‘Hindustani Memne’: Reclaiming forgotten histories, questioning comfortable narratives

Beyond a singular narrative of freedom

One of the novel’s central interventions lies in questioning the long-held belief that India’s Independence was achieved solely through non-violent movements. While acknowledging Mahatma Gandhi’s role, the novel refuses to accept a monolithic version of history that sidelines revolutionaries, soldiers, and overseas Indians who fought under extraordinary circumstances. To reduce Independence to one ideology, the novel suggests, is to dishonour the countless unnamed men and women who endured prisons, exile, war, and death.

Indians as cannon fodder – then and now

Set against the backdrop of the Second World War (1939-45), the novel details how the British Empire mobilised Indian soldiers for its wars, treating them as expendable manpower. Sharma’s use of the metaphor ‘memne’ (lambs) is deliberate and biting. Indians were not merely ruled; they were consumed by an empire that demanded loyalty without dignity.

The discomforting question the novel raises is whether this expendability truly ended in 1947. As the narrative moves forward – to Partition, to the wars of 1965 and 1971, and eventually to the Emergency – it draws a continuum between colonial control and post-colonial centralisation of power.

Freedom, the novel suggests, was achieved – but accountability was not.

Friendship, faith, and the fracture of Partition

Structurally, the novel follows the intertwined journeys of three young men – Ajit, Rahim, and Sarveshwar – belonging to different faiths yet bound by friendship, shared ideals, and a common dream of freedom. Their lives unfold against the backdrop of World War II, the rise of the INA, and the political churn that eventually leads to Partition.

Partition emerges not just as a historical event but as a deeply personal tragedy. Rahim’s forced migration to Pakistan fractures relationships that politics could not reconcile. Sharma does not romanticise unity nor demonise difference; instead, he mourns the deliberate political choices that converted neighbours into strangers.

In doing so, Sharma implicitly questions why alternative visions – particularly Subhas Bose’s insistence on a united India – were sidelined.

The silence around INA

Perhaps the most political aspect of Hindustani Memne is its insistence on asking why the INA never received its due place in India’s official memory. The novel points toward an inconvenient reality: post-Independence power structures had little incentive to legitimise an armed movement that did not align with their ideological inheritance.

That statues and schools commemorating figures like Ajit Saini remain localised – this is not accidental, it is political.

What gives Hindustani Memne particular depth is its refusal to end history in 1947. The narrative extends into post-Independence India, referencing the 1965 and 1971 wars, the Emergency, and the consolidation of political power. Freedom, the novel suggests, did not automatically translate into justice or dignity for ordinary citizens.

Dr Ajay Sharma (Express Photo)

By linking colonial exploitation with post-colonial disillusionment, Sharma underlines a disturbing continuity: systems may change hands, but power often continues to marginalise the same people. The ‘lamb’ remains vulnerable – first under colonial rulers, later under domestic political compulsions.

In today’s India, where debates around nationalism, history textbooks, and ideological loyalty dominate public discourse, Hindustani Memne feels uncannily relevant. It urges readers to move beyond binaries – violent versus non-violent, patriot versus traitor – and to engage with history in all its complexity.

The novel also speaks directly to a younger generation increasingly distanced from the lived experience of freedom struggles. By humanising history through personal stories, it bridges the gap between academic history and emotional truth.

A call to remember, and to question

“Ultimately, Hindustani Memne carries a clear message: a nation that forgets its uncomfortable past risks repeating its mistakes,” said Dr Ajay Sharma, an author of 16 novels and six dramas. Three of his novels, including ‘Basra Ki Galian’ (on the Iraq war), ‘Chehra Aur Parchhai’, and ‘Nau Dishayen’, are part of the MA syllabus in universities. He had also written two serials about the ‘farming issue’, which were telecast on DD Kisan. The writer has received several awards for his work, including the Punjab Government’s ‘Shiromani Hindi Sahitkar’ Award.

He stated that the novel argues that a nation unwilling to confront the full complexity of its past risks reducing its citizens to silent spectators – lambs once again – before the machinery of power.

“That message makes Hindustani Memne not just a historical novel, but a political one and uncomfortably so.

It reminds us that freedom is not a finished project, and history is not a closed book. Both demand constant vigilance, honest reflection, and the courage to confront truths we may prefer to ignore,” concluded Dr Sharma.