, Ethnic Conflicts, Critical Thinking and reflecting on critical thinkers like Noam Chomsky, Malcolm X, Edward Said and much more. The poem manages to be critical of a huge win 200 years in the making, without disgracing the independence effort. And that is how Eqbal was known, as a political scientist and an essayist, for his brilliant way with critiquing where necessary, presenting facts with utmost clarity and still always lending an empathetic voice where it was required.
As Barsamian interviews Ahmad, we get to experience his clarity on recorded history (up to the time of the interview) and his humane approach to matters that hold deep gravitas.
A must-read, I cannot emphasise enough on how important voices like Eqbal's are - voices that bring with them reason and crystal clear realities of the world.
If you're interested, a few of Eqbal's essays can be read here: https://eacpe.org/articles-by-eqbal-ahmad/
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