Thursday 19 October 2017

A chat with Novoneel Chakraborty

So, I talked with Novoneel Chakraborty, an established Indian author and script writer whose latest work, 'Forever is True'  is going to hit the shelves on October 21st. Grown up under the spell of literature, a humble Novoneel shares his journey of being an author...




~ ‘Novoneel Chakraborty’ and ‘romantic thrillers’ have become terms synonymous to each other in Indian literature. Why have you chosen this genre? Why romantic thrillers?

The genre is something which happened without me having to do anything with it. I didn’t choose it.
When I was writing my first book, I didn’t exactly focus or plan the genre. I just came up with this one particular story I wanted to work on. Whenever it comes to creative endeavors, I express myself the way I want, that is, creatively; rather than following the market trends, worrying what is going to work and what won’t. That way the creation itself starts having a personality and offers its own exclusivity. By the time I reached my second book, I knew what is coming out naturally from me, and embraced it. And, thus, ‘romantic thrillers’.


~ What is 'that thing' you have in your head every time you write a book or a script?

Only when I am doing the first draft, I always surrender to the story and its characters. But the only ‘thing’ is that when a story or its characters start building in my head, I want to ensure that I put it on paper the same way I felt the vibe and pulse of the story or the characters. It’s both exciting and challenging.


~As a successful script writer, what kind of script experimentation you think Indian television needs at the moment?

It’s a two way process. The writers can change the scripts from their end, but the consumers of Indian television haven’t changed much in the last 10-15 years. Right this moment, the audience has to evolve at first, and has to reject things which are redundant and regressive. Only then producers and directors will start experimenting as they will realize these are no longer working. They will discover something fresher, newer and hopefully progressive. Otherwise as providers of entertainment, the writers, producers and directors will continue repeating the same thing as they also want to offer what the audience want and not experiment because a lot of money is involved.


~ How did the publication of your first book influence your life and the style of your writing?

The publication of my first book did not make much of a difference in my personal life. The close ones’ approach didn’t alter.
Recognition is always good. In that way you know that readers are embracing your stories but the moment you are famous and successful, you get rigid and blind to a lot of your own weaknesses. So, I made a very cautious decision of not changing anything because fame ends all success.
As a writer I try not to be rigid. I try to keep an open mind – open to every perspective and experience. Then I like to choose what to believe and what not to believe in. If I get rigid, it will be a creative suicide.


~How was the initial journey as an author?

10 years back when I started my journey, I was very naive, having no experience of the publication world. I thought I will be able to make it. My confidence spiraled out of my ignorance. But the scenario was very different. For publishing houses commercial contemporary fiction was not on the cards at all. But with writers like Chetan Bhagat coming to the fore, the scenario changed.
With my first book the problem I faced was, it took time for me to understand where to send the manuscript, especially because at that time we were not this technologically advanced and the publishers’ websites were mostly outdated. I had to go through hunting the internet searching for a postal address, where I sent out a hardcopy, got rejected at first and then got accepted it.
 So, a lot of to and fro happened and finally the book got published and it was a life changing event because I could finally turn my dream of being an author into reality. I was elated. In that way my first book had its own charm.


~Have you ever had ‘writer’s block’ while tailoring your books and scripts? How do/did you deal and overcome them?

Every writer has their own process of writing. Mine is that I work on multiple stories at a time. So, while working on 3-4 stories at a time, what happens is when I get blocked in one, I start working on another. Juggling from one story to the other not only helps me to freshen up, but also helps me to develop an objective view, which is not the case when you are working in one story because things start getting blurred. At least this is how I deal with it.


~ Who is your most favorite author and why? Mention the books that are your favorites.

I would rather mention my favorite books than authors because some works of a particular author makes me go head over heels, and some don’t. The list of my favorites includes ‘The Fountainhead’ by Ayn Rand, ‘The Alchemist’ by Paulo Coelho and ‘The Famous Five’ by Enyd Blyton. Buddhadeb Basu’s stories have touched me very deeply. His ‘Raat Bhora Brishti’ is a favorite. Sidney Sheldon has been an influencer for me. His ‘Blood Line’ is one particular book which I go back to repeatedly.


~ In this technology driven lifestyle of present generation, what are the things that a book can deliver which blogs/e-articles cannot cater to its readers?

For me, books are souls, others are only machines. Reading e-books and pdf influence me but don’t make me feel what a book does. Holding a book in my hand and reading it, teleports me to a world where the story and its characters come to life! The feeling is astounding! It's an emotion that needs to be felt than spelt it in words. But this never happens with me when I am reading on Kindle.


~What's your perception of the readers of the current generation?

The current generation may look brash to many, but like any other generation, they are trying to find and relate themselves through this personal experience of reading. That’s why relatibility in a story is so important.


~ Any upcoming book that your readers should know of? What should the readers look for in the book?

October 21st is the release of the last part of my Forever series -'Forever is True'. I am really excited as it’s the last part where the mystery unfolds. Also looking forward to how the readers would think about it. Overall I am very excited about the release!

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