My characters just happen to be Muslims

I do not think of writing as a political experience. People talk of being ‘otherised’ my aim is just to tell a good story and my characters happen to be Muslim, said Andaleep Wajid the Bengaluru based writer of ‘Asmara’s Summer’ and ‘When She Went Away’ fame during the panel discussion on Encountering stereotypes. 

NeyazFarooquee, a Delhi based journalist spoke about how stereotyping happens in mainstream media and what prompted him to write ‘An ordinary Man’s Guide to Radicalism’ Stereotyping is common and is prevalent everywhere in all fields. Neyaz said, “The moment a person from the hinterland lands in the capital he is stereotyped to belong to a ghetto in the outskirts.”
 
On being looked at from a particular lens irked Andaleep Wajid but she says she has come to terms with it, “Initially, I would get rattled when people invited me to speak at fests and functions not for what I write but because of how I looked and what I wore.” She wears a burkha.

Moderated by Aparna Rayapol, the panel discussion on stereotypes was well attended as both young writers spoke about their experiences and how they cope with the issue. 
Neyaz’s book is that of a young Muslim from rural Bihar who migrates to Delhi and starts living in a Muslim ghetto until one day, a communal-laden fake encounter changes his life and he starts to dwell on the issue of identity.