Ronojoy Sircar is a writer, photographer, film-maker, and musician (R#onbus & Three Hrs) from New Delhi. Formerly a lecturer in the Department of English, University of Delhi, he works within/without multiple disciplines.
His notable works include: Notice, Period, a book of poetry compiling 12 years of poetic work, published by the Sahitya Akademi (the National Academy of Letters), in 2019; Remember, Repeat, Inhabit: A Study of Antonin Artaud, Krzysztof Kieslowski and Nikhil Chopra, a socio-philosophical attempt at exploring whether spaces can speak for themselves, published by Bloomsbury; and his debut record Waiting Time, a sonic memoir that explores a period of time stretching from November 2018 to August 2019 under the moniker R#onbus, both released in 2020. Excerpts:
What is your writing schedule?
I grew up around timetables, the physical piece of paper pasted next to my study desk, where everything apart from textbooks, would be studied.
One of the drawers was filled to the brim with chewing gum wrappers, and another with comics. Schedules never worked for me, till I came across the idea of practice. More than a schedule, my weeks revolve around practicing, sharpening, and exploring the various mediums my expression flows through. In a week, even if nothing new comes about, I make sure to allow myself the space for the possibility of its emergence through practice. Every day, my only intention is to learn.
Does writing energise or exhaust you?
When one can’t begin, writing can be exhausting. The white page seems like a dreaded nightmare, seen through blinking cursors. Once the words begin taking shape faster than my ability to write them down, it can be absolutely electrifying. I am grateful for these rare moments, in the midst of so many exhaustions.
Writing advice you would give to your younger self?
I would ask my younger self to stop seeking outside, what can only exist inside. My younger self would probably flip me off. However, I would love to meet myself, like in Borges’ stories, on a park bench, with a view, and mostly listen.
What are your favourite books?
Some books have moved through me, and become part of my history. This fairly long list would include An Imaginary Life by David Malouf; The Veiled Suite: The Collected Poems by Agha Shahid Ali; The Poetics of Space by Gaston Bachelard; The Collected Essays of AK Ramanujan; As Consciousness Is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks, 1964-1980 by Susan Sontag; Incidents, by Roland Barthes; The Book of Sand by Jorge Luis Borges; to name a few. I am currently immersed in the world of The Wheel of Time series, by Robert Jordan.
Literary success vs number of copies sold?
Ideally both, but since neither is in one’s hands, the thought escapes me. Being able to create is contentment in itself.
Favourite spot/s in Delhi you write at?
In my practice, spaces have had an extremely intimate relationship with the nature of the final work. I would like to imagine that I could write anywhere. Given a choice, I would like to write while travelling, in that liminal space of travel, moving in between the pauses, and pausing in between the movement(s).