Calling Sehmat

Genre: Spy thriller
Author: Harinder S. Sikka
Rating: ★★

Calling Sehmat is the debut book of Sikka published in 2008. Ten years later it was made into a movie named Raazi starring Alia Bhatt. I loved the movie and wanted to read the book. The first thought I had while buying the book was ‘How did they fit that story into this little book?’ I got the answer while reading it. 

The plot starts with the love story of Tejashwari Singh and Hidayat Khan. They give birth to a girl, Sehmat. Hidayat, an Indian Spy, influences his daughter to be as patriotic as he is. Sehmat grows into a sweet, polite, gracious, and respectful girl who goes on to do her college in Delhi. She falls in love with a fellow student, Abhinav. Meanwhile, Hidayat is diagnosed with cancer and does not have many days remaining. Hidayat asks Sehmat if she could be a spy for which she eventually agrees and takes the training to become a spy in haste. She is married off into a Pakistan General’s house. Sehmat acts quickly in acquiring her in-laws’  trust AND collecting information to report to the Indian Army. She continues to do this with the help of other Indian spies in Pakistan until the day she gets caught. But then, she uses her smartness and escapes from Pakistan alive and pregnant. She then raises her son Samar Khan into a fine man who becomes a Captain in the Indian Army. At last, she dies as a silent soldier and as the sole reason why INS Vikranth defeated Ghazi, a Pakistani fast-attack submarine.

The good part of the book was that it illuminated Tej and Hidayat’s love story. The portrayal of  Sehmat is very detailed and appealing. Sehmat’s talent in Indian Classical dance and her love affair with Abhinav just makes us like her more. And it also makes us empathize with her sacrifices more. Her level of endurance of the insurmountable problems and emotions she faces and feels are just amazing.

The not-so-good part is the rest of the book. Almost 1/4^th of the book speaks about Sehmat’s life in Delhi and the later parts of the book, where I was expecting a lot, had very little detailing. Some of the narratives were a bit quick, confusing, or just flat. The anticipated thrills and suspense did not live up to the expectations.

Final thoughts – I did like the book, it was good. But if you are deciding whether you should watch the movie or read the book first, I would say just go ahead and watch the movie.