FORAYING INTO THE AUTHOR’S TERRAIN, FROM INDIA TO BAHRAIN
Author Interview - Chandan Sen Gupta
Chandan Sen Gupta lives in Bahrain and works in the construction business. Born in Bhilai, India, he has a degree in Civil engineering from Jadavpur University, Kolkata. He is the author of two books. His first novel, “Land of Two Seas”, is a thriller based in Bahrain. His latest book is “Unforeseen: A battle for his daughter’s life”. He has also got the Best of Bahrain award in 2012 for his story on Bahrain. In a candid chat with Chirdeep Malhotra, he discusses about his latest book, his favourite books, his writing style and his writing journey.
Please tell us more about Chandan Sen Gupta as a person.
I was born in Bhilai, Chattisgarh, in the year 1961. The simple, cosmopolitan way of life in the steel-producing township, where I completed my schooling, moulded my outlook and personality. I was a lover of sports, and football, in which I captained my school team, was my passion. I did well in dramatics and public speaking too. After graduating in Civil engineering from Jadavpur University, Kolkata, I joined the construction industry, which took me to different places in India, The Far East, Africa and The Middle East. This gave me an insight into various cultures, religions and traditions. At present, I live in the Kingdom of Bahrain, in the Arabian Gulf, where I have been working for the past sixteen years. I cherish spending time with my family more than anything else.
With a degree in Civil engineering and having a career in construction, you have forayed into writing fiction. Your writing journey seems very interesting. Can you tell us more about it? Necessity is the mother of invention, as they say. Fifteen years ago, when we had just moved to Bahrain, my four-year-old daughter was asked to recite a patriotic poem on the occasion of Indian Republic Day Celebration at school. Without a suitable material in hand, I wrote my first poem for the little girl. The acclaim that it won inspired me to write for her regularly, both in English and in Bengali, which is my mother tongue. She started winning prizes for her recitations and these egged me on. Very soon, I took to writing prose, about the places I had stayed in during the course of my work – Thailand, Nigeria, and Bahrain – and started publishing them in the local English daily. It was, however, after I joined Bahrain Writers’ Circle – an association of aspiring and published authors from all over the world, residing in Bahrain – that I published my first novel, Land of Two Seas. It was a thriller based in Bahrain with World War 2 as the backdrop.
Can you give a brief overview of your book “Unforeseen: A battle for his daughter’s life”?
“Unforeseen: A battle for his daughter’s life” seeks to end terrorism wherever it exists. The story revolves around the travails of a Pakistani family that arrives in India for the liver-transplant surgery of a ten-year-old girl. Yousuf, the young school-teacher from Rasoolpur, runs into armed infiltrators on the train from Lahore, and the encounter nearly costs him his life. His ordeal continues as he is wrongly implicated for a murder at an Old-Delhi hotel. Convinced that the only way to prove his innocence is by exposing the men behind the crime, Yousuf boards a train to Jammu, but is soon overtaken by the criminals. He is separated from his wife and daughter. The out-of-breath Pakistani, who is being pursued, both, by the police and the murderous infiltrators, realises that much more than what meets the eye is at stake. As he runs from the streets of Delhi to the Pir Panjals in the Himalayas and, finally, the valley of Kashmir, little is he aware of the terrible fate that awaits him, his wife and his daughter.
The author blurb mentions that much of your writing revolves around places that you visit and people that you meet during the course of your travels. Can you tell us one or two such anecdotes that you have incorporated in this book?
If you read the introduction to the book, you will realise that it has been inspired by my discussions with a Pakistani colleague who travelled from The Middle East to India for the liver-transplant surgery of his 8-year-old daughter. Due to a congenital condition, she had developed liver cirrhosis and a transplant of the organ was her only hope of survival. Like my friend, the protagonist of my story, Yousuf, arrives at a Gurgaon hospital for the surgery of his daughter. The visa imbroglio, in which Yousuf inadvertently checks into a hotel in Delhi and is hauled up by the police, was a real-life incident faced by my colleague.
Your first book was a thriller based in Bahrain. The second one also belongs to the thriller genre. What attracts you to delve and write in this genre?
The unexpected twists and turns in a story, coupled with fast pace and action, have attracted me since childhood. It was but natural that I would choose to present the same to my readers. As the American novelist Tony Morrison once said, “If there’s a book you really want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”
What, according to you, is the perfect recipe of writing a great thriller novel?
Apart from the traits that I have mentioned above, picturization of familiar places in the story – locations with which the reader can associate himself, form the recipe of a great thriller.
What kind of research went into writing this book?
There is a historical element to this book; hence I had to update myself with the related events, particularly the partition of India. Facts related to liver ailments and its transplant was something I had to delve into as well. A considerable amount of research also went into Kashmir- its geography, the conflicts, the exile of the Pandits and life of the Bakerwals.
Where can one buy the book?
It can be bought online from amazon.in or https://notionpress.com/read/unforeseen.
You have got The Best of Bahrain award in 2012 for your story on Bahrain. Can you tell us more about it?
In 2012, a nation-wide talent competition was held in Bahrain. It incorporated painting, literature and photography. My writeup on Bahrain, titled “The land with a soul,” was adjudged winner in the creative writing contest. I have always admired the liberal and friendly people of Bahrain who value humanity above all else and I had written about my interactions with them in the essay. The winning entries were published in Best of Bahrain, a coffee table book featuring the kingdom’s march through the ages.
What are your favourite books? Can you share with our esteemed readers about the genres that you like and your favourite authors?
As I’ve said, thrillers have always fascinated me. Alister Maclean, Fredrick Forsyth and Ludlum have been my favourite authors from an early age, but I recall John Buchan’s “The thirty-nine steps” as one of the best books that I have ever read. Later, I became a fan of Jeffrey Archer. The other books that I can recall as my favourites are Papillon, First Among Equals, Godfather, Day of The Jackal, Where Eagles Dare and Fear is The Key.
What are your other interests apart from writing?
Sports, particularly football and field hockey. At this age I prefer to watch them, rather than play. I enjoy participation in theatre, recitation and quiz.
Are there any new literary projects that you’re currently working on?
I have a number of projects in mind. They will again be thrillers, centred on the Indian subcontinent and Africa.
There are many new writers there who are aspiring to get their work published. What would you say to them?
Traditional publishing has always been difficult and a test of patience. These publishers prefer to go with established writers and the chances of their selecting a new author are very slim. It is my advice to aspiring authors to opt for self-publishing. Publishing through Amazon kindle and Create Space can be done at no cost. For those who are not so tech savvy as to upload their books onto the Amazon formats, there are a host of publishers who can do it for them at a price.
Can you share with our readers a motivational quote that keeps you going?
It is “Arise, Awake and stop not till the goal is reached” by Swami Vivekananda.
Updated On 9/4/2018 2:14:09 PM