Gregory David Roberts

This convict turned author…defines a novel as:

“A novel is a society of characters, undergoing transformations, in the course of a sustained prose narrative, which is impelled by a plot, unified by clearly discernible central themes, and universalised by a complex architecture of allegorical and symbolical sub-strata.”

Find out some more facts about this author at:

http://www.shantaram.com/

The Begging rain

Written by Gregory David Roberts of the Shantaram fame…a wonderful poem..

Afterwards
when I am not with you
and you are alone enough
to count the nails in your heart,
tough
and studded like a treasure-house door,
when you arrange your silences
in the vase of an hour,
balancing the bouquet with memories
of hands held,
a spike of laughter
and the colour of my eyes,

when you sit within the swell
of your heartbeat
and the purple tide of daydream
laps at the shore of all your selves,
and your skin sings, perfume-pierced,

Afterwards,
surrender to this thought of me:
as the mimosas of Maharashtra in May
long for monsoon
I long for you;
as the crimson cactus flowers of Thar
long for full moon
I long for you,
and in all my afterwards,
when I am not with you,
my heart turns toward the window of my life
and begs for rain.

Bookcrossing

This is something I have wanted to give it a shot for a long long time….

http://www.bookcrossing.com/

Mahesh Elkunchwar

Taken at his residence in 2004-05

I do not know a lot of people whose are listed in Wikipedia. Mahesh Elkunchwar (my relative, grandfather actually, its complicated to explain how…) is one such entrant who I know (quite) well (NOT).

I am proud to be a part of a legacy….may be only the surname….but Family always comes first…right ? Here are some links which do have a lot to say about this famous playwright.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahesh_Elkunchwar

http://www.tribuneindia.com/1998/98oct18/sunday/view.htm

http://www.hindu.com/lr/2004/03/07/stories/2004030700240400.htm

http://www.glamsham.com/dramas/Articles/05/sep/28mahesh.asp

http://www.mumbaitheatreguide.com/dramas/interviews/mahesh_elkunchwar.asp

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0253913/

http://wikimapia.org/1397618/

http://www.anothersubcontinent.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=7881

http://pipl.com/directory/people/Mahesh/Elkunchwar

http://www.bookfinder.com/author/mahesh-elkunchwar/

http://www.bagchee.com/browse_author.php?id=30532&order=1

The list is never ending….

Nikolai Gogol, Jhumpa Lahiri and The Namesake

A long time ago…I decided to google Gogol, when I came across his reference in a movie. Finally today for some reason (procrastination) I did. I saw the movie The Namesake starring Irrfan Khan and Tabu on my way back to India. I really liked the movie. In it, Irrfan Khan names his son Gogol. The movie is based on Jhumpa Lahiri’s book called “The Namesake”…..The movie, directed by Mira Nair, is a must watch.

‘The Overcoat’ (1842) is the book that he (Irrfan Khan) talks about, in the movie. Having read the same, he gets inspired and names his son Gogol, after the author. That book is available to be read online at http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/g/gogol/nikolai/g61cl/

If you want to read more about Gogol go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nikolai_Gogol & http://www.todayinliterature.com/biography/nikolai.gogol.asp

For more about the movie, The Namesake…visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0433416/

& http://www.foxsearchlight.com/site/thenamesake/

Cheers,

Rj