“I didn’t jump to the decision. As a matter of fact, I took a lot of time before making the decision,” says the 27-year-old writer who already has two novels under his belt, ‘A Nice Quiet Holiday’ and ‘Show Me a Hero.’[break]
An avid lover of literature, Aditya also writes plays, short stories and literary criticisms for various publications in India. The winner of the MetroPlus Playwright Award 2011 for his play “The Green Room,” he shares that writing is his passion.
Also the writer of the comic satirical show “The Great Indian Tamasha” aired on NDTV India, Aditya is in Kathmandu to take part in The Kathmandu Kaleidoscope: Indo-Nepal Youth Conference taking place in the capital on May 13 and 14 at Nepal Tourism Board and Hotel De l’Annapurna respectively.
He will be participating in the literature talks alongside journalist Richa Bhattarai, journalist and author Rabi Thapa, and Lecturer at Tribhuvan University Pushpa R Acharya scheduled on Monday.
Republica shared some moments with Aditya.
When did you decide on becoming a fulltime writer?
Everybody writes once in a while and I did, too. Even while at college, I took out time to scribble once in a while. But deciding to become a fulltime writer happened only when I released my first novel. After the attention and love I got, I was inspired. I knew I could write and was assured that people would read. I think it’s the same with everybody. You can’t decide until you let your first work out. And for me, that happened in 2008.
How is it being a young writer in India?
It’s a complex situation. There’s a lot of opportunity right now with a lot happening in the literary field. One of the world’s greatest literature festivals [the annual Jaipur LitFest] takes place in my country, but as far as serious literature is concerned, we still have a long way to go. Also one of the major problems I see at present is that as a young writer you’re expected to write only light frivolous stuffs. The demand is for the urban hip and slangy characters. I think we as young writers need to try and get away from the stereotype and be able to write quality pieces of work.
What kind of stories do you write?
My first novel, A Nice Quiet Holiday, is a thriller and my second novel, Show Me a Hero, is a coming of age tale. The common thread is that both books have young people as central characters and the books try to explore their inner selves in the process. I have always thought that youngsters these days pay very less attention to their psychological selves, and I write about that. Also through my works of fiction, I like to talk of clashes and the diversity between friends and how individual culture creates conflicts and the effects it has on these relationships.
Where do you draw inspiration from?
I draw from the people in my life. I look around and see a lot of things happening with my friends and families and little incidents inspire me to write. My book ‘A Nice Quiet Holiday,’ which is a murder mystery, is set in the hills of Uttaranchal and has inspiration drawn from my grandparents and the events they witnessed while living there. My second novel, ‘Show Me a Hero tries to unfold the inner vulnerability of two youngsters. This emotion, I think, is common amongst the youth of today.
Is writing an economically feasible profession?
There’s nothing more a writer can do apart from writing the book. Once that’s done, whether it’s going to be a bestseller or going to fall flat, you can never tell. The situation I think is the same throughout the world and there’s no fix formula to sell your book. Having an alternative always helps and this is where my job at NDTV comes in.
Who are your personal favorites?
Ralph Waldo Emerson’s essays have always been a great inspiration for me. Apart from that, I love The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It always has a very positive effect on me. Apart from that, Mahatma Gandhi’s writings have always been inspirational.
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