We are described into corners, and then we must describe ourselves out of corners.

What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist.

Someone asked me if I was afraid to write my memoirs. I told him: 'We have to stop drawing up accounts of fear! We live in a society in which people are allowed to tell their story, and that is what I do.'

It's always been colossally important to me that my books should be well received in India. It's where I come from.

The enemy for the fanatic is pleasure, which makes it extremely important to continue to indulge in pleasure. Dance madly. That is how you get rid of terrorism.

One of the characteristics of mudslinging is that mud sticks if it's thrown with enough force for long enough.

Well, we're still in the middle of it. And it doesn't show any sign of going away. And these attacks that were - that seemed so odd at the time, with "Satanic Verses," because we didn't have any context for this. You know, where did that come from? It seemed to come out of nowhere.