Writer, editor, voracious reader, techie, Paritosh Uttam wears many hats. His first novel, Dreams in Prussian Blue was published by Penguin India under its Metro Reads banner in January 2010. He has also edited Urban Shots, an anthology of 29 short stories. While his latest offering, Urban Shots hits the shelves this week, we get talking about his first novel, Dreams in Prussian Blue, writing and much more. Read on... &n...
Samit Basu, novelist, screenwriter, writer of comics and local monster, talks about his latest book Turbulence and writing among other things. You wear the crown of India’s first SFF genre writer. Eight years down the line, how do you feel with that title on your head? Ambivalent. It’s not a crown in particular, and I don’t particularly believe in book categories. I don’t see myself as a genre writer – if I did, I would be ...
A versatile new-age writer, Rashmi Kumar represents everything a “girl in the city” should. Glamorous, smart, intelligent and very humane. Currently working for Business India, there’s more to this lovely lady than just being a journalist. Read on to know more… Coming to your first book: Stilettos in the Newsroom-What brought about the ideation of the story? I’ve been a journalist for the past eight years and this book reflects...
Ahmed Faiyaz, Managing Director, Grey Oak Publishers and a prolific writer with a deep insight to relationships, as they exist today in the urban cities, shares his thoughts and views with BookChums. Beginning with the mundane/clichéd question: When, where and how did the writing bug bite? I’m not sure actually, to be honest. I guess being a voracious reader (as I am) is what pushed me towards writing in the first place. Back when I was 10 years o...
Advertising, writing books, being a family person, Anuja Chauhan has been there, done that, and with much elan and grace. We get talking to the lovely lady to see what makes her tick. Before we get down to writing, tell us something about your career in copywriting at JWT. I loved it! It never felt like working...and to think I drifted into it completely randomly! I can't imagine any other career where I could've worked so happily and for so long.....
Devdutt Pattanaik, by some standards, is one of mankind’s last great hopes . Through his work on Hindu mythology and its many nuances, he has been building bridges across the respective cultures of the west and the east, enhancing their understanding of each other. Additionally, he works for the Future Group as their Chief Belief Officer. A broad picture of what his work involves can be had at his website here. His most recent book is JAYA -- an illustrated...
Anurag Anand, a marketing professional by day and a passionate writer by night (wait…does that make him sound like some “pseudo Superman/Superauthor”!??!) – recently launched his fourth book –The Quest For Nothing. It is a contemporary love story, tracing the trials and tribulations in the relationship of a young working couple in light of the never ending career aspirations and the zest to succeed professionally. And for those who still...
Not many know about the man whose first book has garnered rave book reviews and is topping the bestseller charts steadily. We are talking about a bright new author Rikin Khamar and his first book The Lotus Queen. There’s more about this bright author who grew up in London; enjoyed his vacations in India; professionally is a business strategy advisor; a passionate photographer and artist; and a poet by choice. BookChums brings to you an exclusive inte...
When I contacted Rohini Kejriwal, for the first time, she came across as a 20-year-old, who, like Alisha, her protagonist from her short story - Learning & Unlearning, a short story from Down The Road - was interested in Maggi parties, masti and friends. But just like Alisha’s character had a lot of depth and acute understanding of life, this girl too knows what she wants to do in life and how she could go about it.
With blogging, writing short storie...
A renowned blogger and a lover of…words, Kunal Dhabalia is a software professional who enjoys traveling and capturing images for life. BookChums gets talking to this young man. Here’s all that he told us. Where do you draw inspiration from? Any author/book that has had the most impact on your or your writing? My inspiration for writing can be anybody. Most of my sto...
Social Media Revolution is taking the globe under its stride. A lot has been explored and a lot still needs to be uncovered. In this scenario, “Social Media Simplified” is a great attempt by Vijayendra Haryal and Anandan Pillai that points out key aspects of social media strategies, along with case studies based on Indian brands highlighting their success. BookChums got talking with the two authors to unearth the story behind the book. ...
The launch of Growing Up In Pandupur in Mumbai gave us a chance to interact with two very versatile and creative authors - Adithi and Chatura Rao. Growing Up In Pandupur is a marvelous collection of 13 short stories for children. And parents alike. The writing is mature and stable, but at no place does it feel commanding or overbearing. So kids will have no difficulty breezing through the stories. Talking to the author-sisters would really ma...
Corporate World seems like a parallel Universe. It is intriguing, fascinating and yes, shocking! And capturing a bit of the "shock" is Sumit Aggarwal's debut novel "Office Shocks". The novel encapsulates the protagonists' first day at work. Filled with humor, the shocking incidents make for a quick read. BookChums got talking to the author for his take on the book and the corporate world. What got you interes...
A "lesser known poet", a brilliant author, and an extremely charming young girl - Ismita Tandon Dhanker made waves with her debut novel- Love On The Rocks earlier this year.
BookChums got talking with Ismita and here's all that we found out.
We saw your blog and it has some real good poetry. So let’s begin with the clichéd one first – when and how did you start writing poetry?
Poetry happened to me at the age of twenty-six when I went ...
Some authors write after calculating how commercially successful a subject would be, while some write for the pleasure of expressing and sharing their feelings/observations. For some, writing is as natural an activity as eating or sleeping. And one such contemporary writer is Sweta Srivastava Vikram.
Sweta began writing chapbooks titled Because All Is Not Lost, Kaleidoscope: An Asian Journey of Colors, and Beyond the Scent of Sorrow and has now released her...
Reviewers claim that Chitralekha Paul’s writings are similar to Jhumpa Lahiri and Anita Desai’s treatment and writing style. The dilemmas, issues and small pleasures of the protagonist of Delayed Monsoon, Abhilasha, has given critics and reviewers enough reason to applaud this lawyer-cum-writer’s debut venture. The way in which Abhilasha and Arvind fall in love, the anticipation of meeting her beloved for the first time (she fell in love with Arvind onl...
You might pass Shrabani Basu as any other lady with a warm smile. But this lady clad in a white top and a green shrug, is much more than the lady-next-door. Author of three very successful non fictions Curry, The Story of Britain’s Favourite Dish; Spy Princess, the story of a descendent of Tipu Sultan who spied for the British during World War II and Victoria & Abdul, Shrabani Basu has solved many a jigsaw puzzles pertaining to important but relatively unknown ...
Not many authors choose to write for a cause. While most fiction writers are happy talking about relationships and other humdrum stuff, Saptarshi Basu, is a new author who is writing to make a difference.
Through his writings Basu is determined to make things better for people around. His latest book titled Autumn In My Heart, touches upon the sensitive issue of student suicide.
Bookchums chats up with the author of Love, Logic And The God's A...
An MBA by profession, Nishant Kaushik, an author with three books to his fame certainly has come a long way. BookChums managed to rope in this entertaining author for a few questions.
How and when did you begin blogging/writing?
I began writing well before blogging existed as a concept – only that my writing was awry and all over the place. I wrote mostly on a notepad during a boring lecture, and those ‘blogs’ often did the rounds in ...
Rajeev Ranjan, who has been serving as an Indian Coast Guard Officer for the last 15 years one fine morning began scribbling his thoughts and ideas in a secret little notebook that lay by his bedside. Slowly he started finding this activity de stressing and he continued to write. After a gap of some days when he opened the book, to his surprise he felt that the book had some potential. After his brother seconded his opinion, Rajeev developed his work and thus was born A ...
As I walked in to the bookstore for the launch of Judy Balan’s debut novel, Two Fates: The Story of my Divorce, I was greeted with a sweet smile and a hint of a rollicking time!
I managed to get Judy’s time and attention before the launch and indulged in a candid interview.
On enquiring about the ideation of the story, she was quick to respond, “I happened to be in a store and noticed Drink, Play, F@ck, the parody of Elizabeth Gilbert&rsqu...
People know him as "a Chartered Accountant and Management Consultant by accident, a civil servant by day and a writer by night. A voracious reader and a lover of cinema. And of course the Managing Director, Grey Oak Publishers."
But this barely sums up the personality of author Ahmed Faiyaz.
Those familiar with his previous work will vouch for his insight to observe and meticulously jot human emotions and relationships. And with his latest offering Scammed: ...
One of the comments on the back cover of Kankana Basu’s books - “With Basu around, you don’t really need Jhumpa Lahiri” – is sure to raise the bar about what you expect from the work, but her writings definitely meet all the expectations.
Cappuccino Dusk (novel) and Vinegar Sunday (collection of short stories) offer a very interesting take on Bengali families, their lifestyle and culture, and the way they these people have adapte...
Love’s Journey is the debut novel of Rashmi Singh, a freelance Personality Development and Soft Skills Trainer at Faridabad.
From talking about her personal and professional life to her take on love, Rashmi gives us an insight on present day society woes and much more. Read on.
Tell us a bit about your professional background. How did you steer towards becoming a Personality Development and Soft Skills Trainer?
I had been quite active during my school/colle...
Two years ago, Arnab Ray decided to play it safe. After tasting immense success and a steady fan following on his blog: greatbong.net he compiled his first book, May I Hebb Your Attention Pliss with detailed essays on two of his favourite topics – Bollywood and politics. He says, “In my first release I experimented with styles of comedy but not with the subject. My latest The Mine is experimental with respect to writing style and subject matter.&rdquo...
Interview with Prionka Ray
We chatted up with debutant author Prionka Ray who has penned Sia, a novel that tells us about the different hues of the relationship shared by sisters. The book is also a departure from the kind of novels being released these days.
In the conversation, author Prionka Ray talks about being an educator, living in many cities and what kind of writing appeals to her.
You have written on your blog that biographies in general are r...
This week we speak with author Astha Suneja who has authored two fictions: Owe You My Fate and Yes... I Flaunt My Diamond. This young author talks about blogging and what inspires and compels her to put pen to paper.
You work with TCS and writing is not what is demanded of you professionally. So how did you go about releasing two novels in quick succession?
I have always had my interests in the field of communication. In spite of having a technical academic degr...
Nayana Currimbhoy’s first work of fiction, Miss Timmins School for Girls, elevated this non-fiction writer and journalist’s repertoire of work. In fact, her boarding school descriptions were compared to Enid Blyton’s writing style! Currimbhoy’s account of this all-girls British boarding school in Panchgani where rich Indian girls studied in the 1970s was applauded for the wonderful world that it created.
Nayana Currimbhoy talks to BookChums ...
Payal Dhar is one of the few Indian writers in English who have succeeded in creating a whole new parallel world; a world, where she is God, where she gives birth to so many characters, and dictates the situations and their reactions. In her four novels, Dhar also creates her own cultures and laws of physics. The author of Satin and Shadow Trilogy speaks about what it takes to write good speculative fiction and what editors would love to see in a finished manuscript.
...
April 23, 2012, Pune, India: BookChums interviewed Sam Vaknin, editor, columnist, psychologist, financial advisor & consultant, and author of the popular book, Malignant Self-love: Narcissism Revisited. This book is a treatise on narcissism and explores the depth of the Narcissistic Personality Disorder and how individuals afflicted with this disorder tend to abuse others; thereby destroying relationships. In this witty and crisp interview, he described his writings ...
Food and family mean the world to Mita Kapur. It’s no surprise that both her passions found her way into her first book,The F-Word, which is a part travel, part recipe and part memoir. This book should truly be bought and reread by every foodie, as it is multi-dimensional and a textured read.
We talk to this freelance journalist, founder-CEO of Siyahi, a literary consultancy, who apart from providing creative and professional help to new writers believes fi...
Deepti Naval is a celebrated actor, photographer, poet and painter. She made her cinematic debut with Ek Baar Phir and has done more than 60 films since then. She has starred in Chashmebaddoor, Kamla, Mirch Masala, Ankahi, Main Zinda Hoon, Panchvati, and more recently in TV serial Muktibandhan. She has authored Lamha-Lamha and Black Wind & Other Poems and a short story collection The Mad Tibetan that was released last year.
We talked to her about how she gives...
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