Speaking to journalists in a short session at ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival (ZEE JLF), Jeffrey Archer said RK Narayan was a genius who deserved a Nobel Prize.
Jeffrey Archer, inarguably the most famous British author in India, on Saturday hailed writer RK Narayan saying that he deserved a Nobel Prize for his writings.
Speaking to journalists in a short session at ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, the former British politician answered questions about his works - old and new.
He also fielded questions about his peers and others. Speaking about prizes, he said they were for literary giants and not storytellers.
On attending ZEE JLF, he said people had been telling him that it was silly of him that he hadn't attended yet. When asked what he loved about India the most, he said it was undoubtedly cricket and congratulated the Indian team for slaying Australia down under.
"Cricket. You beat the Aussies. It's fabulous," he said.
He added, "You're incredibly gentle and kind. Next generation of women are going to run India."
When asked about censorship based on religion, he said that as an Englishman it was a topic out of his ambit.
On story writing, the bestselling author said, "Sometimes I don't know what's on the next page. I changed the last line the morning I wrote it. If I know where I'm going, you'll know when I'm going."
Coming back on cricket he said that in Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara, the current Indian team has two of the best batsmen who ever lived.
"Kohli, Pujara's centuries against Australia were remarkable. My personal heroes are Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar," he said.
On RK Narayan he said, "RK Narayan was a genius. He can write about everything. He can take a small man living in a village and make it into a brilliant story."
On choosing between short stories and novels, he said, "They are very different. Sometimes I can't make a full novel. The Queen's birthday telegram is an example. Some stories aren't worth more than 20 pages."
During his packed session - it was literally busting at the seams - Jeffrey Archer spoke again about his distaste for the limited overs format.
Cricket he said, was Test cricket, where one saw the majesty of Rahul Dravid batting through a day against the erstwhile mighty Aussies.
Sharing a hilarious anecdote, he recalled when a young urchin knocked on his car window and asked him, if he wanted the latest Jeffrey Archer?
To this Archer replied: "I am the latest Jeffrey Archer."
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