In a freewheeling chat with Anupama Krishnakumar, Raksha Bharadia, co-author of 12 titles of the Indian Chicken Soup for the Soul series, talks about the experience of putting together the various titles, the stories that moved her, and how this opportunity changed her as a person. The stories in the series are meant to ‘open the heart and rekindle the spirit’. Find out what the person behind many titles in the series in India has to say on inspiration and human life.
It’s a celebration of fiction at Spark this month. For, isn’t fiction a wonderful way, apart from poetry of course, to explore human emotions? When the editorial team decided that the theme for the September 2012 issue would be ‘Navarasas’ or the nine human emotions, one of the first ideas that we had in mind was to invite some well-known flash fiction writers to interpret the different rasas through their stories. We have been lucky indeed, with providence being on our side. Spark is proud to feature Abha Iyengar, Anuradha Kumar, Dr. Dipika Mukherjee, Fehmida Zakeer and Hema Raman – writers whose works have been published in literary journals all over the world, writers whose works have won great recognition in the form of awards and writers who have achieved many other milestones in their writing career.
Bhayānakam & Kāruṇyam | ‘Silent World’ is the story of a mother, whose world is, well, silent. In this silent world, vibrations set in, unleashing some kind of a horror. The story explores the rasa, Bhayānakam (Horror). ‘Crossings’ is a moving story of school children off for an excursion. It touches upon the rasa, Kāruṇyam (Tragedy).
Adbhutam & Bībhatsam | Abha Iyengar’s ‘Blue Sky’ addresses the rasa Adbhutam (Wonder) and is a story of hope after misery. Her second story, ‘Inner Room,’ focuses on the rasa Bībhatsam (Disgust) and is set in a beauty parlour. Read on.
Sringāram | In a work of flash fiction, Anuradha Kumar gives the rasa Sringaram (Attractiveness) a different facet. ‘Her Beautiful Face’ is the story of a man, and a woman with a beautiful face.
Vīram & Śāntam | Dipika’s first story ‘Honour’ reflects the rasa, Vīram (Courage). It examines the courage of a brother and a sister, a brother who follows the norms of his community and a sister who breaks such societal norms. In her second story, ‘Breath’, Dipika touches upon Śāntam (Peace). It’s a flash fiction on a little boy’s relationship with his grandfather.
Raudram & Hāsyam | Hema’s story ‘Mala’s Marina’ is about a little girl who sells bajjis at the famed Marina Beach in Chennai, a little girl who is a witness to nature’s fury. This is a piece that has the rasa Raudram (Fury) as its theme. ‘Mismatched’ is based on the rasa that’s quite the opposite, namely, Hāsyam (Mirth). A girl brings her boyfriend home to a rather strict father. In the end, the father and daughter share a laugh. Find out just why.
SOCIAL LENS | VOICE OF THE MONTH In an interview to Vani Viswanathan, poet-feminist-activist Kutti Revathi opens up on what prompted her to write poetry, her focus on the woman’s body as a means of fighting against the patriarchal Tamil society and her contribution to the Tamil literary space through her publication Panikkudam.
VOICE OF THE MONTH | In an interview to Spark, Jaya Bhattacharji Rose, publishing consultant and columnist talks to Anupama Krishnakumar about interesting trends in the Indian publishing industry including the popularity that commercial fiction is enjoying in India these days, the growing trend of buying books online and the advent of e-books in the Indian market.