03:02 builds off something that is very topical- the threat of terror. In this novel, terror is not something ordinary Indians watch the news or read about on the internet, but something they must confront firsthand. An attack wherein a deadly threat sweeps through our homeland, threatening our freedom and way of life. With no army or police to help them, ordinary Indians must band together to face this threat and wage a war for our freedom.

On the occasion, Dhar said, “The genesis of 03:02 comes from two sources. First, I grew up among people in uniform with my father and maternal grandfather having been Indian Police Service officers and saw both how they confronted challenges like terror and spoke about how India could be much more unified in how we confront these. The second is how I’ve often seen ordinary people deal with terror attacks. Most people express opinions on social media and then get on with their lives. What if they did not have that luxury? What if they were the ones- ordinary people, civilians like you and me- fighting for our homes and freedom? That led me to imagine such a scenario as presented in 03:02.”

A portion of author royalties from every copy will be donated to the National Defence Fund, which supports armed forces service personnel and their families.

Commenting on the book launch, Gautam Padmanabhan, CEO, Westland, said, “It is very exciting being part of a project like this. 03:02 brings to light the pressing issue of terrorism and presents in a thrilling way how ordinary Indians could confront it. We hope this novel draws attention towards this crucial topic and gets people to start conversing about it.”