Saurav Dutt’s new novel asks the right questions about domestic violence

Saurav Dutt is a polymath; he has many talents and he has tried his hands on everything from screenwriting, film production, painting to photography. He was also a journalist and worked for The Guardian. But what he is renowned for are his novels. He is an accomplished writer who doesn’t believe in genre boundaries. A look at his bibliography will show you just how versatile he is. He has written non-fiction, horror, biographies, manga as well as graphic novels. His books have been featured in many international book fairs and conventions. His debut novel ‘Broken Sky’ garnered critical acclaim. Saurav Dutt is a philanthropist and supports many charities. He donated the proceeds from the sale of many of his books towards charitable organizations. His latest novel “The Butterfly Room” takes a close look at domestic violence and women’s abuse in context of Indian culture. The other themes explored in the book are homophobia and discrimination towards LGBT community. Dutt met with survivors of abuse and violence as well as victims of discrimination and their families. Dutt said that he believes, in light of the documentary “India’s Daughter” it is more relevant than ever to explore such cultural taboos like abuse and violence against women in Indian and South Asian society and culture.

He added, “The issues of women’s rights, domestic violence, and abuse, as well as homophobia and LGBTI discrimination are not isolated to South Asia or India, and that is why I wanted to explore them in this book.”

Dutt incorporated their stories into the novel in order to expose these cultural taboos. The money raised from the sale of this book will be donated to charities that support and assist victims of domestic violence and abuse and homophobia and LGBT discrimination. The organizations that the proceeds will go to are Refuge, Southall Black Sisters, Women’s Aid, Amnesty International and Stonewall UK.