Download, share, or listen online to Yamini Vijendran read a chapter from her book, Full Circle.
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Author: Indireads Editor
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Discover Malini
Do you like puzzles? Hidden clues and little word teasers that keep your brain busy? Well, Yamini has a little gem to share with her readers. Download the attached file and solve the puzzle Yamini has created. If you’ve read Full Circle, you’ll have a big advantage, but all the answers can also be found in the preview of her book (available here).
Discovering Malini [PDF, 34KB].
Download, share or listen online to Yamini Vijendran (author of Full Circle) talk about her journey to becoming an author.
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The Journey of Full Circle
When I look back at the journey of ‘Full Circle’, I am amazed at how things just fell into place. As Paulo Coelho says in The Alchemist, if you really want something to happen, the entire Universe will conspire to make it happen for you. I was then only dreaming of being able to write a novel one day, and alongside, applying for writing opportunities that I could find over the internet. Out of the blue, one day, I spotted Naheed Hassan’s call for writers. I applied, and forgot about it, until I got a call from a lady with a cheerful, sprightly voice one fine evening, telling me she loved what I had scribbled in my blogs, and asking me if I would be interested in writing a novella for her.
Many a time, you sit down with the intention to write a story, but inspiration fails to strike. Plots you create seem lame and you end up with word document upon word document containing half written and abandoned plots, with nothing exciting you. And then, there comes the lightning flash. The stroke of inspiration you had been looking for. For me, it came when I was watching the song ‘Tere Bina Zindagi Se Koi’ from the Sanjeev Kapoor, Suchitra Sen movie ‘Aandhi’.
As if by magic, pieces of the plot materialized from thin air and came together to fit nicely into a beautiful puzzle. And there was revealed an elderly woman gazing into the mirror and seeing her reflection from forty years ago, staring dolefully at her. In that aged lady, I saw a woman I know and respect a lot. I remembered what she had related to me about her life when she was a youngster. And that was the beginning of a long chain of thoughts that were strung together to make a fragrant garland called ‘Full Circle’.
Well, it wasn’t a smooth ride—it never is in life, is it? There were days when I just went blank, and then there were days when words just flowed out like the Ganga from the Gangotri. I learned a lot through the whole process; from my editors, from Naheed, from people at home who supported me, and from myself. Full Circle, the end product, is a culmination of all those learnings.
Full Circle is a very gentle romance. The protagonist do not even physically touch each other once, still they become permanently embedded in each other’s hearts. You may wonder if such a romance is truly possible, but believe me, it is. I myself have been a witness to it. And once you experience such a romance, you emerge so much more content, so much more mature, so much more at peace with yourself. I experienced all these while writing Full Circle. I hope you will experience the same, reading it too.
“Jee mein aata hai, tere daman mein
Sar jhuka ke hum rote rahe, rote rahe
Teri bhi aankho mein, aansuo ki nami to nahi”
Yamini Vijendran
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In the Author’s Voice: Canvas of Dreams
Download, share or listen online to Jaya Siva Murty, as she shares a chapter from her novella, Canvas of Dreams, with you.
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In the Author’s Voice: Anjum
Download, share or listen online to an excerpt from Andy Paula’s short story, Anjum.
Download, share or listen online to Mamun Adil read briefly from his story, That 70s Babe, published in Love Across Borders.
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A Series of Firsts
‘One Stupid Comment’ was a series of firsts for me. My first published work of fiction. My first attempt at dystopian romance. My first collaborative project. My first collaborative project with a Pakistani author. Any guesses why this story is so close to my heart?
When Saba suggested that we do a post-apocalyptic story, I was both excited and apprehensive. I had never handled the genre before. In fact, I hadn’t even read enough post-apocalyptic stuff to be writing anything at all. But Saba made it so much easier—she inaugurated the story and I just followed the cues. Writing fantasy fiction turned out to be more fun that I had imagined. There is nothing to limit you, no facts to hold you down and no logical reasoning to curb your creativity—it is almost like flying like a free bird.
We played it like a badminton match—writing a few hundred words each at a time, which left immense scope for twists, turns and surprises. Also, when you have a co-author as creative and talented as Saba, there is no dearth of inspiration and ideas.
My favorite aspect of the story is the way it seamlessly connects the past with the future, while the two protagonists grapple with realities of the present day. Our protagonists, both young people, represent the progressive youth of India and Pakistan who are willing to look beyond the boundary wall and extend a friendly hand to the neighbor. Readers might also enjoy the symbolism that has been used at different stages of the story to lend it a deeper meaning.
Working with a Pakistani didn’t feel a wee bit different from working with an Indian. Rather, our working relationship was steeped in comfort, trust, understanding and an open exchange of ideas—just the way it should be. I am extremely proud to be a part of an initiative that stands for peace and strives to bridge barriers using art and literature as a binding medium. ‘The pen is mightier than the sword’ may be an old, tired cliché, but is befitting nevertheless.
Shuchi Singh Kalra, India
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All About US
My maternal grandmother’s family used to live in Lahore but she never really talked about her life there; so growing up, my idea of Pakistan was what I read in the newspapers or saw on TV. Then I went to live abroad and for the first time met Pakistani families. Surprise! Surprise! They were just like us. We looked so much alike that non South Asians couldn’t even tell us apart. We spoke the same language. We enjoyed the same food. We saw the same Bollywood pot-boilers, listened to the same music. We had the same family values and shared similar dreams for the future of our children. Yes, we did not share a religion but that didn’t matter. It did not even come up once among us. We did talk of the differences in our cultures and there were some heated discussions but it remained right there and did not lead to bad feelings and broken relationships. We ate together and our children played together.
I wanted to bring this experience out in my writing. When we did not have all the media hype and nuances around us we could get past our negative affect and looked at each other as friends. There is a lot that divides us but there is so much more in common. I wanted to show the human side of our neighbor, far from the politics and warlike reports that we are wont to hear. An Independence Day should be about the people of that country, so should it be for both our countries. It should be about ‘US’.
Adiana Ray, India
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Writing ‘Serendipity’
When Indireads asked me if I was interested in writing a short story for an anthology that focused on the India-Pakistan theme, I was more than happy to jump on board. I tried my hand at two or three different plots, but it was a romance that finally turned out to be the best fit.
Neha, an Indian, and Riyaz, a Pakistani, meet at Changi Airport in Singapore, while they are en route to Mumbai. Sparks fly (the good kind), and Riyaz insists they should forge ahead, but Neha is troubled by the rift that divides their countries. Later, Neha decides that matters of the heart cannot be impeded by lines on a map and tells Riyaz that she wants to meet him. However, their hopes of a happy reunion are thwarted when the Taj, where Riyaz is staying, is bombed in a terrorist attack. Whether their romance is burnt to cinders, or if they meet again is the crux of the plot.
The idea of getting the characters to meet at the airport of a country foreign to both appealed because Indians and Pakistanis are often a lot friendlier when they meet on grounds away from both homes. I wanted to stress the notion of how, when you strip away the burden of social restrictions, bonds can be forged a lot more easily. I wove in the Taj Hotel bombing (2008) to show that such attacks claim the lives of people—no matter which country’s passport they hold. Above all, I wanted to write a story that touched on differences, but in a way that sought to highlight that they are largely in our minds.
I hope you enjoy reading this story, and all others included in this anthology.
Yamini Vasudevan