Discussion on Karnali Blues held

KATHMANDU, Feb 26: The Nepal-Bharat Library’s latest edition of Tavern Tales held a discussion on the critically acclaimed novel “Karnali Blues” by poet and author Buddhi Sagar Chapagain. The program held on February 24 featured the author in conversation with scriptwriter Prawin Adhikari. The program was managed by Quixote’s Cove, the bookshop at Patan.[break]



The program started off with the author reciting some  passages from his first novel. Also a regular writer and a newspaper columnist, Buddhi Sagar said, “They say that in cinema and literature, you shouldn’t write about things that you haven’t experienced. So the book too is inspired by my own life experiences to some extent with some modifications.”



When Adhikari asked him as to why he used flashbacks in his novel, Buddhisagar replied, “The flashbacks provide a background to the story, and the story then unfolds itself and proceeds. This helps readers to relate themselves to the story.”



Buddhi further explained that the novel is a story about the relationship of a father and a son, a journey that begins in a hospital where the son sees his dying father, after five years. “It’s a story of two generations, and the language of the book reads like a poem,” he said, further explaining how his focus was more on details whenever he wrote something.







At the program, when one in the audience questioned “Since you’re established in the mainstream now, when you write the next book, do you feel that you have a sense of social responsibility?”, Sagar replied, “When a book gets positive feedbacks and gets successful, you get a kind of encouragement and also get apprehensive and scared. But I think this sense of anxiety is what makes a person creative in selecting the storyline and characters, and there comes a responsibility with it.”



He further expressed that he will write his second book the way he wrote the first one. “I wrote my first book without thinking about the outcome, or that it would become the best book. I just enjoy writing and wrote my feelings. So I’ll be writing again in that manner.”



He further added, “I think the joy comes when you actually are writing the book than when it comes in the market.”



When asked again by one of the audience regarding the meaning of the book cover, the novelist replied, “It represents a falling tree, and the circles and the vibrant colors represent the circles and colors of life itself.”



Talking about the title of the book, he said, “The story and a whole new phase begin from Karnali itself. The book is also like a song from the Blues genre. People usually get touched by names which are very familiar with, or names which they have never heard. So inspired by the Blues music, this is how the title came into being.”

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