Journalist Pinki Virani tells Shameem Akthar about how she followed and wrote Aruna's story:
The most difficult part about writing this?
Keeping myself out of it. I visited her regularly. Wrote about her for three years. Even when I moved to the south for eight years she was with me. Also, my first thought was I could not do it. Thirty people around her had died. Where will I get information?
Why did you get so involved?
My mother had introduced me to her in 1983. One day there was a major mother-daughter row. My mother told me about the dangers women face. When I scoffed at it, she told me about Aruna. Fifteen days later I had met her, and have been writing about her since then.
