Pawan Kumar Maithani
The new book by senior journalist Vivek Shukla ji, ‘1947: Bantware Ke Shesh Sawal’ (1947: The Remaining Questions of Partition), appears to deeply reflect on the tragedy of the 1947 partition, our shared composite culture (Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb) and the unresolved human questions that arose thereafter.
In one chapter of the book, Vivek ji has also mentioned the Uttarakhandis who came to Delhi from Quetta, Balochistan and Lahore during the Partition, a subject on which perhaps hardly anyone has written before.
Senior journalist, author and columnist Vivek Shukla ji is among those select personalities of Hindi journalism who for more than four decades have not confined journalism merely to news, but have made history, society, culture and especially the changing identity of Delhi the subject of his writing. He is counted among those journalists whose reporting is based on facts, research and historical context.
Writing on Delhi has been his favourite subject. His research-based writing on the capital’s history, its lanes, buildings, markets and cultural heritage makes him a serious chronicler of Delhi, which we read every day in Navbharat Times. Among his well-known books, “Delhi Ka Pehla Pyar: Connaught Place” and “Gandhi’s Delhi” are particularly noteworthy. Through these books, he has presented the past and present of Delhi before common readers in a simple, interesting and authentic style. The book has been published by Pravasi Prem Publishing, Bharat. The book has a total of 42 chapters. Each chapter carries new information in itself. The price of the book is Rs. 390/-.
In view of his long-term contribution to Hindi journalism, in the year 2026 he was honoured with the prestigious Prabhash Joshi Award under the Nai Duniya Foundation Media For Unity Awards. This honour was given for his remarkable contribution to Hindi journalism, his commitment to public interest and for positive journalism.
The biggest specialty of Vivek Shukla’s journalism is that he connects history with the present. His articles do not just give information, but also acquaint the readers with that era, that society and those circumstances from which modern India was built. That is why I see him as a journalist-author whose writing goes beyond news and becomes a part of social memory. These days I am reading Shukla ji’s new book ‘1947 Vibhajan Ke Shesh Sawal’, and as I keep reading the book, my curiosity towards the book keeps increasing. This is the biggest quality of an author that he creates curiosity in the reader’s mind to read the entire book, and in that Shukla ji excels. Many many congratulations to Vivek ji.
