{"id":8379,"date":"2020-10-22T17:11:22","date_gmt":"2020-10-22T11:41:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thebooksatchel.com\/?p=8379"},"modified":"2020-10-24T22:26:15","modified_gmt":"2020-10-24T16:56:15","slug":"interview-anukrti-upadhyay","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebooksatchel.com\/interview-anukrti-upadhyay\/","title":{"rendered":"Worded : Anukrti Upadhyay loves first drafts, and thinks in many languages"},"content":{"rendered":"
When I think of the word ‘rustic’ I am reminded of Anukrti Upadhyay’s novels. In fact, I was curious enough to ask her what comes to mind when she hears the word (Read to find out). Upadhyay who has tried her hand at many forms and different languages (she has a short story collection in Hindi named Japani Sarai<\/em>), first published the twin novels \u2014 Daura<\/em> and Bhaunri<\/em> \u2014 for the Anglophone world. Both the novels are set in Rajasthan and are deeply reminiscent of the way of living, rural lifestyle, fierce women and dusty lanes. Daura<\/em>, about a district collector posted in a remote Rajasthan village reads almost like a folktale as we make acquaintace with musicians, tehsildars and more characters. In Bhaunri<\/em>, we meet a girl (Bhaunri) married off in childhood, as per the custom, to the handsome Bheema. It is a story of love, and standing up for yourself in your family circles. Reading it makes us ponder about marriage, duty and women’s place in patriarchial families. Her latest, Kintsugi<\/em>, is altogether different, though she retains the style of measured sentences. Here we meet jewellery makers who train rigorously, travel to Japan and leave our sympathies with characters whose lives and destinties are tangled up. I find more about her writing routine, favourite books and how each book bestowed a different experience in this interview.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In the latest edition of WOR<\/em>DED, we have Anukrti Upadhyay talking about re-reading her favourite novels in isolation, doing extensive research and finding home in many cities. Slightly edited excerpts from the interview follow:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n You dabble in many forms\u2014short stories, poetry, novellas and a novel. Is your creative process different in each case?<\/strong><\/p>\n For me, the creative process for both poetry and prose begins with an image or a phrase. Poetry usually forms almost by itself, a tumble of images and what those images invoke. I write poetry mostly in Hindi which is my first language and the rhythm and flow of the language soothes the very emotion which had birthed the poem. Prose on the other hand unravels itself more slowly. Stories, short novels, novel \u2013 all continue to happen in my head as I go about my day. Knots come undone and new strands reveal themselves during the process of writing itself. I write intuitively, feeling my way as I go, and am often surprised by what happens in a story or novel.<\/p>\n The Japan part of Kintsugi<\/em> was written first and it was Hakone and Tokyo and Kyoto, with their distinctive and mesmerizing beauties that compelled the writing. Then the story moved itself to Jaipur organically but in this part of Kintsugi<\/em><\/a><\/span>, it was the story which selected the place. When I wrote the last part, set in Borneo, I felt it was the right setting \u2013 the lush, richly-coloured island as the backdrop to the dark anguish of one character and the drab disciplined existence of the other.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n What aspect of your writing process is most enjoyable to you? Could you give us a peek into how you plot and complete a novel?<\/strong><\/p>\n The first draft , where I am writing to discover what happens next and ravelling in words, in suddenly-emerging sub-plots and the surprises that the characters throw at me, is definitely the most enjoyable part, though there is a baffling resistance to writing too at this stage, a strange wish to keep the story to myself, like children suck on a hard-boiled sweet. The second and subsequent drafts and re-writes are the difficult part. I am an incorrigible tinkerer with text and continue editing even after I send the manuscript; till the very end of the editing process, till my editor wisely tells me to just stop!<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kintsugi<\/em> blends together cultural differences, cities, and POVs of several characters. All characters are ultimately made of bits and pieces of memories of the other characters embossed in them. What was your thinking behind doing this \u2018kintsugi\u2019 with different characters?<\/strong><\/p>\n I was perhaps trying to show how people impinge upon each other in ways they cannot understand and their actions impact others whom they might not know at all. The fact that we are connected, our destinies are linked, our acts send ripples to unknown shores was very much on my mind while writing Kintsugi<\/em><\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nInterview with Anukrti Upadyay<\/h2>\n
\nHow did you decide to write Kintsugi<\/em>? Did the characters speak to you first or the cities where the novel is set?<\/strong><\/p>\n