Barkha Dutt Biography

Journalist Barkha Dutt was born on 18 December 1971. She was born in New Delhi to S. P. Dutt, an Air India official, and Prabha Dutt, who was a well-known journalist with the Hindustan Times.

Later Dutt credits her journalistic skills to her mother, a pioneer among women journalists in India. Her younger sister, Bahar Dutt, is also a television journalist working for CNN IBN.

Barkha Dutt Image
Barkha Dutt Image

She describes herself as agnostic who rejects religion. Later she supports the concept of a Uniform Civil Code. Barkha has expressed her opinion against Triple Talaq and Muslim patriarchy.

Barkha Dutt Education

Dutt graduated from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi with a degree in English literature.

Later she received a Master’s in Mass Communications from Jamia Millia Islamia Mass Communication Research Center, New Delhi.

Barkha Dutt NDTV

She started her journalism career with NDTV and later rose to head the English news wing of the organisation.

Later she obtained a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism, New York assisted by an Inlaks Shivdasani Foundation scholarship.

Soon her reporting of the Kargil conflict in 1999, including an interview with Captain Vikram Batra, brought her to prominence in India. She has since covered conflicts in Kashmir, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq.

While covering the events of 2002 Gujarat violence, Dutt identified attackers and victims of a riot as “Hindus” and “Muslims” on television, flouting the guidelines of the Press Council of India.

She has received negative reception for some of her work. Later for 2008 Mumbai attacks, she was blamed for sensationalising the events, putting lives at risk and causing deaths by identifying on live television where the hotel guests might be located.

In November 2010, the magazines OPEN and Outlook published transcripts of some telephone conversations between Nira Radia with some senior journalists, politicians, and corporates.

The Central Bureau of Investigation announced that they had 5,851 recordings of phone conversations by Radia, some of which outline Radia’s attempts to broker deals in relation to the 2G spectrum sale.

Soon Dutt apologised over the issue saying it was “an error of judgement” on her part, but said that she had not indulged in any wrongdoing.

Later Dutt who was group editor of NDTV moved to the role of consulting editor in February 2015 and after 21 years, she left in January, 2017. Barkha used to write columns for many national and international newspapers.

Barkha Dutt Husband

She married and even divorced a Kashmiri Muslim who is known as ‘Mir’. This marriage lasted for only 6 months.

Later Barkha allegedly started dating and even married the economist and Chairman of Jammu and Kashmir Bank, Dr. Haseeb Drabu. Now since he was in the office from 2005 to 2010

Barkha Dutt Salary

She was given an approximate salary of Rs. 30 lakhs per month (excluding perks), and her annual income stands above Rs. 3.5 crores.

Barkha Dutt Book

Dutt has co-authored the chapter “‘Nothing new?’:Women as Victims” in book – Varadarajan, Siddharth (2002). Gujarat: The Making of a Tragedy.
Dutt, Barkha (2015). The Unquiet Land.

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