Currently pursuing
Electronics engineering, Abhik has been a frequent contributor to various
websites on different topics of self help and current affairs. He has also been
columnist for www.fuccha.in
A
foodie, he wishes to be a nomad for sometime of his life to travel places and
write at least one fiction. Reading lots of books is not his cup of tea, but a
good book surely holds his mind controls.
Buy his book here - Homeshop18 (and don't forget to share your reviews)
Let us know more about him.
1) Is there a key person that
has inspired you in the process of writing?
Rightly said in my bio,
reading lots of books is really not my cup of tea. I am really a slow reader.
It takes me ten days to read a two hundred pages book. So, when you ask me if
someone inspired me to write, I would not lie if I say that I don’t have any
particular author as my inspiration. But yes, I have a slightly good memory
about books, such that I remember, what lines are best in a book, which scene
is best described where, and others. I follow a writing style of my own, and
sometimes, when I am in a fix about a particular scene, a particular character,
about the throw of a particular dialog, then I go back for references to those
books. This tells me where I am wrong. This helps me improve.
2) Describe the role books
played in your own life?
As a Bengali, I have
always been exposed to lot of books. But as I said before, I use all types of
books for my improvement. This doesn’t include just novels. It may include
English grammar book too! It depends on what topic I am writing. Like Dan Brown
books are bible for people who want to write books on conspiracy theory. John
Green is a pristine author when it comes to writing nostalgia. Nicholas Sparks
explains romance extremely well. As an author, who is not established yet, I
don’t read them as a fan. I read them as I want to learn something from it.
3) What you like more fiction or
non-fiction and Why?
Fiction is awesome. But
that should be realistic. Like, the protagonist shouldn’t be master of all
trades. And antagonists shouldn’t be tough competitions to tyrannies. People
connect with reality. It’s a novel and not a prime time TV serial. With all
those little imperfections, and struggles, fiction feels just like a world
around me; I connect with it better and quite easily.
4) Any message
which you will like to give to the readers via your story?
The kind of story I wrote
has no direct message. It’s a kind of satire. I want the readers to go through
it, feel the message as it slowly comes out from in between the words. I
believe that showing people the pain and suffering of a victim is a better way
of conveying the desired message than telling them directly.
5) Any
specific tips you have for new Authors who want to make it in the publishing
Industry?
A sad truth about
this industry is that there is a serious lack of opportunities for new people.
But once you make up a name, publishers put money into anything you write. I
shouldn’t name the books, but the reviews clearly show the bashings these
authors receive. I am a chicken out of the egg for now. I may be cute but still
an infant. So the only thing I want to say is – don’t copy. Be unique. And
since you are a writer – write like a writer and not like anyone penning a
personal diary. Beautify your writing in a way that it hides a gem between the
words.
6) There are so many Anthologies around. Why to go for “CRUMPLED VOICES”?
Crumpled Voices is a brew
of well-judged voices, which tell everyone about how rotten our society is.
Most of the anthologies deal with Love, friendship, crush, life, and everything
that is bound to be adjudged into something positive. People tell their own
experiences about life, their take on crush and friendship, or the thoughts
about how good or bad love is. But what about people who are suffering? Even
they have stories. So this is an anthology, which is not related to ‘I’, or
‘my’ story. It has stories of people about whom we although read, but never
experience. This anthology will make people connect with those people and would
try to plant a seed in their heart, so that, they don’t just criticize, but
also stand up against it.
7) What genre
do you particularly like?
Well, personally I would
prefer murder mysteries and romantic tragedy.
8) What are
some things you like to do when you’re not writing?
Well, studying! I don’t
get time to do anything else mostly. I have college from 9:30 in the morning
till 7 in the evening, and anything else that is left is used either in
studying, a little TV viewing, eating, and sleeping. I mostly keep myself up
till 2 am to meet the need of my college as well as hobby. But during weekends,
I read books, write, and listen to songs, and earlier, when I was not into
writing, I had a craze for singing too.
9) What’s your
take for the so many Rape cases pending and other social issues?
This is so expected from
a country like India where implementation of rules go through several levels of
power play. With relatives fat with power, the young lads run free to do
anything. And with that tag of culture, politicians stamp girls as someone who
asked for it. And we, devoid of power, and afraid of getting trampled by
police, stay mum and curse within ourselves. So things have to change. And the
day is not far with youngsters raising their voices. Everyone should make a
united stand. Film stars should do their bit to promote this cause and not themselves.
Campaigns should be launched on a large scale, with big names, performing for
free and using these funds to setup a private system, consisting of retired
individuals of elite class. Even constitution of India should have an amendment
of not allowing anyone to contest who has even a single criminal offence
against them.
10) How is the
experience with Gargi publishers till now?
It came out from
nowhere. One day I received an email from Gargi, telling me about this CRUMPLED
VOICES anthology. I sent them a story which I wrote in 2013, as a writing drill
during my semester examinations, just to refresh myself. And one day, Pulkit
tagged me in one of his Facebook statuses, telling that my story made him cry. I
was literally taken aback and was enthralled. Since then, the bonding with
Gargi has increased manifold times. They are very professional, but on a
personal level, they are quite a fun too. All the authors of Crumpled Voices
share some amazing chemistry and we troll our editor Ila, and Pulkit on a daily
basis. But also adding to it, we have great discussions about current scenarios
of Indian systems, the loopholes, the rectifications and it’s quite amazing to
hear different viewpoints on a particular topic. I am thankful to Gargi
Publishers for providing me my first chance to see my name printed over 70 GSM
paper!
11) How does
it feel being an author?
Being an author is
different than being a published author. As a published author, there is a
great confidence which suddenly develops in your hands. You get sure about
yourself. You feel that your writing is worth reading. And then starts that
amazing stint of creating the characters of your choice, adding customized
emotions and demeanour to them, and placing them to your favourite
locations, created either with your imagination or with your experience. But
along with this amazing power of creation comes many responsibilities. We
should be aware not hurt anyone. Our language should be readable and
connectable. And, suddenly, we should get more reserved about our personal life
and more open about the writer in us.
12) What is
your least favourite part of the writing process?
The wait period and the
rejection. I have gone through many rejections in the past, firstly because I
was new, secondly because my novel was too long, and thirdly I was asked for
money. These things hurt badly because after all the pain you take, in creating
a story, which is even liked by the publishers; you end up knowing that it’s
the talent that suffers and money that wins. For two years I have been with my
book, till recently, when I finally signed my contract with a traditional
publishing house. I don’t really know if I would have continued with writing,
had my novel been not selected.
THANKS ABHIK FOR SPARING YOUR
PRECIOUS TIME. I WISH YOUR BOOK GOES TO THE “BEST SELLER” LIST SOON. :)
(This interview was taken by Milan Modi under the internship program by Gargi Publishers)
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