CHENNAI: One of the most influential names in post-colonial Indian English literature, Kiran Nagarkar, has straddled genres, languages and forms of writing (short stories, novels, plays and screenplays). A winner of the Sahitya Akademi Award for his epic novel, a period saga Cuckold, Nagarkar was in the city to deliver a lecture on the ‘Role of a public intellectual’ recently, as part of the Gunter Grass retrospective. Nagarkar, whose latest book is the last of the Ravan and Eddie Trilogy titled Rest in Peace: Ravan & Eddie, opened up to CE on his views on social commitment for an artiste/ writer, his trysts with writing and being a writer in the times of a publishing boom.Excerpts from the interview…..
Poverty Matters
I always thought my city (Mumbai), should do away with chawls. That is happening now and you could say, ‘Nagarkar, your wishes are coming true.’ But we are not doing a thing for the poor. We have given them some appalling housing and the rich are getting the best of the real estate deal. This is not sad, but criminal. No other country won Independence the way we did. Imagine winning Independence and exploiting your own people.
Moving from Marathi to English
When you study in an English-medium school, you think you have fallen from heaven. I suffered the same disease. When I had to go to Pune for my Bachelors at Fergusson College, I must have spoken Marathi more. I met poet Dilip Chitale and he mentioned that his father, who had run the finest Marathi magazine, wanted him to take care of the next issue and that it was going downhill. That night, I went home and started writing my first short story. Soon after, I began writing my novel (Saat Sakkam Trechalis in 1974)). It was God’s gift to me and it made me realise the incredible richness any language has.
Different Genres:
Some people think that Ravan and Eddie is the ultimate urban book. I believe that if something works, then one must not do it again. I admit I have written a trilogy, but every time, it is different. I don’t have a desire to be original. It is about how faithful you are to your characters.