I have collected 33 short
stories of mine into an ebook which will be published next week. Most of these stories were written in the
last two years and published in my blog. Just to give a taste of what the stories are
like, let me give the links to three stories selected at random:
Ahalya – the first
story in the volume
And
quiet flowed the Beas – the tenth story
The
Nomad Learns Morality – the title story
The volume is dedicated to
“Radha Soami Satsang Beas especially Dr Pranita Gopal.” RSSB is a religious organisation which took
over a school in Delhi where I was teaching for quite a while. In about two years the organisation bulldozed
the school to smithereens. The bulldozer
became my guru and muse. However, the
stories are in no way related to the school or RSSB. Not at all to the bulldozer. Not even to Dr Pranita Gopal. All these happened to be my best
inspirers. I’m obliged to them
eternally. Were it not for them, the
potential for fiction writing would have died quietly within me. As Lord Rama’s touch brought life to
Ahalya, RSSB brought a different life to the writer in me. Dr Gopal is one of the many faces of RSSB
that I came close to. My admiration for
her grows day by day.
I’m now working on a novel
which is totally inspired by the RSSB.
The novel is tentatively titled Black Hole. Following is an extract from it:
In the beginning was a
black hole. The black hole was with God,
and the black hole was God. All things
existed in the black hole. Nothing could
escape the tenacity with which the black hole held everything within it. The bonds of that tenacity grew strong and
stronger until the black hole could not bear the bondage anymore. And it exploded. Boom.
Big Bang. And the black hole
became flesh.
Ishan Salman Panicker was
writing his gospel.
The picture in this post is not the actual cover of
the book. I designed it for fun. I now live a few metres away from the road in
the picture. It is a picturesque village
in Kerala whose landscapes suffuse beauty and vigour into my soul through an
osmotic process which could not have taken place elsewhere. I’m grateful to RSSB and its people for
giving me this gift without even their knowledge.
That’s how life works.
We become agents of transmutation in other people’s lives. We can be Desdemonas or Iagos. Othello may fail to recognise the genuine
face. Othellos, Desdemonas and Iagos
create art for us. My stories are humble
attempts to catch some of those aesthetic moments of life. Some of those glimpses which may add some
beauty to a life that is otherwise bulldozed over.
Congratulations.
ReplyDeleteThanks.
DeleteCongratulations! I hope to get my hands on the print copy
ReplyDeleteHaven't thought of the print edition. Maybe, I'll.
DeleteThe print version will be available too.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations :)
ReplyDeleteBest Wishes
Thank you, Rupam.
DeleteHearty Congratulations and Best wishes sir...!
ReplyDeleteThank you, friend.
DeleteAwaiting eagerly. Thanks. I want to relive the remnants of my past. Want to learn what I might not have learnt.
ReplyDeleteAwaiting eagerly. Thanks. I want to relive the remnants of my past. Want to learn what I might not have learnt.
ReplyDeleteGrateful for your zeal. The stories may not carry that sort of lessons but I do hope they will remind you of a lot of things.
DeleteWonderful. Congratulations. Wish you all the best :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Purba
DeleteCongrts sir, good to see u again sir on blogspot.
ReplyDeleteI had no choice, sir. Since I can't be a swami i have to be a writer. Thanks for welcoming me to where I rightfully belong.
DeleteCongrts sir, good to see u again sir on blogspot.
ReplyDeleteWow.. The much awaited writer has arrived finally. I am happy and deeply inspired. Congratulations :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Roohi. You once asked me why I get caught in the cycle repeatedly (not in the same words). I have seen Rahu and Ketu playing their incessant shadow game. ..:)
DeleteAmazing! Best wishes!
ReplyDeleteThank you.
DeleteCongratulations sir... Wish you all the best for the success... I will read your short stories soon...
ReplyDeleteThe book is almost ready for publication. Thanks.
DeleteLife is for those, who dare most.
ReplyDeleteYou will meet in my stories great persons like Lord Rama and Alexander the great who faltered... I understand what you mean...
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis is beyond me...
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteThanks for sharing. There were ways to save ourselves from that big fraud ... We defeated ourselves. We let ourselves be ruined by an entity that perceived itself as Browning's Duke of Ferrara who put an end to all smiles altogether in order to uphold the 900 year old family morality!
DeleteSir can you send me a link to the book so I can buy.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to the series.
Is there a way I can get in touch with you? Your old number I have does not seem functional.
As soon as the book is released I'll let you know. Please don't call me. I'm under self-imposed imprisonment.
Delete