Literary Carnival ’13 at Mehboob Studio

What pleased me the most about this 3-days-Literary Carnival was that it was happening in my side of the city at Bandra and it was just an auto ride away from my house but the sad part was that I was busy with other appointments and was able to attend only a fraction of this event. But, whatever event I attended was very satisfying to my mind and soul.

This year, the theme revolved around ‘Romance, Love and Violence’ and most of the panel discussions were inextricably linked to these topics.

There were writers, poets, serious thinkers, students, the ambience was fully charged. Large open space occupied the center stage that was surrounded by food kiosks, bookstore and different venues. Those who sat in this open space socialized discussing books and their area of interests, a big serpentine queue waited patiently to get the autographed copy of their favorite writers and those who grabbed a snack or drink kept their attention focused on which event to attend next. The four venues (Adhitya Birla Hall, Yes Bank Hall, Lodha Hall, HDFC Home Loans Lawns) were few steps away from each other and it was easy to move in and out of venues and try to absorb all the conversations. Two big screens and clear audio system at every location made it possible to pay attention even from a distance.

Day one of Literary Carnival ’13, I sat in the open lawn to take part in a workshop on ‘How to attract eye-balls on the story’ It was an hour session during which Indira Chandrashekar of ‘Out Of Print’ brought to our attention that the opening paragraphs of a short story should be powerful enough to arouse an interest of the reader. "There should be the element of curiosity" she said. She read an opening paragraph from a book ‘Too Much Happiness’ by Alice Munro and participants were asked to analyze the story. During the second segment of the session, she read an opening paragraph from her own story ‘She Can Sing’ and participants were asked to create a follow up and write a story.  Listening to the different perspective to the same opening paragraph of the story was very enlightening.

The session at ‘Yes Bank Hall’ on ‘If Food Be The Music Of Love’ was an enlightening one. We were given a box of chocolates, asked to eat one and share the emotion connected with it. Chocolate creates much pleasure on our moods. The session went on to discuss the different kinds of foods and its’ aphoristic effect on our emotions. Some Hollywood filmstrips were also shown where food plays the important part in producing sensuality. The sex associated with different fruits and spices was discussed. I realized, I was attending the session on sex and sensuality when I had thought I would learn some tricks on how to write on food literature…but it was an interesting session and I start to look at food with different approach… Madhu Jain, Managing editor of IQ, moderated the session with Prabeen Singh, food columnist, Pushpesh Pant, author of many cookbooks, and Fantasie Fine Chocolate entrepreneur Zeba Kohli as the guests..

'At Lodha Hall', I attended two sessions in a row: History and Fiction, ‘Blurring the lines’ and ‘How many liberties can a biographer take?’ It was interesting to hear the experiences of the historians and how they dealt with sensitive topics, especially of the living person and how much liberties can one take while writing fiction in real cities. A lot of research is required to get the facts right and one may even have to go to live in that city for months to understand the history of that city.

While the day was spend attending panel discussions of well-known authors or attending some literary workshops, evening was magical at Literature Carnival in Bandra. The music dominated the attention of every person at the open-air lawn, all mesmerized by sounds of sitar strings that were interspersed with the poetry of Hafeez and other Sufi mystics. Many people were busy with their mobiles checking their email or chatting on Watsapp, but their feet moved to the rhythm of the music that floated easily in the air....

The event was very well organized with volunteer fully in control working to their best of their efficiency. I think Mehboob studio is the perfect venue to hold such kind of events.

No More Visits To The Libraries

Remember this? A library card that was stamped with the date, on the day the book was borrowed. The popularity of the book was judged by the number of times it was borrowed.

I remember those days when I was more regular at the libraries than in the classrooms. I was allowed to borrow four books from British Library, which was located in South Mumbai. The books were heavy but it did not deter me from carrying that weight. The monthly trips to the library were quite tedious. There were no auto rickshaws in those days, hiring a taxi was out of question; there was no direct route by bus. I used to walk (a good 15 minutes) with that heavy weight from my house to Bandra stations, then a local train ride of 30 minutes from Bandra to Churchgate, and then another walk for 30 minutes to Nariman point, where the library was located. I marvel at my energy quotient at that time. Auto Rickshaws have made me lazy, I think.

The reward after this tedious journey was an entry into an air-conditioned room full of books and magazine.

Rows and rows of books, categorized according to their subject and titles, found their place on the shelf. We could search the book either by going from shelf to shelf or go through the categorized cards that had list of all the books.

Spending a day at the British library was an outing by itself. I used to spend all hours, watching documentary films, reading magazines and then borrowing books. Silence was maintained that allowed us to concentrate on reading. Many times I used to be distracted by young couples, playing footsies while reading, an uneasy distraction perhaps.

Internet had not yet made its entry into my world and I depended on books and magazines for an inspiration to write. Not that I wrote much, but it gave me immense pleasure to read at leisure and be in my own sphere.

I loved being surrounded by books. It was like sitting in the middle of boat where stories are doing their rounds. The words floated in the air, silently attached to each other by series of hyphens. Even during my travels, I looked for a library to spend few moments of peace.

I dreamt of owning a library of my own and had even started a collection, but life took too many turns, the migration to different countries made it impossible for me to carry my heavy books with me. Heart bled as I distributed my books away before moving. Most of my books have not come back, I am not sure if they are safe in their adopted homes.

Books have a life of their own, their own fragrance, and texture that cannot be compromised by e-books. The few books that are left with me are the feast for my eyes.

Reading - passion transformed.

If I had been able to store all my books that I have bought during many years (and not having lost any, during my migrations and uprooting, that has happened about five times in my life), I would have had a very huge library.. Before the internet occupied my comfort zone, I could never go to sleep without reading a book…and during the daytime too,(to avoid conversation with a stranger) reading was my savior, any and every reading material was important to me, be it a magazine, or a thick novel, a children’s story book or granny’ spiritual book, and sometimes even a wrapper of my bhelpuri or a peanut packet. (I would transfer the peanuts into my palm, open the conical packet, straighten it and read the contents while I munched on the peanuts) Even during traveling in a bus, whenever I shifted my gaze from my book, and peeped out of window, it would be to read the signs on the road, scripts on hoardings and even the shop names. If my co-passenger was reading and I would find myself peeping into their book (curious to know what they are reading) or pick up a sentence to mull about. But now…..Alas! My reading habits have found a new home and my computer is my library. Moreover, I need glasses to read and this has limited my reading habit. (Especially traveling a short distance, it is cumbersome, to remove the specs from my purse to read a book, and then remember to put it away carefully before you alight the transport.) Nowadays, I buy only one book at a time, and it follows a particular sequence, I buy a book, read it and pass it on. (I think I have reached Nirvana because I have no more attachment to anything, not even to my books.) I just have few collection of books left which I have managed to store them at different spots in the house (actually I don’t have enough space). And everybody is welcomed to pick up any book from my shelf and keep it. I don’t care if they forget to return it…..I can survive. I enjoy books that have a story stretching over several years; also I like to read biographies, success stories, humor, suspense, thriller, adventure and romance. I don’t like reading books such as ‘Self Help Books’ ‘Self development’, ‘How to…’ or ‘Self Improvement’ books because I want to learn from my own experience. If someone recommends me to read a particular book, and if I trust her choice, then I always read it…. I am always curious to know my friend’s selection of books.…….and luv to know what they are reading.....