Author Interview : Nilesh Rathod, author of 'Destiny of Shattered Dreams'

Nilesh Rathod

Read up, the Interview with Nilesh Rathod, author of 'Destiny of Shattered Dreams'. If we give this book its due, we would understand what it is that I mean by calling it a poetic book because it does have probably a little too many poems :).

This interview consists of how the book actually happened, what the core idea was, which particular character, the author feels most close to, how he relates the book and its characters  to day to day lives, the next book he has planned, advice for authors, today and much, much more, Folks...

How did ‘Destiny of Shattered Dreams’ happen?

In one sentence… ‘It was destined’. I had no intention to end up with a full length novel, when I first started writing this book. It was like one paints a picture for one self.

It so happened that when I was finished, I didn't merely write a story for myself it was a novel worth an audience. 

What kind of research did you put into the writing of this book?

I have a business background. So, researching that part of the story came easy. The tough bits were researching mind-sets in broken love, researching human relationships, et al.

My second book needs some serious research and gives me goose bumps at times. 

What according to you is different about your book?

It came naturally, and I let it be as it was… Being different was never my goal... I wrote and rewrote till the story began to overwhelm me...

And when it did I knew it was ready for the road ahead. 

How did you come up with the core idea and develop it?

I write one line at a time and had only a rough sketch. But, as I went ahead, two things happened. The sketch kept reinventing itself, and at no stage, I knew for sure what the next line would be.

I just kept going, and the book wrote itself... I cannot think of any other way of writing.

How would you relate the book and its characters to your day to day lives?

Characters are built on history... The challenge is when you spend too much time building characters, what happens is unless you can come up with something special you will bore people with rhetoric.

Therefore, I avoid spending time building characters… They display themselves with their actions as the story pulls along. 

Which particular character did you feel most close to? Why?

Hands down Qazi... I gave him my poems, remember.

I am sure he has a role... I am almost ready to take a chance and work on a sequel with him in the lead… But that's only in the mind. 

Could you tell the readers about your experiences and how it was related to what you wrote?

This is fiction and I would leave the answer to that… I do not have any significant experiences of writing to share. But editing and bringing it to the bookshelves was one hell of a job. 

What is the most fulfilling part of writing this book? And what is

the most challenging? 

I don't do anything I don't like. The day I feel writing is a challenge... I would believe it's time to quit.

And loving what you do is the fun of doing anything. I look forward to get to my work as much as I look forward to get home, when I am done... I pretty much love everything I do. 

What is the next book that you have planned?

‘The Emissary’. It's a historical fiction set in pre-independent India. The novel is a memoir of a village boy, who gets thrown into the politics of imperial rule and Anti-Semitic Germany.

I kept wondering what Gandhi would have done if he got a chance to confront the perpetuators of the Second World War. This book will be an attempt to answer that question. 

Who was it that told you that you could become the author, you are today?

I knew I could write. The decision to become one was mine… I seldom had a doubt that if I ever wrote a novel it wouldn't find a publisher or wouldn't be welcomed.

My concept of a satisfaction in writing is not by the number of copies sold. If I could influence even one person with my work, it's a job, well done. I am happy to know my first attempt has done more than that. 

Any advice to writers that would like to be published today? How tough is it to be published?

Write your best work. Believe in yourself. And keep trying... It's a tough world... But don't aim for success, as it's the wrong train to catch. It often frustrates you... Instead write to satisfy yourself.

The poetry in my first book was written about 20 years ago. I felt no anxiety for all these years that I should find a publisher for them. Knowing well, they weren't bad... When the time comes things happen… Just keep at it.

Who are your favourite authors and why?

Rabindranath Tagore

I haven't read too much fiction really… In the last year or so I have started on that. But  I do love a few already.

Which book are you currently reading?

'Gora' by Rabindranath Tagore.

What else do you do on a daily basis?

I run a company I founded 15 years ago. It's called Ensemble, it builds offices, hotels and retail on contract for its customers and employs 2,000 people, as of 2016.

I am also an amateur photographer and hope to train myself more. I love to party, speak to kids and try to keep fit. 

You can Read the Review and Buy the Book, right here.

Book Review : 'Vagrants in the Valley' by Ruskin Bond

Ruskin Bond’s ‘Vagrants in the Valley’ is a true classic. It does take off from its prequel, ‘The Room on the Roof’, but they have their own places in my head. :)

 

Rusty, a boy of 17 is all set to take off on another of his ‘misadventurous’ times. A teenager and his friend, walking among the hills, is exactly what I wanted to read about. It takes the ups and downs of living a life of a boy, who wanted to be a writer. 

From Hardwar, you cannot miss the sleep, the two travelers manage to catch in the dorms or the ticketless travels on the trains after only singular meals across the hills, up north. Through the book, Rusty and Kishen are in the middle of another ‘series’ beginning, when you catch the two of them, having baths in the streams and landing up in a dilapidated old church.

The interesting encounters he has with an American, and the famous lafunga (loafer), and the lady with the hookah, and his father’s old friend, a Mr Pettigrew, also the kind of famous wrestler, Hathi and of course the dumb boy, known simply as Goonga, who used only three letters to describe anything or everything, and those were ‘Goo’.

Do not miss the unknown aunt either, in this book and definitely not all the adventures Rusty goes through to find the books, left behind by his father, especially, ‘Alice in Wonderland’. And the odd highs he finds himself in, when he is made to have the odd alcohol trips. Of course, Rusty's no drunkard!

The trip from Hardwar to Dehra and finally to Rishikesh is not the end,

Ruskin Bond from Wikipedia

because you do not want to miss Rusty’s trip to England after this. That’s in another book… :)

 

The best thing about this book, is the nostalgia, you can feel in it. Then of course, you are always wondering if you would ever have the adventures that keep on happening.  The book is beautiful, and literally drags you in, and allows you to walk along the stream, and enjoy the solitary longings of the beautiful hills…

Of course, Tom Alter's introduction should get you, right on the path. 

You can Buy the Book, right here.

Author Interview : Vibha Batra, author of 'Glitter and Gloss'

Vibha Batra

Read up, Interview with Vibha Batra, author of ‘Glitter and Gloss’. This howlarious book had me laughing my guts out. And the interview's super short too and just about right.

She tells us, how the entire book came about, how she relates the lives of her characters to lives today, how the lead character, Misha came about, the most challenging part of the book, the next book she has planned and much more. To the point is this author, Folks...

How did ‘Glitter and Gloss’ happen? Could you describe the journey? 

I’d just finished writing my first romance novel and the withdrawal symptoms – shudder - they were severe. 

So like any addict, I decided to get my fix. And Glitter and Gloss came about!

Fashion shows are a relevant part of your story. Gossip and pesky relatives too. How did the life there and its experiences play a part in your novel?

Haha! Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. No relatives were harmed during the making of this work.

How would you relate the lives of characters to the lives today? Any similarities?

I would have loved to say that they have all been culled from real life / they are composites of people, I have come across in real life. But then there’s the small matter of the disclaimer above. Ahem!

What was the most challenging part about writing ‘Glitter and Gloss’?

Weaning self away from the hypnotic pull of social media! And once the writing bit gets done, it’s the marketing. Sigh, it’s always the marketing.

What are the most fulfilling parts in your book?

I may be biased, but I kind of like ‘em all. :)

Which particular character did you feel most close to? Why?

Hmm, let’s just say, if Akshay came to life, I’d sooo be pushing Misha out of the way and be like, “Get in line, babe!”.

When will your next book be out?

End of the year. Fingers and toes crossed.

Which book are you currently reading?

'Big Magic' by Elizabeth Gilbert.

Who are you favourite authors and why?

Guy de Maupassant

My grandfather (the late Shri Vishnukant Shastri), Ruskin Bond, Bill Bryson, Nick Hornby, JK Rowling, Marian Keyes, Sophie Kinsella, Helen Fielding, Saki, Guy De Maupassant and many, many more. 

Harivansh Rai Bachchan

Favourite poets include Rabindranath Tagore, Ogden Nash, Ghalib, Rumi, Jagdish Gupt, Shiv Om Ambar, and Harivansh Rai Bachchan. 

Why? Because you can read them and reread them and read them some more. 


You can  Read the Review, right here and Buy the Book, too.

 

Book Review : 'Glitter and Gloss' by Vibha Batra

Vibha Batra put me in a super cool place, just like she does her heroine. Why? Will tell you about it!

So, we have Misha, one fine day, when she meets Akshay Agarwal. Dreamy eyed and goofy, she is all set to ‘make up’ Akshay before she finds out that he is the sponsor of the event. He is the owner of Agarwal Jewellers and he is the hot one. 

Misha is her usual awkward self and is hurrying up, not just herself, but all those including Akshay. But god! She is funny. I do not remember having laughed so much, during the first few pages of a book, before. That’s when I knew, I had found a hilarious book.

Misha, the adorable goofball works at MAC. She always wanted to make brides look really pretty on their wedding day, and that is the reason, she was at the bridal show, where she met Akki.

Akki too seems to have taken a liking for the foot-in-the mouth girl. Anyway, he goes on to meet her at MAC and then she is all set to be sent off to Dubai. They have a fashion show there and so, we are treated to more fun. 

As the two spend time together, amidst all the noise in Dubai and Mumbai, Misha realises that she has fallen in love. But, she has a sister-in-law to deal with. Especially, since Misha and Akshay have made promises to each other and declared their wish to marry each other.

Akki has a mother, in his sister. She brought up the young boy, and now wants to find the perfect daughter-in-law. Misha, the usual Misha that she is, does not qualify. So, the poor thing is put through a series of prayers to the almighty. She feels that she must do everything, and more, much to the chagrin of her own mother, and her two best friends.

Vibha Batra

So, in trying all this, she manages to do the favourite foot in mouth syndrome. She was actually trying to help out with her future family, and ends up breaking it off with Akshay. Her sister-in-law was thrilled but is this, the end? Will Misha get out of the trouble? Will she soothe her own family? Will she have the love of her life back?

I never had read any of Vibha Batra’s books before this. But considering that she made me laugh out loud, so many times, at random moments, she definitely made me regret that I haven’t read them before. This book is too funny and you will not regret buying it. Highly recommended. 

You can Buy the Book, right here.