CHENNAI: Urban living is infamous for ballooning isolation in the midst of crowds. Perhaps, there is some truth to it (when did you last have a chat with a stranger?), but I find that unknown prospects also carry some mystery that gives you the opportunity to build stories around them. Offering a similar experience is 15 Tables at Tranquebar, an anthology that explores interwoven yet individual stories. “We organically came together to put Chennai as a character in the book because we felt that the voices of urban women in the city needed to be heard,” say authors Bhavna Arya, Jaya Mahbubani, Parvathi Nayar, Ranjana Bagry and Vinita Nayar.
A ‘wild’ meeting
The project began with an interesting meeting at Wild Garden Cafe, Amethyst, where all the authors were attending a party. “It was Parvathi’s idea. We met at Amethyst and sat in a corner, where we had the idea of us meeting and writing — just indulging in our passion for writing short stories. She already had Vinita on board and I knew Bhavna and Ranjana as they were part of my book club,” Jaya explains. It was then time to pen their ideas. Coming together at the cafe and each other’s houses — “amid great food, views and wine,” they chuckle — each author wrote five stories that were then filtered to three for the book. Different writing styles and several heads working together proved to be good for feedback, it seems. “Writing on your own is one thing; you have freedom. But writing as a group pushes us to write better. You are open to criticism. It felt like a journey where we were getting to know the craft and the process. When you are working alone, you are in an echo chamber,” they share.
On the page
While each story in the book is its own, the plot is interwoven at the launch of a chic restaurant called TranQuebar. A watering hole for the rich and elite of the city, TranQuebar introduces us to various characters — actors, authors, and more — in short accounts, and the following story brings us into their lives. The book is an interesting mix of voices, some navigating family issues, some exposing societal flaws, and others reminiscing good and bad memories.
The authors have done well in introducing concepts that are refreshing yet complex. What would happen to a mother-daughter relationship when an accident ends up in the death of the other’s passion? How would a celebrity author’s wife abandon the tag of a “wife who can’t write”? Why would an actor want to give up a life of fame and what effects can a mistrustful mother have on a child?
There are also unique formats and characters with which they have experimented. One story unfolds in a series of letters, another features the relationship between royalty and commoner in the colonial era. Unfortunately, as intriguing as they may, many of the tales fail to deliver, owing to the pacing and word count. With limited pages to expand the story, some plots unfold quickly and lack impact. Furthermore, there is an inconsistency between chapters (some stories impress, while others leave you skipping pages), making the reading experience jarring.
There is also no dearth of unlikable characters in the book. However, that seems to be of design and, in some ways, adds to the charm of the plot. It’s a hit or miss for slice-of-life anthology lovers, you’ll have to see for yourself.
Price: Rs 350 Publisher: Urbanistas. Pages: 308