The Moon from Dehradun

As we approach yet another anniversary of the Partition (14–15 August), I’ll be highlighting a few books in the coming weeks on the world’s largest forced migration.

Today’s 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 features 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙤𝙤𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝘿𝙚𝙝𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙪𝙣: 𝘼 𝙎𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙤𝙛 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 by Shirin Shamsi.

The story follows a young girl, Azra, and her family, who are forced to abruptly move from Dehradun to Lahore. In the chaos that follows, Azra leaves behind Guriya, the treasured doll that Dadi made for her. Their journey of displacement is full of hardships, captured beautifully in Tarun Lak’s illustrations. At the same time, another Hindu family is forced to move from Lahore to Dehradun. The migration is portrayed through a child’s point of view, rendered poignantly by Shirin’s words, and brought to life by Tarun’s evocative artwork. Highly recommended!

I asked Shirin why she thinks children all over the world should read and know about the Partition and why these books are even more relevant in the present times.

Shirin: I think in the aftermath of Partition, even though 78 years have passed, the trauma remains and the wounds have yet to be healed. Our present world is in turmoil, with unending conflict. We need to learn from history so we do not repeat the mistakes of the past... I believe stories of fiction inspire empathy for it's in stories that we learn to feel and connect with the experience of others. Empathy, connection, compassion are what our world needs, now more than ever before. It's important for our survival - in fact it's urgently necessary.