FOR THE LOVE OF TEA (AND WRITING)
Author Interview: Murad Jawed
Murad Jawed is a management graduate and works as a financial risk consultant. He is also an accomplished artist and a serious blogger. He has recently come out with the book “A Tea-Stall by the Side of the Road”, a collection of short stories based on real life incidences. A self confessed tea addict, the title of his book is a tribute to his favourite indulgence. He has written short stories across multiple genres which have been much appreciated for the simplicity of the language. In a candid chat with Chirdeep Malhotra, he talks about his debut book, his writing journey, his favourite books and authors, and much more. Read on!
Please tell us more about Murad Jawed as a person.
As a person I am somewhat of a recluse who prefers the company of a good book in a secluded corner of the world over a more social gathering. However, I do enjoy regular company of close friends and especially like to go out for long drives and weekend getaways. A management graduate by education; I’ve been working as a financial risk consultant for more than a decade now. I had been blogging for a long time before focussing on writing my book. I am a sports enthusiast and love to watch almost all the sports; football and cricket being my favourite.
Has writing always been a part of your life? Or did you chance upon it later on and then instantly fell in love with it?
While I have always been an avid reader, the idea of writing a book myself did not occur to me until a few years back. It started casually as a blog writing for friends and close acquaintances. The initial response was very good and I received a lot of encouragement to continue writing. Thus began my journey as a writer. It’s been a wonderful journey but it’s just the beginning and there is still a long way to go.
Why did you choose to write short stories for your debut book, and not any other writing form or genre?
I love short stories and prefer reading a good short story collection over a full length novel. So it was quite natural for me that when I started writing it was in this form. I feel it gives me more advantage as a writer to explore more subjects across multiple genres.
Please tell us more about your book “A Tea-Stall by the Side of the Road”.
‘A Tea-Stall by the Side of the Road’ is a collection of short stories based on anecdotes, folklore, and urban legends from all over India. Presented in first-person narrative, these stories are based on actual experiences shared by people with me.
A tea-stall, popularly called a ‘tapri’ in India, is a place where people gather to gossip, share news and views as well as tell tales and anecdotes. It is also the favoured place for inspiration to me and my preferred spot for writing the book. It is therefore that I chose to title my book so.
‘A Tea-Stall by the Side of the Road’ is a very good read over a relaxing cup of tea, around the coffee table or around a campfire on a weekend getaway trip. It has stories from all genres including humour, drama, horror, and romance. Thus there is something for every mood and taste.
How did the idea of writing this book originate? When did you start writing this book and how long did it take you to finish it?
It started as writing short stories for my personal blog. Over a number of months I wrote multiple stories for the blog before I gradually lost touch due my preoccupations. Later, on the advice of my wife, I collected a select few stories and added a few fresh ones to give it a form of a book. This book therefore, took shape over a long period of time; however, I feel any author should give between six months to a year to do justice to the book. Post finalising the manuscript, things like editing, proof reading, etc. can be expedited.
What themes and topics have been incorporated by you in the short stories of this collection?
There are eight short stories in this collection spread across genres like horror, romance, drama and humour. Quite surprisingly for me, the horror stories, which are based on urban legends and first hand experiences by people I interacted with, have been very well received by the readers and quite a few of them have suggested that I should write a full length horror story. Writing in the romance genre was a bit of an experiment for me. I had heard about the love story of Megha and Hardik, which was something of a folklore in its own right, from a friend and I wanted to share it with larger audience. I am very happy that readers really liked it. I am going to continue writing in this genre and would include a couple of love stories in my next book as well. Then there are stories in humour, suspense and literary fiction category. The last one is my personal favourite and I am sure this would be a recurring feature of my future writings. My story ‘The Peepal Tree’ in this category explores various facets of human relationships against the backdrop of changing politico-social environment and the impact that it has; exemplified in form of a Peepal tree.
You are an independent artist and have been dabbling with oil colours for more than a decade. You have also done solo and group art shows across India. Please tell us more about this, your passion for oil painting, and your art oeuvre.
Oil painting has been a lifelong passion for me. I mainly work in the realism genre with slight inclination towards impressionism and most of my early works are in this genre. However, I have always been fascinated by the creative freedom and potential of the expressionism and surrealism genre as well. Lately, I have been experimenting a lot in these two forms of art. Previously, my subject largely used to be nature; however, over time I have shifted to exploring the subject of human forms, our relationships and things around us that impact our lives. Incidentally, one of my recent paintings titled ‘Mumbai Special Cutting’ is inspired by my book.
I have had many shows in various parts of the country; however, it is the power of internet that has really helped me widen my audience and showcase my art globally. Today my paintings have found connoisseurs across globe including Europe, US and Australia, apart from India of course.
Can you recommend five books from any genre, for our readers to add to their reading lists, that you particularly cherish?
“Malgudi Days” by R. K. Narayan, “The Night Train at Deoli and other stories” by Ruskin Bond, “Origin” by Dan Brown, “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams, and “Wuthering Heights” by Emily Bronte.
What’s your advice to short story writers who are aspiring to get their work published?
As a writer who is very keen to get his first work accepted, one is tempted to choose what is preferred in the market over what one is naturally good at. However, to all the aspiring writers in general and to the short story writers in particular, I would advice not to be unduly influenced by the market dynamics while you are working on your book. Try to bring out the best in your work and persevere in it. Eventually, you will be recognised by your unique style, be it your writing, the form you choose or the genre you write in. I would also like to say; keep writing. Getting published is a wonderful thing but it is not everything. If you write because you love to write then people would want to read your works and then publishers won’t be very far away.
What are your other interests apart from writing?
Apart from writing, I also like expressing my thoughts through oil paintings whenever I get time to do so. Other than that I really like going out on long bike rides as often as I can. In fact I love to just take off, explore some less traversed road for as far as I feel like, sit by some road side tea stall and spend hours writing and sipping on innumerable cups of cutting chai. I am a big fan of football and cricket and really look forward to watching IPL each year.
What are you working on next? Are there any interesting new projects that our readers should look out for?
Currently I am working on the next instalment of my book which is a collection of short stories across genres similar to this one, primarily because of the great reception this book has received and also because I feel very comfortable writing short stories. However, along with this, I am also planning to work on a full length horror story based on anecdotes and reported experiences of people around a very famous haunted place in India.
Can you share with our readers a motivational quote that keeps you going?
I really like this one – “The secret to getting ahead is getting started”-Mark Twain.