A Sunday with the Author: Kitabi Keeda interviews Anuradha Prasad on her debut novel "Two Winters & 365 days"

Is there anything better than curling up on a weekend & burying your nose deep in a book?? Letting your mind wander to an imaginary World & being disassociated with your own surroundings. It is even better, when the book in your hand is a simple "slice of life" story. A story made up of everyday characters; characters that you see in your neighborhood, workplace, or in yourself.  

A "slice of life" lit, when told with simplicity & with heart warming situations is the perfect recipe for soothing the soul. 

Luckily, Indian authors, have been quite adept with painting such pictures in our mind with the brush of their literary words, especially when it comes to "slice of life" lit. 

A new book, in the same genre, is Dr. Anuradha Prasad's "Two Winters & 365 days".

The author is an established name in feature editing & writing & has a rich career in the field of feature journalism, creating a variety of articles for leading publications & magazines in the country. It is then no surprise, that someone who has studied life's various colours as her subject should pen a book on a protagonist, who is like any one of us, yet her courage & determination to pick up the pieces & move on in life sets her apart from the rest. A story that is not larger than life in text, but so heart touching & soul warming.

Now, i haven't read "Two Winters & 365 days" yet, but just a dialog with the author prepared me for what could be in store in her debut novel.

Please read Kitabi Keeda's tete-a-tete with the lovely Anuradha Prasad. A conversation with her revealed more about her book, her thought behind the characters she created, her expectations from authors by & large; and also gave me deep insight into the Indian Literature industry.

(Here is the lovely lady herself with her debut novel)

KK: Tell us about your new book “Two Winters & 365 days”, and please tell us the thought behind the interesting name?

 

AP: Two Winters is all about self discovery and self invention....there are so many qualities in us which are lost and we do not tap into and go on with life. Most of the times we do not know who we are and what we are capable of and what we are made for .  This book is for everyone who wants to get inspired , feel inspired and go in for that extra self search that  would define their very existence . A very few lucky people get such an  opportunity and my protagonist Ananya is the chosen one .

This book is also about moving on in life after pain, loss and taking care of your parents , children and respecting relationships .About the interesting name ( of my book) I can  say that as a feature writer and an editor I have  learnt to create interesting ,  punch lines to catch  eye balls and that has worked for the  title too. Besides I wanted the name to represent the book . The events take place over a period of one year . So that explains - 365 days . The  story starts in september and ends sometime during that time the next year . That comes together as ----Two Winters and 365 Days.

KK: You have seen a career of editing & writing for many lifestyle magazines yourself; Is Ananya, your protagonist in “2 Winters..” an inspiration of you? Is this book somewhere inspired by your own life?

AP: Most of the books reflect a writers experiences that include the characters. Having said that the qualities of ‘hard work’ and ‘not easily giving up’ can be termed as mine.  When I started with the book  I had not thought of any particular element  but as the story  developed ,the element of self discovery topped the rest! The life of a magazine editor is portrayed out of my experiences . As for  Ananya  and  the story - they are totally imaginary.

KK: As a reader, should we expect “2 Winters…” to be a Rom Com chick lit or a Slice of Life lit? Can you elaborate a little upon your choice?

AP: Its not a Rom Com and Chick Lit but it is pure language, and a "slice of  life" literature . The language is totally different from the kind we read in books written by Indian authors.

KK: Both Indian Book market & Western is rife with romantic literature at the moment; what is it about “2 Winters..” that sets it apart from the rest? 

AP: Two Winters is fueled by theme such as coping with  loss, sustaining one’s self after pain, answering love’s call for the second time and situational humor.Apart from it- A  simple flowing and a beautiful language sets  “Two Winters and 365 days” apart.It is adventurous, humorous and pictorial in its descriptions  that culminates into success of the main character Ananya. I feel that these elements will hold the attention of a reader and keep him/her grounded to it , till the last page. Besides my book has a fresh story that readers can relate to easily .It leaves   a feel good  life like experience behind.One can take the book and relax, enjoy and at the same time learn from it. Romantic literature is lopsided but my book has elements that make it  gripping.

KK: Now that your first book is out, what is in your mind for your next book?

AP: I have thought of the story line and am working on it day and night. I have already completed a substantial part of the book .I will write for another 50 pages or more and close it. Then I will start writing dialogues and other things that will give life to it.

KK: What is your take on current situation of upcoming Indian fiction authors vis-à-vis say 20 years back? Do you think our current literature industry is poised to be as big as Western industry currently is, with authors being signed in advance by publishing houses to pen a Bestseller, and movie rights being brought as soon as the book is out on the shelves?

AP: There is a lot of potential out there . A lot of people are good writers..today . But most of them  lack experience . Compared to a westerner we need to master the craft of perfection . We as Indians need command over english as it is the strong point of expression in a book.  Besides our writings are tradition and region bound which are not properly understood  by a western reader thus lacking in a global appeal.

There are  a lot of  mistakes in sentence construction, formatting and editing that need to be immediately addressed.The current crop of writers need to really, really improve the language skills than to attempt in establishing a name immediately after their debut novel. Developing an individual style, ability to learn from mistakes , working with deadlines for long hours with a very little monetary expectation should be painstakingly developed by us writers. Writing for writings sake is no good. According to me---Writing to burn the fire in the belly and then  re-firing it to burn more will pump blood into your work ! My suggestion would be to write articles , features or short stories and get them published before attempting to write  a full fledged novel that will help a person to know where they stand in the book industry.

However, getting contracts is a very good motivation for a writer . It helps him to concentrate  and finish his work in a deadline. It can be also a problem as there are huge expectations  that  he/she may fail to meet. This can lead to an end to his career as a writer.Besides though a book is a best seller the movies made out of them may not be that good.There are drawbacks everywhere. 

KK: Lastly, a purely fun question!! Do you see a full length motion picture being made on your novel in the future? If yes, can you tell us who to your mind, is best suited to play Ananya from current Bollywood actors?

AP: Wow that's like a dream come true! I think Deepika Padukone will suit the role .She is tall  with beautiful large eyes with pain in them like Ananya . Her face is soft yet fierce . Her features can reflect  fire and innocence. Her gait is athletic yet soft . She would also look stunning in the red gown that Ananya wears towards the end , to the awards function.

 Ananya stands for vulnerability, motherhood, commitment, hard work, professionalism, a sterling character and success. In recent years Deepika has evolved as a versatile  actress too so  I feel she can portray the role very well. 

KK: Any words for Kitabi Keeda…

AP: You guys really rock! I am actually much inspired by the blogs  that you create , the wonderful truthful reviews you post and the interview was really great!  Keep the good work going guys.  Let everyone who reads your blogs may turn into ‘book worms’ as the name terms it aptly as ----Kitabi Keedas.  All the Best!

Disclaimer: This is NOT a paid article or a paid review; This is an interview conducted by this blog with the author to talk about her upcoming work. 

Time’s Lost Atlas: A soul stirring trip to the last 10 years around the World!!

I’m so glad that short stories as a concept is being revived again, and in a serious way. I have always found short stories very intriguing & even more creative than a full length novel. Bound by expressing all emotions a novel does, in just a few pages, short stories have to reach within the reader much faster with all the emotions the story is trying to convey & still derive the same impact that a full length novel does.

It is in short stories where I discovered the sheer genius of legends like O.Henry, Guy De Maupassant, Jaishankar Prasad, Yashpal and many others. Over the years the art of short stories got somewhat reduced in stature & relegated to the background. I’m happy, the genre is seeing a revival yet again…and I hope it continues.

I received Time’s Lost Atlas from the publication house Half Baked Beans, and the summary script at the back of the book intrigued me. 11 stories of 11 different authors delving into the 11 most prominent & notorious events of the last 10 decades; which means 11 stories, each of them handling one of the most sensitive events that shook the World; events like major bombing, major riots, major natural calamities, conspiracy theories, etc etc.

I thought to myself, that it would be extremely tough bringing out the emotions of pathos, fear, tragedy, romance, mystery together in short stories. This seemed like one big challenge.

Time’s Lost Atlas did not disappoint at all on this front.

The very first story – Beneath by Budhaditya Bhattacharjee was so thrilling & mysterious. Right from the beginning, it had me gripped. I could not understand what was happening to the protagonist of the story and I wanted to read on to find the end. It was truly a page-turner and very dark & mysterious….and very beautifully it just leaves you at the perfect climax point. Not revealing too much, yet revealing some information, leaving the rest for the reader to decipher!!

The Motown Conspiracy by Sakshi Srivastava – What a risqué story!! How honest, blatant, bold & thrilling. If you are reading this Sakshi, then please know, that your story drove me to google more on the topic after I read it. Very well written.

The One & Only Purpose by Geeta Madhuri– Interesting take on a major event. Quite liked the imagination here…and I can go on & on….each story was interesting in their own plot. I would at times marvel as to how well the respective authors of their stories have merged emotions like romance & love amidst tough background of conspiracy & war, in just a few pages. Notable in this direction were The Rising by Malvika Roy Singh & A Symphony of Concurrences by Vishal Bagaria....the former such a heart touching story (it reminded me a little bit of The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini) and the latter was so mysterious yet believable; this was one story that was subtle in all emotions right from the beginning & yet left so much impact – feelings of infatuation, love, faith, deceit all woven in one story so very subtly & still leaves a mark on you.

In the department of love, deceit & conspiracy, The Filch by Namrata was very well written too. I was not expecting the end of the story as written. It was in fact quite impactful and can leave a reader thinking.

United We Fall by Anurag Anand covered one of the biggest space tragedies of the last decade. The author painted scene by scene, character by character of what exactly would be going inside a space shuttle that knows it is approaching an end!! Very well written.

But the story that just shook me up were two of the whole collection:

Pangs of Pain by Shruti Jain – Wow!!! The best of the whole collection in my opinion. I wish I could be with Tamanna in more pages. Hats off to the author. What a heart wrenching story. How she expressed absolutely complex emotions of love, feeling of loss, pathos, fear, the ugliness of society in just a few chapters simply wowed me. Her story actually transported me to the scene of the plot. Beautifully written.

Innocents at War by Adwitiya Borah – Heart touching take on one of the biggest riots that shook our country in last decade. What I liked was that Borah brought out the pathos of riot boldly & blatantly, without trying to soften any aspect. Yes, riots are much worse, but what she expressed in just a few pages was very heart touching.

The last of the collection, The Victims, by Vishnu Vardhana, was a good story. As the name suggests it deals with victims of various incidents, some that shook the World, and some that are too personal, but all of whom have had a soul charring effect on its “victims”. Instead of dealing with situations directly, it deals with them via their survivors and their post trauma therapy. The concept was very intriguing and was structured well too. However, to be very honest, I was just slightly let down in this story due to grammatical errors, and there were quite a few. Now call me old school, but I have grown up considering books & newspapers to be my reference point to correct my grammar & vocabulary. It then seems a bit jarring when a good story is plagued with grammatical errors. Having said that, this was the only flaw in the story; otherwise its structure, thought, plot all were very good.

Brilliant job done by Harsh Agarwal to not only compile these stories, but also give them a correct order where each story builds up the momentum into the other.

Kudos to the publisher Half Baked Beans for encouraging short story formats in this way, and one that touches sensitive and risqué topics, & yet emerges a winner!!

A Must Read.

The Twisted Twenties: Actually a Twisted Book!!

I am hardly a fan of soppy, teenage love stories; having said that I cannot deny that I do adore a few “coming-of-age” stories, like everyone else. They are fun to read, full of very real life situations, on which if you ponder today you are filled with a bittersweet feeling, as you can relate to these emotions & anecdotes somewhere in your life as well.

However, there is a very thin line…extremely thin, & at times invisible thin, that separates a good “coming-of-age” tale from a soppy, silly & outlandish story. Unfortunately for me, The Twisted Twenties fell many times in the latter category, except for a few redeeming portions!! Alas, those portions were few & far between.

The Twisted Twenties, published by Half Baked Beans, and written by debutante author Deepali Junjappa…was, well…meh!!

There was so much that the author could have realistically explored about youngsters living through their 20s in India. Frankly it’s an interesting & exciting space to be in. Unlike our earlier generations who lived through their 20s in almost similar & somewhat predictable fashion, the 20s somethings in the last 10-15 years have seen a sea change in lifestyle, choices, career options, etc., etc. In the last 15 years, India has opened itself to such drastic changes in lifestyle, thanks to the sudden boom in globalisation due to increased FDI & Internet consumption, that 20s is suddenly the new teenage age, and 30s is suddenly the new 20s.

Suddenly career front has extended much further & beyond the typical 3 career choices – Doctor, Engineer or Civil Services!! Suddenly India is rife with small scale home entrepreneurs, and mind you a majority of these entrepreneurs are in their 20s & effectively conduct small scale business over social networking. The blogging space….oh…people have made careers out of it!! IT Sector, Production, Aviation, E Commerce, Travel…you name it & the avenues have expanded. It is definitely an exciting space for 20 something woman now!! She has so many choices compared to her predecessors, and even women from B & C towns!! They are dappling with hitherto taboo ideas like multiple boyfriends, marriage after 30, no marriage, marriage but no baby, no marriage – maybe baby – definitely live in, sexuality preference being acceptable at some level…the sky is the limit!!

And with such interesting premise opened up to explore, it pained me to read that Junjappa’s work was quite flat compared to what could have been written & explored in this genre.

If only her characters were more real, if only her characters were more relatable, if only the book did not have that awfully IRRITATING character called Molly!!

PLOT:

Mimi Hittalmani, the protagonist of the book, is as obvious by the title a 20 something, who is confused & trying to figure out her life with respect to career & love & life!! This is the story of her escapades!! That’s it.

Yes….it’s as wafer thin a plot as this!!

Now, just because the plot is wafer thin does not mean the book cannot be interesting. An unfair comparison, yes, but look at Vikas Bahl’s Hindi film “Queen” as an example…wafer thin plot…girl gets stood up at the altar, girl is distraught, girl takes off on her honeymoon alone & there she meets some strangers & funny situations & discovers herself!! But the narrative was well spaced with so many fun situations that the script gave birth to the very first “chick flick” classic from India!!

Book Analysis: WARNING - Possible Spoilers Ahead!!

The Twisted Twenties, on the other hand starts on a very juvenile note. Mimi, the central character, came across as an extremely confused & juvenile person, who is suffering from a deep sense of megalomania. She seems, how we like to put it as “full of herself”. She has the attention span of a 5 year old & shifts preferences on guys at an alarming pace, sometimes so alarming, that she hardly comes across as an endearing or relatable character.

Junjappa has tried very hard to make Mimi a sort of modern day Elizabeth Benett meets Carrie Bradshaw meets Bridgette Jones & in the attempt has created something that is not even half endearing, entertaining or witty as either of the 3 strong characters.

She fell into the very predictable mould when the hero of her novel, Jai, was painted in a Dracy-ish tone!! Almost laughable & so ho-hum.

Ironically, Junappa observes a similar thought via her protagonist Mimi in a different context: “Basically everything is a reconstruction of Pride & Prejudice”!!! So true….i can see that Ms. Junjappa.

Of course, there had to be a friendly, gay guy friend to our heroine – remember SATC!!

But possibly the only “nail on the chalkboard” character was Mimi’s BFF, Molly!!! Oh what a waste of so many lines this character was. Just…if just, this character was wiped off the book, it would have made the reading so much more tolerable. Let me not waste further words in describing this OTT waste of space called Molly.

Now truthfully, the book had some redeeming features. The parallel track of Mimi’s career in Indian TV industry as a story writer is very interesting & evokes genuine & relatable moments. That part of the book is smartly written, punctuated with funny anecdotes & let’s say her description of a certain Telly Soap Queen (wink..wink) was spot on!! Not only that, Mimi’s frustrations with Indian TV industry & how her fantastic storylines are twisted & made into a weepy saga are so genuine. This part of Mimi’s tryst is so much fun, than her irritating love track.

How I wish Junjappa, who has actually written for Indian TV soaps, could have made this story as a central theme & love story as a side track. It would have been so much better!! Like Lauren Weisberger’s “The Devil Wears Prada”, that talks about fashion magazine business as the main track & rest of the love trials & tribulations as a side track. This behind the scenes light peak at Indian TV industry would have formed a much interesting plot than the juvenile banter that formed almost half of The Twisted Twenties’ narrative.

Junjappa’s writing style could not be called fresh, fun & frothy, as is generally the tones of such books; nor was it caustic, cynical & witty that is also some ways of narrative represented in “coming of age” books. Her writing style in Twisted Twenties was something possibly only a teenager today can identify with. Or maybe call me “old school”, when it concerns books, but in my opinion, books should contain some cerebral form of language. I am not saying make it Victorian era prose, no way; the language can be simple & easy to understand, sure, but it has to have some gravity in its content. How else will you separate books from a regular, cheesy Hollywood Rom Com?

For example, J.K.Rowling used the simplest language structure in Harry Potter, as her TG was kids majorly, but her language, despite being simple was not mediocre & juvenile from any angle.

And even if Junjappa wanted to throw the “old school” book writing format out of window & wanted to go all out uninhibited with slang/cuss words, then what is “fecking”?? Use the real words, and if you are shamed to use them, well do not use them at all. Why this half-hearted attempt?

All in all, The Twisted Twenties would have been so much better if it was the story of a 20 year old in the chaos called “The Great Indian TV Industry” & figuring her life in that chaos while nurturing big dreams of career & love!!

Hope to read more on this front from Junjappa.

Revolution 20 20: A little “filmy”, a little reality….an average read!!

I know I am probably very late in writing about this book; after all such is the rage of Chetan Bhagat books in India, that the minute they are released they get picked up by avid readers in the country (and some “not so frequent” readers too as Bhagat’s fiction is mostly easy to read & understand & relate to, thus making it an ideal pick for everyone), and then gets picked up by some top filmmaker to be made into a potential Box Office money spinner.

I, however, read this book recently only, during a holiday; a time when generally one wishes to read light fiction that soothes the soul!!

Amongst Bhagat’s previous books, I have only read his most popular to date, 2 States & had loved it immensely, so naturally my interest was piqued in Revolution 20 20 as well.

 

Synopsis:

Revolution 20 20 is set in the Indian city, Benaras or Varanasi in possibly early 2000s. It is the story of Gopal, a middle class regular small town boy. There is nothing spectacular about Gopal; he is average built, average to look at, average in studies, and comes from a humble background, where his father has lost all his wealth (little that it was) to his own older brother in a property dispute, and is now struggling to meet ends in a family of two that includes him & his son. Basically, the story of a regular Joe who might live next door to us or might be us!!

Gopal’s father has immensely high expectations of his son’s career, like most Indian parents, as he feels he can sacrifice the World but had to get his son to succeed in life with flying colours – the success’ parameter being, a good career prospect with fat pay packet & a position that makes his own head high in society. For this, his father sacrifices every need of his own & lives very humbly, thus creating  maddening pressure on Gopal, who is average in studies, knows his strengths & is fully aware that he cannot achieve what his father is hell bent on making him achieve in life.

In the mix is Gopal’s school time flame & friend, Aarti – the daughter of a wealthy bureaucrat of the city. Aarti is immensely beautiful, quite reckless & takes her fortunes for granted. She is gorgeous & she knows it; she has no particular career aspirations as she knows she comes from a rich background & is pretty & can be easily married off, thus like many women of her ilk, she does want to do a job, but something that is purely a “timepass” for her. She does not care about grades in class, but loves hanging out with Gopal & takes life easily. Gopal is madly in love with her & openly idolises her.

They have a 3^rd friend too, Raghav – a very handsome boy from a well to do family himself, good in studies, good in extracurricular activities, talented & one from whom expectations in career are naturally high because of his grades in school. Raghav is generally aloof of Aarti initially, and closer to Gopal, but things change…

Revolution 20 20 is about these 3 protagonists – Gopal, Aarti & Raghav and how their paths change & intertwine in pursuit of career, love & happiness.

Analysis of the book:

Life is not all about school time banter & jokes; sadly in India life gets full of pressure for a child after 8^th standard & definitely it is full of pressure for a child who comes from very humble background & whose parents want to live their own ambition through their children; they are determined to make their children either Doctors or Engineers, despite the fact that neither does the child have the aptitude to crack the excessively competitive & brain unnerving probability score tests, nor he/she might have the slightest interest or inclination in pursuing a career in the said field. This is completely ignored & the children feel even more pressured when the parents forsake their daily comforts & are ready to take back breaking loans, just to see their child an Engineer amongst a multitude of them, floating across the country, and finally settling down for jobs lesser than their qualification demands.

And, sexist it might sound, but being from a small town myself, I can say easily…this expectation is more from sons than daughters. India, in smaller towns (even in Big cities in many cases), still lives by the mentality, that if the daughter is below average in studies..it is still bearable, as she can be married off at least, the son HAS TO EXCEL, and he does NOT have a choice.

The pressure it surmounts on the children, especially the sons in a family, is maddening. I have personally been a witness to it, and let the snobs say India does not live like this, it very much does & to this date. Those who disagree have either not seen such pressures on school marks or are just being oblivious to it.

Gopal, our protagonist, especially goes through this dilemma. Being below average in studies & lacking the required aptitude for Engineering, he just keeps struggling to get better marks & trying to make his father happy & failing all the time. His other problem is his immense love for Aarti, which goes unrequited many times. He openly propositions Aarti many times for a more serious relationship, but is brushed aside by her, as she is simply not interested in anything more than friendship with Gopal.

 Raghav, on the other hand, excels in studies and being good looking & of a wealthy background, attracts Aarti’s attention much faster. It could also be that Raghav never really tries hard to win over Aarti, while Gopal might have come on a bit too strong, which veers Aarti towards Raghav.

Failing in entrance tests after tests, Gopal’s father sends him to Kota in Rajasthan, that is a city known for running the biggest “coaching classes” to study & build aptitude there for a year, and then crack the IITJEE & AIEEE, the two biggest entrance exams for Engineering aspirants, which Gopal had already not made through with a decent rank previously. All pleas of Gopal fall on deaf ears that he simply does not want to do this yet again, and that Probability ratio in such tests is so low that his chances of making it are very slim anyways. He is still “exiled” to Kota where he keeps daydreaming of Aarti.

I will leave the rest of the book for you to read & decipher as to what happens with our 3 main characters.

Review: (WARNING - Spolier Alert!!)

The book started off as very promising & nice read for me at least. Having lived in a small city & that too in UP, where such competitions are even higher, and having seen my own friends going through what Gopal was suffering from, I could relate to the character. I could also understand his desperate attempts towards Aarti. A small city kid in India has very few options of interaction with the opposite sex, and if the guy in question is average in looks & study & is from humble background, he can get very desperate & can seriously obsess over a relationship over anything else; especially when he is not getting to make a choice in career that suits his aptitude & liking. It might sound very stereotypical & appalling, but it is the truth.

However, midway, somewhere for me the book somewhat lost its realism and became increasingly filmy.

While on one hand, the parts of Gopal’s career struggle & his stint in Kota was painted extremely realistically, on the other hand a lot of pages were wasted in Gopal-Aarti relationship, which became repetitive & frustrating after a while. The desperation of Gopal to get Aarti’s little attention was too much to handle beyond a point. It can also be attributed to the fact, that as a character, Aarti was insipid, predictable, self-centred & somewhat dumb and hardly had anything to her claim but her looks & “daddy’s money”. It then seemed a bit of an anti climax when the whole book became more about her wooing & less about Gopal & Raghav as separate identities.

In fact the drama that was getting built up between Gopal & Raghav was more interesting than anything else, but got too little footage in exchange for the insipid love triangle that was getting formed. The clash of changing ideologies between two childhood friends was something this book should have ideally thrived on to drive “Revolution 20 20” as a point, rather than waste pages on a stupid love saga.

Another thing that dissatisfied me was the portrayal of small town women through Aarti & her weak characterisation. Why was this clash of ideology between Gopal & Raghav; Why not Gopal & Aarti?? How predictable & stereotypical is that?? Girls from smaller towns are driven to prove themselves when given a platform, and often come out as an individual with attributes they themselves were not aware of initially. Is finding a suitable romantic partner & settling down all our heroine could want in life? Could she not want a career of her own, an ideology of her own & tell the two boys to stop treating her like a pawn in their personal ego battle? Is that all our women are made of?? It pained me to see such a stereotypical & bland characterisation for the lead heroine after whom one hero is so desperate that he is willing to forsake everything in life & other treats her as nothing but a decorative wallflower, to give attention to when he has time on hand.

The climax of the book was so filmy & to my mind laughable as well that it made me wonder whether I was reading a book or watching a regular commercial Hindi film that picks up pace well till interval & goes down crashing post interval.

To summarise: Revolution 20 20 had a lot of promise and is a fairly good read too. A little less focus on romance & little more on changing ideologies of the three lead characters would have made this book remarkable by many degrees. The book, in itself, had its characterisation & tone in place correctly…I just wish all three lead protagonists had got proper prominence & well defined character nuances than mere cardboard characterisation.

A motion picture has recently been announced on the book (thought as much J), with Rakjumar Rao playing Gopal (could not have thought of any one better) and some PYT playing Aarti…frankly the way the character is written, nothing more is in any case required. Raghav’s casting is yet to be finalised, but the one tone even his characterisation wears in the book, he can also be played by any actor.

All in all, a one-time read for sure, if nothing but to make you understand the dilemma of students who face illogical career expectations, which has been related beautifully & aptly.

Through the eyes of a Princess: Mistress of the Throne!!

 

“Marble, I perceive, covers a multitude of sins”

-         Aldous Huxley

 

Just eight words in this quote cover so many dimensions in one of the most important chapters of World’s history – the Taj Mahal.

Behind the breath-taking beauty of Taj Mahal, lies a macabre of a story, full of conspiracy & deceit, proving the age old adage that behind everything that looks so beautiful from outside, lies an ugly story…and Ruchir Gupta’s The Mughal Intrigues: Mistress of the Throne just brings that out.

I wish every Prince & Princess’ story had a “happily ever after”, like in fairy tales. Surprisingly though while fairy tales paint the travails of a monarch or a princess to just find “true love” & then “live happily ever after”, historically reality is as “far far away”, as the magical kingdoms of fairytales.

We all read fairytales when we grow up & think in our head, just how perfect a King’s life would be? How happy a Queen would be once married to the King? How the royal children would eat Gold for breakfast & sleep on a bed of Silver!! The reality is that these fantastical images are just in our head. Historically if we come to trace the patterns of a Monarchy & its royal members, behind all the façade of opulence is actually an ugly life full of back-stabbing, jealousy, deceit, politics; where it transcends all boundaries of ugliness & reaches to one’s own parents or children, leave siblings completely aside.

 The author, in this book, has just brought out that feeling.

He had sent me a copy of this book sometime back, & I must say I took my own time to read it J But once I started it, there was no stopping, as the book transported me to the Mughal era….and its characters played each act beautifully in front of me.

While we all know about the great & mesmerising Taj Mahal and the love story behind the monument; we hardly know what all went by when the monument was being conceptualised & made.

While we all know Aurangzeb to be a monster who killed his own kith & kin & captured his own father to seize the Royal Throne, we hardly know what made Aurangzeb the way he was.

While we all have read about the luxuries & ornate opulence of Mughal Dynasty through ages; we hardly know the reality that used to transpire behind closed doors in a Mughal “zenankhana” (harem)…the hotbed of the most devious politics played in the kingdom.

Gupta takes us on this journey through the eyes of Mughal princess Jahan Ara. We all have heard this name Jahanara countless number of times, especially because the name has been romanticised in old Hindi films of 50s & 60s; but we seldom know who Jahanara was & what was her life’s history.

Jahanara was Shahjahan (son of Jahangir, grandson of Akbar’s) & Mumtaz Mahal’s oldest child. Her siblings were “heir apparent” to Mughal throne, Dara Shikoh and then Shuja, Aurangzeb, Murad, Roshanara, and the youngest Gauhar.

While most of us know popular versions of how Shajahan loved Mumtaz Mahal & how amongst his sons, Aurangzeb came out to be a monster…Jahan Ara, as a member of the royal family takes us to the story from the beginning & from within the legendary & infamous Mughal zenankhana or harem.

History is rife with stories of the royal Mughal harem & how it was the actual hotbed of all politics & deceit in the Royal chambers. Shahjahan, like any other monarch, had innumerable wives & concubines. The lives of these women is painted absolutely apt & perfectly by the author. These women, who were the loveliest in the nation, were like a bird trapped inside a golden cage. They lived in the pinnacle of luxury & comfort, but their life was dependent upon when the King would come to the harem & take one of them with him to spend the night. This was their only shot at surviving in the harem with dignity. Thus these women would outdo each other in a bid to catch the Emperor’s eyes…the display of which was pathetic & desperate to say the least. Aside from this display of skin to lure the King, the author also takes us to the world of absolute debauchery that existed in Mughal harems amongst the concubines in depravation of regular indulgence in sex (since the Emperor would visit after days on end, and when he would, the probability of his picking up many women was lesser). He mostly preferred picking up Mumtaz Mahal of all his women, and thus the lady enjoyed the affection & dignity in the palace that came with it, with her children being the cynosure of the country’s eyes!!

Jahan Ara being the eldest, was especially Shahjahan’s favourite, and because she resembled her mother Mumtaz Mahal in not only looks, but also in deportment she was the favourite amongst the Kingdom & the important lords in the Mughal dynasty. This earned her flak in the harem, as jealousy against her perfect demeanour & looks were rife amongst all women in “zenankhana”, including her own sister Roshanara, who was not as pretty as Jahanara and neither had mannerisms to recommend her, and thus hated Jahanara with a vengeance.

In this mix are Jahanara’s brothers Dara Shikoh, Shajahan’s favourite son & heir apparent to the Mughal throne & Aurangzeb. As historical events spell, the two brothers were held captive for years by Noorjahan as ransom post her fallout with Shahjahan, who was Jahangir’s son from a separate marriage. Noorjahan was Shahjahan’s stepmother, & extremely powerful woman. In fact historical facts state that it was Noorjahan who was the ruler of India at the time of Jahangir, with the latter just being a mere face to the public eye. There are evidence to prove that a heavily doped out and neck deep in merriment, Jahangir, was just an official face of the workings of dynasty…he used to sit in his House of Commons & would listen to the pleas of his countrymen to maintain a face to them. The real governance was in Noorjahan’s hand who was a highly crafty & manipulative woman, ruling the most powerful Kingdom of the region (handed down to Jahangir in a “platinum” platter by his father, the great Akbar). Noorjahan took advantage of Jahangir’s lack of interest in politics, & since Jahangir was captivated in her love, she used this to get her own father, Itmad-Ud-Daulah, appointed as the Prime Minister & de facto authority of the dynasty. Thus Noorjahan ran the actual governance, when Shahjahan, (Jahangir’s son with his Rajput wife Taj Bibi Bilquis/Princess Manmati) crushed her power in a rebellion & widowed her daughter by killing his own brother Shahriar, to whom Noorjahan’s daughter Ladli Begum was betrothed. Before this, Noorjahan had held Shah Jahan’s two sons Dara & Aurangzeb as ransom, so that Shah Jahan could not revolt easily.

However, things did not go as planned out by her, & the two young princes were finally freed from her captivity & united with their family. Jahanara then noticed that both her brothers, especially Aurangzeb had become different personalities under Noorjahan’s captivity & had not much love between them.

While this could have been healed by Jahanara’s mother Mumtaz earlier, at the time this story starts, Mumtaz Mahal was in her worst health as regular child bearing & miscarriages had left her a ghost of a woman & in extremely poor condition.

The tension between the siblings is painted beautifully by the author. Despite the situation involving a lot of drama, what I liked was that this sibling rivalry & heartburns were painted without extra melodrama, yet the true emotion of their rivalry was coming out in good effect.

For instance, despite being perfect, Jahanara does not come across as some irritating Miss Goody two shoes, but as an older sister who is trying desperately to keep all her siblings, especially her brothers Dara & Aurangzeb together. Her faith, despite seeing her family crumble, is not coming across as a foolhardy vision, but a genuine attempt to bridge gaps created by outsiders.

Hell breaks loose when two events happen in quick succession. Mumtaz Mahal’s death & eventual appointment of Jahanara as a de facto Queen till Dara was responsible & old enough to ascend the Throne. This stems jealousy in Roshanara, and further deepens the chasm between the siblings with them forming camps. Shah Jahan becomes a lost man without his wife Mumtaz’s loving & restraining hand and takes irrational calls that helps this rivalry to reach dangerous proportion. He also becomes disillusioned & spends most of his time in his harem with his many concubines or in building the monument World still sees as the finest, The Taj Mahal.

Shah Jahan shows open favouritism despite Jahanara’s many pleas & warnings & prefers Dara as his successor & favourite son, while despite proving his sharp military acumen, Aurangzeb is met with disdain bordering on contempt.

Gupta effectively paints the pain Jahanara goes through to keep her family together while without being over dramatic. Not only that, he paints the emotions of Aurangzeb beautifully, so much so that I would urge him to write a book on the infamous monarch of India as well!! Strong from outside, but weak with emotions & looking for approval inside; cruel on one aspect but needy for parental love in another; barbaric towards other faiths than Islam, but great military & economic acumen. Aurangzeb was hated by one & all, his own family & his countrymen, & somehow this made him further headstrong & bullish & irrational. It is definitely not easy to go around the World knowing you are despised by one & all; even those closest to you. Aurangzeb’s turmoil was beautifully captured by the author.

The author has taken creative liberty & painted certain fictional accounts too (like Jahanara’s love interest), but they do not seem out of place; in fact they could be & in all probability would be facts and bring out the evil law in royal kingdom rumoured to be established by Akbar, where no Mughal Princess was destined to marry in her life; she was destined to die a spinster. The reason for this cruel law could probably be to eliminate all possibilities of a claim to Mughal Throne by the offspring of a daughter, thus changing the royal bloodline, and could have been particularly done after Akbar himself faced a revolt from her sister’ husband; or if these rumours against Akbar are not true, then could have just been because Princesses were supposed to marry cousins & Shahjahan killed all his brothers & their male progeny, leaving no suitor for his daughters.

The pain that the princesses go through to meet their clandestine lovers & their indulgence in homosexual relations within the harem has been painted not sensationally but very subtly yet driving full impact. It did not seem that the author was stuck at using sex to sell his book (despite the opportunity present), but was stating a glaring fact, that helped the story include all historical events in a crisp manner.

The double standards of Mughal emperors & society by & large were brought about sometimes in casual discussion, while sometimes in heart wrenching parts.

Finally, what I found the best about the book was that nowhere, not in any line or verse, did Gupta’s Mistress of Throne try to paint any one character as the “purist” hero/heroine of the story. Every character, including Jahanara are painted in their character’s hues & not black or white, which gives the story a lot of power & emotion, than a mere re-telling of historical facts or a one dimensional version. Jahanara is painted a strong & resilient woman, that historical facts state she was, and one who sacrificed her own happiness for her family, yet even she had shortcomings like any human being.

It is a good book & definitely a must read for all. The language is simple & cohesive and the book despite being a historical re-telling is a quick read. My only wish was that the author should have chosen a better cover page to highlight his book further….but other than that I extremely enjoyed reading Ruchir Gupta’s The Mughal Intrigues: Mistress of the Throne.

 

Neelakantan’s Ajaya: Roll of the Dice – A Black & White version of an originally grey Epic!!

I had received a preview chapter of Ajaya by Anand Neelakantan sometime last year. I was so deeply impressed by the promise that just the preview chapter & the book’s premise held, that I could not wait long enough for Ajaya’s release.

I had even written a detailed blog post – right here -  (http://vidhithebookworm.blogspot.in/2013/10/a-sneak-preview-of-ajaya-roll-of-dice.html)  on Ajaya’s preview with a hope that the book will finally bring out the “grey” element of Mahabharat, which is against the popular notion that people have of the great Epic’s story.

But I was sadly mistaken. In fact it became difficult for me to read Ajaya because of the weak & one sided characterisation that almost all characters had in the book.

Ajaya will be a superb read & in fact quite an explosive read for those who have surface level knowledge of the great epic…who have basically grown up knowing that Pandavas are heroes of the epic & Kauravas are villains; who have understood Mahabharat mostly through TV serial adaptations (& that also what they largely saw in the 1980s…not today; B.R.Chopra’s Mahabharat was superb, but most of us need to watch it again today to understand character & situation nuances) or stories carried forward from the elders in the family. They will suddenly find the story turning on its head & will love the new “discovery” they have made.

However, for those, who have studied the epic a bit more in detail, know that Mahabharat never paints any character as wholly black or wholly white, to the extent that even Vishnu’s avatar “Krishna” is painted grey in the epic – he steals, tricks, plays politics, lies & uses deceit in various situations to achieve an ultimate goal. This is Mahabharat’s core essence – please understand it was never & is never a religious book. It is an epic – the biggest anthology in the World that “studies human behaviour & psychology”. It studies how the worst get out the best & the best get out the worst in them when faced with life’s puzzling situations.

With the very premise of Mahabharat being so grey & reflective, Ajaya for me fell completely short of what I expected from Neelakanthan. With his superb writing & storytelling style, I expected him to finally bring out the grey of the epic in front of the people…who so far think Mahabharat to be a black & white epic too. Sadly, that did not happen.

 

The whole book seemed like a PR release from Kaurava & Co. camp. Yes, Duryodhana had many good qualities, but he was also an egotistical & short tempered man. Since his childhood he was made to believe that he will one day rule Hastinapur and fulfil his father’s dreams. He was shown this big dream by Dhritharasthra, who could not get the throne for himself & tried to realise the same through his eldest son. He was an excessively pampered & loved child by his father & was under his uncle Shakuni’s thumb. Having said that, it was not like Pandavas tried any attempts at a truce with him too. Apart from attempts by Yudhishthira, rest of the Pandavas treated Duryodhana with equal disdain, especially Bhima & Arjun.

But in Ajaya, he is shown as a man who was some lost, dreamy lover with big reformist dreams (for which he does practically nothing but mope) & one who sees love everywhere around him. It is then very shocking that how could Mr. Sensitivity order a woman to be disrobed publicly, just because she laughed at him; or order building a house of lac to get his cousins & aunt burnt alive. The unnecessary painting of Duryodhana as a lover boy saint was too one-dimensional & underwhelming. Duryodhana in Mahabharat is a strong character – he is handsome, well built, athletic, a very protective brother to his siblings, sharp in studies & one who constantly wishes to excel in the art of mace fighting; he has a big heart & is very warm towards people he loves (his wife & his friend Karna), irrespective of who they are; however his cons were that while he had a warm heart for those he loved, he was irrationally close hearted for those whom he did not like, he was ambitious, egoistic, and could go to any lengths to achieve his goal- whether he agreed with those methods or not. Does it make him sound more human? More like you & me & people we often see around us? Good, because that is what this great Epic is all about.

Mahabharat spares no one & paints everyone as a grey character. The irony of the book is that while almost all major characters in the book talk tall tales of upholding “dharma”, honour, duty etc., they all fail to follow it, somewhere or the other, thus leaving scope for lot of ripple effects– be it Bheeshma, Drona, Dhritharasthra, Kunti, Pandavas, Kauravas, Gandhari or anyone.

Ajaya on the other hand takes clear one-dimensional sides – one black & one white. Therefore in order to paint one side as only white, the author here uses one or two isolated stray incidents to twist around & justify his monochrome characterisation. Neelakanthan did that in Asura too, but in Ajaya it was prevalent from the very first chapter.

For example:

·        Duryodhana - Subhadra - Arjun angle: It is true that Arjun went on a marriage spree post his marriage to Draupadi to firm up his base of allies. This “kootneeti” or strategy was the guidance of Krishna to help Pandavas firm up their base, so that at the time of Rajasuya Yagya, most kingdoms automatically pledge their allegiance to the Pandava throne, without least/no amount of bloodshed. Seeing this, Shakuni egged Duryodhana to impress Balrama by appointing him as his master in mace-fight art, & subsequently butter him up to ask for Subhadra’s hand – all a political move. Krishna pre-empted that move & instead arranged Arjuna & Subhadra’s meeting, where Subhadra fell in love with Arjuna & decided to elope with him. In Ajaya, however, the whole episode is made into an unrequited love saga, which is not even convincing, especially Subhadra & Duryodhan being in love before Duryodhan’s graduation, when as a practice students in that era were isolated from rest of the world & practised “brahmcharya” (lived a hermit’s life with full focus on gaining education) as a cardinal rule. Subhadra is anyways introduced in Mahabharat post Arjun’s marriage to Draupadi & when he goes on a “penance journey” (which is actually a marriage spree).

 

·        Karna & Draupadi angle: By all means Karna had all qualities that any woman would want in a husband. If Draupadi had prayed for a husband with all 5 qualities – honour, valour, strength, beauty & sensitivity – she did not have to marry 5 men; Karna had all these qualities. However, she willingly chose Arjun, as his popularity, valour, looks and lineage tempted her the most. She indeed did not wish to marry someone whose lineage was of dubious origin & whose royal status was a gift that could have been revoked. That was her weakness. She applied to Krishna for a solution, when Karna approached the dais to shoot his aim, and Krishna seeing her unwillingness gestured her to refuse. She did that & got what she wanted. In the book, however, this is again painted as a puppy love story gone wrong; when it was indeed a decision made by Draupadi on her own. Also, if I try to look at this from another angle, then Karna, who is painted as jilted lover in Ajaya, actually went ahead & called Draupdai a prostitute & aided in her getting disrobed & humiliated, just because she refused to marry him? So basically, the woman “asked for it”, as usual. Whatever happened to Karna was highly unfair, but he was denied far greater things & humiliated much more by men like Bheeshma, Drona & Parashuram…why didn’t he take any action against them? Because, like all other men, he could also find a vulnerable victim in a cornered woman only.

My point in stating this angle is not to deride Karna’s glory & his beautiful persona, but to drive the point that this is Mahabharat; the best in the worst & the worst in the best under life’s situations.

 

·        Jarasandha & Shishupal: The events regarding these two kings with Krishna were laughable for me. The whole Shishupal episode of how he was Krishna’s cousin & always nurtured rivalry for him is ignored; the fact that Rukmini was forcibly put in an arranged marriage set-up with Shishupal is again ignored; Rukmini applied to Krishna through a letter (that is famed as the oldest ever love letter or proposal in World’s history) expressing her desire to marry him, & Krishna eloped with Rukmini to avoid unnecessary bloodshed & married her. This was the cause of Shishupal’s bitterness towards Krishna.

Jarasandha, the king of Magadh, famed to have the biggest Akhada (wrestling arena – which by the way is still to be seen in Bihar) in the World, was Kansa’s father in law. Everybody is well aware of Krishna & Kansa story. Post Kansa’s death, Jarasandha became sworn enemy of the Yadav clan & raided Mathura 17 times, to be defeated & still spared each time. Seeing the unrest the constant war was causing Mathura & its people, Krishna took the decision to shift his city to a remote island Dwarka. All his elders were against this decision, as they warned him that he will be called “Ranchhordas” (one who is running away from battlefield) in history, a title no “valiant” warrior aspires to earn – all of them fight for eternal glory, remember? But Krishna did not want undue bloodshed of his people & thus at the cost of earning whatever title was bestowed upon him, he shifted his capital to Dwarka. The whole Jarasandha Vadh episode is painted in such a one sided & funny light, as though Jarasandh was some holier than thou monarch (whose Akhada held duels nightmares are made of & who had trapped 95 kings to make human sacrifice of). Challenging him to a duel was the best way to finish the long feud without unnecessary bloodshed of many people & without starting another War. Post Jarasandha’s death, his own son Sahadeva was given accession to the throne. I might ask if Pandavas & Krishna were as black as painted in Ajaya, why didn’t they keep the kingdom to themselves. The might of “Magadh” as a kingdom is legendary & frankly to this date Bihar plays the most prominent role in deciding the country’s political fate. Annexing such a kingdom would have been the best decision of any Monarch, isn’t it?

 

Again my point of providing such a detailed storyline was to make you understand that Mahabharat or Ramayan cannot be looked from a prism of black & white only, & this is where Ajaya as a book failed for me.

 

Like Ram was painted in such a “blah” manner in Asura, & like his character wasn’t even developed; Ajaya takes “Krishna” to another level. It is laughable how Krishna is depicted as this popular superstar who likes having his minions around. Many millennia has come & gone, & brought so many foreign invasions, so many sects branched out of Sanatan dharma (Hinduism as popularly known), so many religions & faith came & are living harmoniously still, yet Krishna is one name whose charm & enigma over people has not faded even a bit. By all means strip him off his godly demeanour in your re-telling Neelakanthan, that is your creative liberty & your outlook, but why such a week characterisation of someone who holds such enigma on everyone’s hearts even today? At least his character could have been etched with more layers if nothing else.

 

The book also holds subtle indications, where it is implying Bhagvad Geeta to be a book that kills one’s conscience; To quote: “Arjuna left the room, confused about the whole concept of Dharma. Maybe one day someone would explain things to him clearly, so he would not feel the “pinch of his conscience” in doing what his mother suggested.”

 

Is the author suggesting that the biggest truth & philosophy of life, Bhagvad Gita, that has been & is still the most revered upon doctrine on “Life & Truth” by the most learned men from all walks of life, is nothing but a conscience killer?? Even if the author is taking creative liberty, that was a very underwhelming light to paint the text with.

 

While Neelakanthan’s writing style was superb as usual, I wish he can provide more nuanced & layered versions of his stories, than give me highly one sided views. Only good thing that I liked about this book was how casteism’s vice was beautifully & effectively portrayed by Eklavya & Karna – one of most wronged characters in History.

 

P.S: I was floored by the author’s father’s views (late Mr. L. Neelakanthan) on Mahabharat (mentioned in the after notes). I would again love to read the epic keeping senior Neelakanthan’s POV in mind. It might just open another interpretation in my head J J Oh the joy of reading Mahabharat!! J J J