Of Writing and Reading

Lately,this blog post has become a pep talk by me to me.And I don't know why or how this is different from the personal diary entry that I used to write.It feels therapeutic at times and I feel better every time I hit that 'Publish' button.Do I seek the validation that comes in the form of views or likes or text messages from friends?I don't know.But I don't do this just for the likes/texts.I remember I once had a cyst and it got infected (by my nails or something) and became really sore that even a small brush of hand across that part would hurt immensely.When I went to the doctor she said she had to cut it to remove it.My mother was so wary of all the blood and gore that she left the room immediately.After the cutting and cleaning of all the puss and blood the doctor said that she is not going to give me a painkiller or something because I appeared quite brave during the process.But for me the pain from the sore wound was so immense that I couldn't feel the pain of the cut.Somehow I feel this writing is like that release of all the pent up emotions,thoughts and/or ideas.I would like to compare this to the Pensieve that Dumbledore uses(Pardon me Potter-heads for the comparison) where I store thoughts when I'm overwhelmed with them.They say that when you do something creative your right brain functions and when you do something analytical your left brain functions.I guess my right brain feels victorious and in turn rewards me by making me feel better after the hours(however little) of analytical learning that I do among numbers and sections.

So,what is this post about?I came across a creative writing competition recently which invited entries from across the country for short stories ,poetry and plays for a prize.I thought I should give it a try.I wanted to send an entry in the Short Story-Fiction category.I wanted to go completely wild with the 'fictional' part and write something that is very radical, very new.Maybe I could write about horses that can fly.Maybe a story where the protagonist time travels.Maybe a love story sans all the cheesiness and abundant practicality.But nothing seemed 'new' enough.Writing,they say,is plagiarizing creatively.I agree with that,not because all the little trophies in my home were acquired because of the twisted movies plots that I used to 'plagiarize creatively' in story writing competitions.But there are very few stories that are hugely different from others.There's this Oscar Wilde saying that -“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.”This might seem a bit far-fetched and eerie but if you think of it-it is true.So the question is,in times like this when we are inundated with propaganda /advertisement about one and everything,how do you tell an original story?More importantly,how do you form original opinions?

I usually say that I enjoy reading.But its been over a year I have read a new book.Every time I want to read something I return to my old novels.Familiarity breeds contempt with people.With books -it provides a sense of comfort.It feels like visiting a relative's place after a very long time."A Suitable Boy" written by Vikram Seth is my favorite novel.It has been so for some time now(I know-I should be reading more!).The book is about a 19 year old girl Lata and her mother's search for 'a suitable boy' to marry her off.But its so much more than that.Set in the India of 1950s the novel creates a world that's inhabited by a string of different characters.As its rave reviews mention,it talks about almost everything from politics to cutlery,from childbirth to the intricacies of shoe making,from gardening to crowd psychology.Sometimes when I reread the book, I feel the India of 1950s is not very different from the India of 2020.Riots that Maan & Firoz had to face during Ramleela/Muharram still erupt in different parts of the country.People from different religion still try to save their fellow countrymen from the blood-thirsty rioters.Girls like Lata still have to marry the boys their mothers choose for them.Farmers like Kaccheru still toil from dawn to dusk and struggle to survive.Women like Malati are still scorned upon by society for being "too bold".Small traders like Kedarnath still find it difficult to support local craftsmen.

But one thing that is different,I feel, is the sense of hope about future.When Amit and Lata welcome the new year of 1952 at Calcutta,there's a sense of aspiration about the future.The letters of the year seem 'polished',as Lata says. But today,I don't think that there's much to hope for in the new years that are yet to come.The degree of exploitation that the planet has to face both from the government(in the name of development) and the corporates(in the name of profits) have left with very little for our future generations to survive on.And the destruction of the social fabric of the country by fringe elements(in the name of God) has propelled so much hate that people are polarized even among their friends and family.That said,I guess we would still like to aspire, for we have survived things worse than this and probably we would see a new ray of hope in future.Coming back to the point of reading-reading a new book,I feel now, demands so much effort.You need to invest in the new world,new characters and if it does not provide a new or different experience it feels rather disappointing.This particularly happens when you read different books from the same author consecutively.In some way their worlds seem similar.How do authors then stay unique and find their own voice/style?There are movies where the characters break the fourth wall and talk to the audience.I want to read a book with that stuff happening in the story.Or something that's so different that it blows my mind completely.I know there are a lot of such books out there just that I am oblivious to it.I hope I find them and also find a replacement to my favorite novel.