Being Reshma: The Extraordinary Story of an Acid-Attack Survivor Who Took the World by Storm by Reshma Qureshi with Tania Singh

My Rating - 3 out of 5 stars
Publisher - Pan Macmillan
Genre - Biography
Publishing year - 2018
Language - English 
ISBN - 978-93-86215-52-9
Pages - 230

My Review - 

While my journey has had and will continue to have dark moments, I am thankful that it has, for the most part, been beautiful, honest, victorious.

It is the story of Reshma Qureshi, an acid attack survivor, written by Tania Singh. In 2014, Reshma was attacked by her elder sister Gulshan's husband, Jamaluddin, and his two acquaintances. She was seventeen years old at that time and went to the exam centre. Little did he know that that day will gonna change her life forever. 

Born and brought up in Mumbai, Reshma lives in a chawl with her parents, two elder brothers, Riyaz, and Aizaz, and sisters, Gulshan and Nargis. Being the youngest child, she was everyone's favourite. 

When her mother was diagnosed with a fatal disease, they all made sacrifices so that everything went smoothly, including Reshma's education. Her childhood memories were filled with good and bad recollections, but she could find happiness in little things. 

When she was twelve, her sister Gulshan got married to Jamaluddin; they didn't know that he and his family were narrow-minded, greedy, and abusive. Soon Gulshan was blessed with a boy, Saufi. After a few years, she gives birth to a girl, Riza. 

But the demand for dowry is increasing day by day. Gulshan suffers domestic violence, and at last, her parents decide that Gulshan and her children will live with them. Things were falling into the right place, but ten days before the acid attack, Jamaluddin kidnapped Saufi. The family was devastated, and Jamaluddin planned an attack on Gulshan, but Reshma was caught between all these. 

One cannot describe the pain and suffering she endures. She didn't get the treatment for hours. The inhumane nature of doctors, nurses, and police officers disturbs me. The lack of facilities, money, and laws will stand in front of Reshma; she thinks of suicide; and tries it on numerous occasions. 

She deals with PTSD and depression in all the chaos; she finds hope and purpose through the Make Love Not Scars Organization. The founder of the organization Ria Sharma crowdfunded money for Reshma's treatment. A long-drawn but meaningful journey begins for Reshma; she became the face of the #endacidsale campaign. 

Although, I didn't feel that Tania Singh did justice with the novel. She wrote all about the organization's feats, but being a reader, I want to know about Reshma's family's reaction when she did a ramp walk in New York. How did their lives change after Reshma got global recognition?

On the day of the attack, Gulshan's hand came in contact with acid, but no one paid any heed to her. Whether she receives the treatment at all? The author didn't mention a single time; about the courtroom proceedings. 

Did they file a report against Jamaluddin? What were the police doing? Did they catch him or not? Did Saufi return to her mother? Did Reshma get justice? All the important questions were left unanswered like it doesn't matter. 

Reading her story gives me a chill, and I appreciate how brave she is. She is a courageous woman who has a long way to go. I have my questions and issues with the narration, but I still think you should read this book. 

There are very few people who work to make a change in the world. Reshma is one of them; she is a survivor. Her story moves my soul, and I hope she achieves everything she wants in her life. 

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