Devil's Advocate: Karan Thapar

The Devil's Advocate is a book that provides deeper insight into Indian politics and the power of media during Karan’s time—but not so much now. All the events he shares have a touch of international happenings from the 1980s. The book is a personal memoir from Karan himself, where he outlines his experiences and journey in the media world.

Karan shares how his education was shaped by great personalities like Benazir Bhutto during his time at Oxford. He also explains the debates he participated in during his education, which helped him learn and grow. The book includes all the major life events that happened to him until the time he wrote it, along with the different media patterns he observed over the years.

Even though Karan is a straightforward individual who isn’t afraid to ask bold questions, he shares one of his best experiences—an interview with Sachin Tendulkar. He expected Sachin wouldn’t speak much, but ended up discovering Sachin’s storytelling side, which was a pleasant surprise.

The furious interview where Modi walked away still stands out, along with the one with Jayalalithaa—both interviews were stopped midway. Karan explains all these events vividly, giving readers a behind-the-scenes look at Indian media and the politics that run behind it.

The information Karan provides comes from a perspective that most of us haven’t seen or had access to, which makes it interesting to read and explore. Many of the interviews are still available on YouTube. Currently, Karan is with the media platform The Wire, continuing his bold interviews and exploring the power of media. His work even led to The Wire website being taken down due to government policy. Democracy!