Bollywood film director, producer and screenwriter Vivek Agnihotri’s newly released book titled Urban Naxals- The Making of Buddha in a Traffic Jam is the new talk of the town.
Agnihotri’s book is a behind-the-scenes look at the making of his controversial 2016 film, Buddha in a Traffic Jam. It highlights the violent resistance to its screening and exposes the world’s largest extreme-left terror movement and its penetration into urban India.
India’s ‘Naxal Maoists’ are listed among one of the top terror groups in the world, and the author craftily and boldly unmasks the vast urban network, including leftist academia, media, NGOs and intellectuals, which supports and fuels this terror- starting from his own professor in college days.
He then gallantly declares these people as the Urban Naxals, who remain anonymous and homogeneous within the country and outside, influencing opinions and shaping public opinion. Although they don’t carry any weapons as their ammunition but collectively they form a far superior force which attacks public minds.
About the Book
His movie faced extreme resistance from the Left and was stuck for five years before Vivek travelled across India to show his film, facing violent attempts to curb his freedom of speech. After being canned for 5 years, Buddha in a Traffic Jam turned out to be a prophetic cult film.
Losing hope to release the film in a hostile industry, Agnihotri decided to take it on a roadshow, screening it across India’s top 45 universities and institutes. Thus begins a journey of resistance, opposition, humiliation, sabotage, threats and physical attacks.
Urban Naxals is the riveting saga of a filmmakers struggle and conviction, the behind the scenes story of the making of the award-winning film.
The book was launched by the current Union Textiles Minister, Government of India, Smt. Smriti Irani herself. She even took to Twitter and praised Vivek’s book saying, “Delighted to launch the book ‘Urban Naxals,’ authored by filmmaker @vivekagnihotri based on his observations and experiences during the making of his film ‘Buddha in a Traffic Jam’”.
Delighted to launch the book ‘Urban Naxals’ authored by filmmaker @vivekagnihotri based on his observations and experiences during the making of his film ‘Buddha in a Traffic Jam’. pic.twitter.com/cROnldgw2I
— Smriti Z Irani (@smritiirani) May 27, 2018
About the author
Vivek is an award-winning filmmaker and writer, public speaker and an opinion leader in a highly partisan and aggressive environment in current times which is fuelled by social media. An ex-advertising man, Vivek doesn’t shy away from speaking out against socio-political issues and lectures on ‘Creative Thinking’ and ‘Innovation’ in top global institutes.
Vivek is an avid traveller, columnist and a social media influencer. He is married to national award-winning actor Pallavi Joshi and has two children.
