Dr. Sunil Kaushal is a retired gynaecologist turned writer and loves everything about life. She has a passion for writing shorts stories, poetry and articles. Besides writing, she is an accomplished actor, having done a number of stage plays, TV and radio programs. She is associated with Mother Theresa’s home and other charitable institutes also. As Lioness club President in 1982, she was awarded ‘Best Lioness President’ Asia. She has also been chairperson of a number of socially committed organizations for many years. Having been on the Advisory Committees of Doordarshan and All India Radio, she brought about a number of changes for Women and Children’s Welfare.
Sufi, Indian Classical music and Gurbani are what you would catch her listening to when she is not writing or blogging.
She can be contacted at:
Email: sunilkaushal44@yahoo.com
Nainika: Hello Mam, please tell us something about yourself.
Sunil: Hello! Thank you for giving me this opportunity to share my ideas.
I am a retired gynecologist and was extremely busy professionally but that did not stop me from writing poetry and articles or just jottings about various topics which I kept hidden for fear of ridicule.
Nainika: So, being a doctor how did your interest towards writing developed?
Sunil: Even at a very young age I was extremely fond of reading anything and everything ranging from fairy tales to classics, Enid Blyton, Disney and what not, which inspired me to write as well.
We, doctors see the seamy side of life and humanity very close up with all its suffering and pain. Each patient is a story. I just HAD TO tell all these tales to the world.
As I neared my 70th birthday my daughter presented me with a laptop and told me to follow my passion. I was techno phobic but my children taught me the basics and then I learnt to operate the laptop and navigate the labyrinthine net world (partially only till now)!!! LOL!
The editor of a forum on FB –Morsels and Juices asked me to write for them and here I am today, all thanks to her. Today she is one of my most treasured friends.
I am highly thankful to Pulkit Gupta and Gargi Publishers for thinking me worthy of including in this anthology. This will definitely spur me on to better writing.
Nainika: What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
Sunil: It’s for the reader to tell me as I do not plan it and the story takes a life of its own after some time but also becomes a part of my life story by the time I finish it. Most of my writings are woman-centric. I think I tend to give a surprise ending to my stories, with the protagonist becoming stronger for all that he experiences. The reader is left pondering at the end of my poems.
Nainika: What do you think makes a good story?
Sunil: A good story depends on many factors---the plot of course being central. Besides this, the etching of characters, the sequence and flow of events, the emotions it invokes and leaves the reader with. The end should make a lasting impact. A story written in correct language and grammar is always a delight. Many a good plot is lost if this is lacking.
Nainika: Do you have a specific writing style?
Sunil: No, I tend to swing between extremes from romantic interludes to highly philosophical and spiritual platitudes; from really short poems to lengthy odes, true life to fantasies—I just work intuitively and there is no hard and fast rule. I love to dabble in all the colors of the rainbow, having seen it all by now.
Nainika: What according to you is most striking feature of your writing style?
Sunil: My writing style has strong emotional content of human experiences. It tugs at the heart strings and leaves a lump in your throat, for most of it pours out of having felt it very deeply and is authentic based on true life stories.
Nainika: Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Sunil: Not having studied literature as a subject I feel I may be lacking in the technicalities of writing though I am quite happy writing straight from my heart.
Finding a catchy title is a challenge at times.
Nainika: Please throw some light on your story “The Shadow” in Crumpled Voices-2
Sunil: This story was born out of a feeling of compassion for all the minor patients I had seen while working in villages in Haryana. No child should lose his or her innocence to the barbaric act of rape or other abuse. “The Shadow “, is a gripping story of violence and Karma. It speaks about the greed for a male child burdening a poor man with huge debt for which his minor daughter of five has to work to help repay. Whereas, a spoilt male child brought up in an affluent family thinks nothing while committing a heinous act like rape.
No child, rich or poor should be subjected to such brutality but the voices of the poor are stifled into a silent scream. The rich may choose not to voice themselves for fear of social repercussions but the poor are seduced with monetary offers or crushed through violence. Also, a child in our Indian social structure especially the poor, has no identity of his own, with very little parental guidance. They just grow up on their own, even if subjected to gruesome experiences. I wanted to speak on their behalf and put their Crumpled Voices into words.
From innocence to innocence lost the psyche of a child transforms under the influence of “The Shadow” of her trauma, which haunts and dictates her further life.
The same helpless child undergoes a metamorphosis as the mother, rising like the phoenix to protect her own child, at the same time avenging her own torture and suffering.
Nainika: How do you think your story can inspire society?
Sunil: I really wish the privileged class would try to not only understand the limitations of the poor in fighting such injustice but come forward to support them in every way.
The greed for a male child and the heinous rate of female feticide is another malady deeply entrenched into Indian society. If a girl takes birth she hardly has a standing in the family or society. My idea is to raise more voices.
Protecting wrongdoers –even if they are close family members is as bad as committing the crime.
I hope this story inspires some people, especially the youth, to work towards alleviating some of this.
Nainika: Please tell us something about the lead characters of your story.
Sunil: The lead character Soma suffers at the hands of a monster, and yet rises to become a woman full of courage, grit and amazing resilience, losing her innocence but gaining in strength unsurpassed. Violence in self defense gives it a new meaning as Soma reaches the end of her pilgrimage reminding us of Maa Durga.
The rapist suffers at the hands of his own Karma.
Nainika: Would you like to give any message to our readers?
Sunil: Please treat all children male or female, with love, understanding, compassion and respect. Do not treat the child like a puppet in the hands of adults. RESPECT ITS RIGHTS. Bring up your boys to respect womanhood and your girls to live life with courage. Gender bias has done us irretrievable harm.
Empathize with the underprivileged if they are subjected to such atrocities. This malady is entering every home today –who knows whose turn it maybe next!
(This interview was taken by Nainika Gautam under the internship program by Gargi Publishers)
No comments:
Post a Comment