'I feel Gauri's voice still resonating somewhere'

I Am on the Hit List, a book chronicling the life, work, and assassination of prominent journalist Gauri Lankesh, has just been crowned a Pulitzer finalist, coming second in the General Nonfiction category. Author Rollo Romig and Gauri's sister Kavitha Lankesh reflect on the achievement, and what it means for press freedom in India

- Anjali Ram

The assassination of prominent journalist Gauri Lankesh left the media world and common citizens alike in shock, consequently sparking widespread outrage and concern about journalists' safety in India. Rollo Romig, an American journalist, was one of the concerned, and decided to investigate further. What came of it was I'm on the Hit List (Context; ₹499), whose status as Pulitzer finalist has reawakened the focus on the issue. "I was incredibly shocked at the murder, and I wrote an article about the case. But I felt that this was a story with a lot more to say about it," he recounts, further revealing, "It was unclear for some time who had murdered her and why, and it took a long time to uncover that. As I dug deeper into the case, I found that she really was an extraordinary and unusual person."