Author Interview : Abhishek Krishnan, author of ‘Clouds Don't Pass' (Part 1)

Abhishek Krishnan

How did ‘Clouds Don’t Pass’ happen? Could you describe the journey? 

I am a film aspirant. Apart from acting, I have also had a tad bit of interest in making movies. So, this story initially started as a movie screenplay, inspired from many incidents from my own life.

I accidentally stumbled upon this 'novel' idea. I got encouragement from my friends and it happened.

How did the story, especially Abi’s come out? Did you have a lot of personal experiences to go with it?

Yes... There are a lot of personal experiences in the book. Especially, the college and romance portions. 

Some of them are exaggerated though. However, all that happens in the chapter, ‘the wait’, happened to me.

What according to you is different about your book?

I have attempted two points of view of narration. Third person and first person. The story starts off from the angle of a third person. This is where, I have introduced the characters and the setting. When Abi starts narrating his story to Renjith, the narration changes to first person.

I am not sure if this has been attempted, elsewhere. I haven’t read too many books to be honest.

What was the most challenging part about writing ‘Clouds Don’t Pass’?

Lack of time. It took me three and a half years to finish this book. I almost gave up at a particular point of time. I did not write a word for about a couple of years. 

Later, I happened to browse through my old documents and skimmed through the 150 odd pages, I had already written. I realized it would make a decent book.

And so, I quit my job and finished the book in the next three months.

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

All the characters that come in the book (except Sushmita and Jesse) are real life characters. There are many people like Abi, who are desperate to make it into movies.

Abi’s friends – Chalu, Peri, Renjith, Nithin, Harish and all the others mentioned, are my friends in real life. And there are instances, where they have gone the extra mile for friends. 

You can catch My Book Review of 'Clouds Don't Pass' here.