CHENNAI: From chawls of Mumbai comes a wordsmith with an unusual sense of creativity. Raised in the uneasiness of Mumbai rush, veteran ad man RV Rajan, who made an enduring impact in the extravagant world of advertisement, has a candid conversation with City Express about his new book, A Difficult Choice, and the driving force behind his foray into the world of literature.
The title of the book is about an important phase in Rajan’s life when he chose advertisement during the early 60s. “Fortunately, my father was supportive of our — my brothers and sisters — passion. Advertising was not an accident for me; I was sure about my career. But sadly, that is what most parents lack these days. I have discussed this matter in detail in my new book,” he says.
The book discusses contemporary issues like gay marriage, living together, and more in detail. While the West has accepted the change, the Indian perception is still lagging behind. Rajan opines that the best way to deal with change is to accept it. “Let him/her decide what is best for them. They are exposed to the world and they know what they want. If we try to impose what we like on them, we create a conflict there, for both the sides,” he points out. “In this book, I have mentioned that things are getting better. Indeed it is getting better if we take last 10 years.”
Rajan began writing the day he retired from advertising and has written seven books so far. “I always had this creative energy in me. I started writing my book when I was 65 and now I am 73. With the publication of the Tamil version of my first book Courage My Companion, it will be eight years of writing and eight published books,” he smiles.
Interestingly, the first book was an autobiography, at a time when not many people knew about him. Yet, he took the chance because he was sure that he vast network of contacts will get him readers. “I sold around 100 copies on the first day of its release. Initially, the publisher refused to publish my book because I was an unknown face but being a good friend, he asked me to self finance and then he will help publish it. Eventually around 2,000 copies were sold in which 400 was my marketing and I made money where most of them don’t,” he explains.
His wife Prabha was also a published writer and he was influenced by her too. She wrote two collections of short stories before she passed away four years ago. Reminiscing his wife, Rajan says, “Her command over Tamil language was excellent and unique. She once wrote me a well structured letter describing her feelings and that day I was convinced that there is a writer in her. In fact, she made me this women’s liberator in a man’s world that I am today.”
Confessing that he is not a fan of fantasy fiction, Rajan says his aim is to write at least one story each in every genre. He doesn’t read any western authors’ work and likes only Indian authors in English. “I like Chetan Bhagat because I believe he brought the youth back to reading again. Then there is Amish Tripathi, I like the way he can diffuse research and fiction. And of course, Amitav Ghosh for his convincing writing style,” he says.
Calling himself a dreamer, he says his dream right now is to write a novel about the life in chawls and how happy it was despite life being uneasy.
‘A Difficult Choice’ is available on Amazon.in The Author can be contacted on: rvrajan42@gmail.com