Book: ‘The Many Lives of Syeda X: The Story of an Unknown Indian’

In the end, things come to a grotesque full circle for Syeda. Her life is upturned for the umpteenth time as the Delhi riots of 2020 caused another cataclysmic displacement. But displacement, tragedy and hardship are something she is used to — being poor and Muslim and a woman. Written with deep insight, The Many Lives of Syeda X is a portal to a messy world hidden away from elite Indians. It is the story of untold millions and a searing account of urban life in New India.

The book was selected as the book of the year 2024 by The Hindu and the Deccan Herald. Neha won the Ramnath Goenka Sahitya Samman award and Kalinga Literary best debut award for this book. The book also received an Honorable Mention by the CG Moore Prize for Human Rights Writing in 2026.

It was published by in 2024 Juggernaut Books in South Asia, in 2025 by Footnote, an imprint of Bonner Book UK worldwide excluding North America. It has been translated now in four Indian languages: Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam and Marathi.

Praise for the Book

“Through an examination of one woman’s life, The Many Lives of Syeda X tells the story of the invisible people in India who are the backbone of society. Dixit immersed herself in Syeda’s life for many years while researching the book. The result is an immensely readable work of narrative non-fiction that draws the reader into Syeda’s life and family, as she navigates ingrained hardships that have affected generations of those at her level of society in the world’s largest democracy.” 

– Honorable Mention, The Jury, CG Moore Prize in Human Rights Writing 2026

‘Neha Dixit is awarded the Ramnath Goenka Sahithya Samman for Best Debut for The Many Lives of Syeda X: The Story fan Unknown Indian, a work of grave moral attention and disciplined reportage.

Through the life of an unnamed woman, Dixit traces the quiet yet enduring fortes of gender, poverty and institutional power that govern contemporary Indian existence.

Written with restraint, empathy and investigative clarity the book restores dignity to a life rendered invisible by neglect and silence. It resists facile resolution, allowing contradiction and complexity to speak in their own register.

By revealing how an individual life bears the weight of larger social truths, The Many Lives of Sycda X enlarges the ethical and narrative scope of son fiction, marking a distinguished and consequential literary debut.’ –Ramnath Goenka Sahitya Samman, Best Debut, 2026

‘One might imagine that it doesn’t get harder than being poor and uneducated, a Muslim and a woman in today’s India. This unique biography of a brave and tenacious woman worker in the unorganized sector shows how the state, through its fitful acts of heavy-handed regulation, makes it much worse. She tries many things and masters them, but just when it looks like her economic life has turned a corner, the state steps in to fix some problem that it should not have permitted to arise in the first place, and her job and hope are gone. An important and eye-opening work.’ – Abhijit V. Banerjee, Economist, Noble laureate

‘A vivid and memorable account of how post-economic reform in India works. It is a trenchant and invaluable people’s history of the bottom of the pyramid in the world’s most populous nation.’ – John Reed, Financial Times

‘Ms Dixit’s book shines a spotlight on the invisible lives of India’s neglected female home-based workers’- Soutik Biswas, BBC

‘Over the course of the book, the bold sentences become more politically focused, lending a haunting rhythm to Dixit’s account of a growing and changing economy that is constantly edging closer to fascism … one feels … as if one is reading a novel – a testament to Dixit’s narrative skill and her ability to bring the stories from her interviews to life.’ – Ananya Wilson Bhattacharya, Jacobin

‘This remarkable book blends fine-grained reportage with moving evocations of time and place. Through the struggles of a single family Neha Dixit deftly traces the tumultuous and conflict-ridden history of our country over the past three decades. The focus always remains on Syeda, her husband and her children, yet through their lives we come to acquire a deeper understanding of religious majoritarianism, the darker side of India’s much trumpeted ‘growth story’, and the corruption and criminalization of the state. This is a deeply impressive debut by a gifted and extremely courageous writer.’ – Ramachandra Guha, Historian

‘This is the heart-wrenching reality of modern India, the unvarnished truth through the eyes of a melancholic woman and the people around her.They are the nameless poor whose monotonous existence is both a blessing and an irritant for us. Syeda’s life is a mirror held to us. She is Mother India, wailing for a healing touch and some compassion. Neha Dixit has found an unusual protagonist to tell us the unvarnished, ugly truth about us.’ – Josy Joseph

‘Neha Dixit is a resolute, courageous and empathetic writer. In this powerful and bracing book, she puts the spotlight on one ordinary Indian. In a spare but effective, matter-of-fact style that lets the story speak for itself, she rescues the lives of ordinary Indians from invisibility. But she also rescues them from time-worn tropes of condescension, pity and resilience, and restores dignity to their agency. The story of this life, grappling with the weight of fate and society will leave you defenceless and gutted.’ – Pratap Bhanu Mehta

‘Neha Dixit is a fiercely ethical and committed journalist and a writer of integrity and passion. She brings all these qualities to this searing story about an anonymous woman whose life over three decades she has traced, through cataclysmic events in the history of India that is also the history of this working-class Muslim woman’s life.’ – Nivedita Menon

‘Remarkable … devastating … never patronising … It is precisely for this quietness, this matter-of-factness, this simplicity and truthfulness that this book must be read. It offers those of us who live with privilege, a mirror to the casual cruelty and indifference towards those less privileged, that informs our lives.’ – Urvashi Butalia, The Wire

‘An eye-opening work of extreme courage … Dixit’s achievement [is] immense … one of a kind in Indian non-fiction … there will likely not be a better book of gritty Indian reportage for years to come.’ – Rahul Jacob, Mint

‘Nine years and nine hundred people … That’s what it took … Neha Dixit to write her stunning … book.’ – Priya Ramani, NDTV Profit

‘Dixit’s conceptual clarity is remarkable and her prose lucid, and she writes with deep empathy for the people. She constructs a virtual social history, or history from below, reminiscent of the flavours one gets while reading the works of old British Marxist historians like E.P. Thompson or Eric Hobsbawm.’-Umar Khalid, The Wire

‘Neha Dixit’s first book is everything one would expect from her: an excellent piece of reportage.’ – Sheila Kumar, Deccan Herald

‘Extraordinary … keeps the readers enthralled … On finishing this unputdownable book, you would agree as well that the accolade coming Dixit’s way is all too deserving.’ – Ruben Banerjee, Federal

‘[Dixit] writes this book with the precision of a historian, mind of an economist and the commentary of a political scientist … exceptional.’ – Hajara Najeeb, Feminism in India

Uniquely authentic and eye-opening … It is marked by an honesty and sincerity of purpose that is unmissable. The style is engaging and rooted in empathy.’ – Zakia Soman, Frontline

‘An important book that looks at the intersection of class, religion and gender with empathy and a keen eye for research and detail.’ – Saudamini Jain, Hindustan Times

‘A testament to what fine journalism promises to be … Every once in a while, one stumbles upon a book that fundamentally reorients how one perceives and engages with the world … Neha Dixit’s … is one such work.’ – Priavi Joshi, Scroll.in

‘By blending investigative reporting with engaging storytelling, Dixit is able to create a compelling piece of art … takes us on a rollercoaster ride of emotions.’ – Writingwomen.co

‘Neha Dixit masterfully weaves together personal and political narratives, illustrating how economic and communal violence intersect … An essential book.’ – Countercurrents.org

by News18 on Jan 4, 2023