BANGALORE: “I was in college not so long ago, and seriously- I didn’t have a clue what I was going to do with my life. All I knew was I will live my life on my terms. And 16 years later that’s what I am proud about,” says Al Raines, which is a pseudonym used by the husband-wife writers Abhigyan Jha and Mrinal Jha and this time they are out with their first non-fiction book, The Class of 2010.
A Handbook for the 21st century teenager, the co-author Abhigyan Jha says, “India today has the largest number of youth population, with at least 70-crore of them being under 21 years of age. Thus the book could prove to be a lighthouse for the youth of our country, living in these troubled times, he says referring to the 26/11 attacks.” Every chapter in the book deals with issues that youngsters and the grown-ups face everyday.
The handbook is a guide to help, especially the teenagers to find their “own unique way” to live their life, he says. The handbook comes enriched with various icons, which mark the beginning of a chapter and a music CD, which according to Abhigyan are efforts to stimulate the teen readers of the book to think and deduct all plausible explanations on life. Unlike most books that attempt to tell the youth what to think and how to think, this book is aimed at encouraging introspection, free thought and positively inspiring the youth to form their own opinions, to look with optimism towards the gift called life, instead of getting confused and then turning cynical.
The author,who has a teenage daughter says that the book is a legacy that he and his wife wanted to leave for their daughter.
And has been dedicated to her.
The husband-wife tag team has published six books till now and their first book November Rain was made into a serial Tum Bin Jaaon Kahan on Zee TV. The famous talk-show Movers & Shakers was scripted by Abhigyan. He was also the brain behind Maano Ya Na Maano, while his betterhalf Mrinal has scripted for serials like Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Maayka.
Their in-house production called Undercover Utopia has now opened up its publication doors for upcoming writers in what can be termed at the Indian pop genre. The next book in line is a thriller, Bolshevik Legacy, written by a Bangalorean and would hit the stands by this year end.