At the end of a session at Tata Literature Live!, someone asked novelists Chandrahas Choudhury and Jeet Thayil to name one book that had changed their lives.
At the end of a session at Tata Literature Live!, someone asked novelists Chandrahas Choudhury and Jeet Thayil to name one book that had changed their lives. An audience member was overheard murmuring, “No Indian writer ever changes an Indian writer’s lives,” and true enough, both Thayil and Choudhury’s picks were foreigners.
Considering the enthusiasm with which audiences and panellists have been participating in this festival, it’s worth wondering why the sons (and daughters) of the Indian soil who write books don’t ultimately count for us.
Arvind Krishna Mehrotra had one answer: we simply don’t remember our own creativity. Mehrotra presented a crash course in Indian poetry in which he read out his translations of Kabir’s poems from the 15th century and sparkling little works by Prakrit poets from the 1st century. He expressed amazement that we’ve chosen to forget these poets, despite the beauty and modernity of their verse. “This kind of forgetfulness is unique to India,” Mehrotra said drily.
Thayil offered another explanation for our reticence when it comes to Indian literature. “We are the last colonials. We still need the white man to tell us what’s good in our culture,” he said, and spoke about how Indian critics first panned his novel Narcopolis and then praised it after American and British critics praised it.
One white man certainly felt some desi pressure, and he was literary agent David Godwin. During his session, one audience member complained that Godwin had rejected his manuscript and another demanded to know what kind of advances the literary agent is able to secure for his clients. (“Anything between 3000 and a one million pounds,” was Godwin’s reply.)
Those hoping to attract Godwin’s attention will be happy to know Godwin is committed to “haggling with publishers” for his authors and is not planning on writing any more books.
deepanjana.pal@dnaindia.net
Where is india?
Considering the enthusiasm with which audiences and panellists have been participating in this festival, it’s worth wondering why the sons (and daughters) of the Indian soil who write books don’t ultimately count for us
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