HarperCollins to bring Jesus' biography to India

HarperCollins India has acquired publishing rights of "Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth", a controversial biography of Jesus Christ by Muslim author Reza Aslan.

"'Zealot' is history, biography, cultural politics and just sheer beautiful prose, all coming together to make a truly strong narrative that is bound to resonate with readers in the subcontinent. We are thrilled to bring it to India," said a statement from the publication house Saturday.

The book will be available in stores by the last week of September.

The Iran-born scholar was questioned why he wrote a book on the founder of Christianity despite the fact that he is a Muslim.

His interview on a TV channel had sparked a wide public debate in the US about Islamophobia.

"Zealot" challenges long-held assumptions about Jesus. It portrays him as a revolutionary Jewish nationalist who sought to end Roman rule in Palestine on behalf of the poor and marginalised, and not as a messiah who preached peace and finding his kingdom in heaven.

This historical examination, which clashes with Christian beliefs, led to the outrage.