His first ever published book, “The Gurkha’s Daughter,” created quite a buzz and garnered a lot of positive feedback, as Parajuly has become the youngest person to sign a two-book deal with Quercus, a publication house in London. His fiction is a collection of eight short stories that touches the Nepali Diaspora and is based on Nepali-speaking people spread over Sikkim, Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Bhutan, New York, and Nepal.[break]
Brought up in Gangtok, Sikkim, Parajuly’s family moved abroad when he was 17. But the proximity with his roots and his several encounters during travels spurred in him the stories and ideas that he wanted to shape. In his words, the book is simple enough and deals with stories of normal people’s problems in their quest for identity. The book captures various aspects of the lives of people, from troubled Gurkha pensioners to Bhutanese refugees to a story of young immigrants. But the common theme that binds the stories together is the Nepal-speaking backgrounds of the characters.
Parajuly used to write occasional columns but he had never thought he would end up becoming a writer. The modest writer, however, says that writing doesn’t come to him so naturally, nor he forces himself to write. “I write only when I want to and when a gust of inspiration strikes me. Then I know that I shouldn’t let go and just give everything into the writing.”
Prajwal Parajuly who recently released his first book "The Gurkha´s daughter´ is in town as a part of his book launch tour. Photo: Bijay Gajmer
The young writer is in town as part of his book launch tour organized by the Indian Embassy in collaboration with Quixote’s Cove. He has already finished working on his novel, “Land Where I Flee,” which is due to be published in November 2013.
The Week’s Nistha Rayamajhi met the writer to talk more about his journey into writing, his book and inspirations.
How did you venture into writing?
I always knew I could write well or write reasonably well. But I didn’t really think that I would become a writer. It so happened that a number of very fortunate events occurred which made me try my hands at writing. The first one was when I quit my job as an advertising executive in New York which I didn’t like. Then I traveled around a bit, and when there was nothing left to do, I started writing. So boredom was one of the reasons that I picked up writing and thankfully it’s worked out well for me. I used to write occasional columns here and there, and though I never thought I would make a career out of writing, it was bound to happen.
What initiated you to write your first book, “The Gurkha’s Daughter”?
The Gurkha’s Daughter is a collection of short stories based on the lives of Nepali-speaking people. I had first written the second story in the book called “Let Sleeping Dogs Lie” which is based in Kalimpong. Actually, the initial idea was to just stick to Gangtok in the beginning, and I didn’t set out to write a collection of short stories based on the Nepali-speaking world. Then it occurred to me that I could write something on Kathmandu and Bhutan as well, and that was how the stories came to me. It’s just that I was writing about a world I was familiar with, as my father is a Nepali-speaking Indian from Kalimpong and my mother is from Nepal. So the flow came, as I was just simply writing about my world.
How has the publication of your book brought about changes in your career?
There’s no boredom anymore, and it feels good to know that the book has received positive reactions. Other than that, I’m highly sleep-deprived and am incredibly busy as I have to attend launch programs as well, and with that there’s a lot of socializing involved. I have a lot of emails in my backlog as well, which I still haven’t been able to get back to. But it’s been really nice. I’m also very grateful for the kind of response the book has received.
After your first book was published, have there been any changes in the style of your writing?
At first, I decided to write a collection of short stories simply because I thought it would be easier to write them than a novel. But it was only after I started writing a novel that I realized that writing it was a lot easier than the collection of short stories. With the first book, the writing is fairly simple, and what happened with the novel was that, with the kind of experience I had writing and since I already had experimented a great deal, I had a lot of fun with the book. But I think, on the whole, my writing style is the same.
How long did it take for you to work on your first book?
I don’t write daily nor do I write for a certain number of hours everyday. The book might’ve taken me about a year as I’m one of those writers who write only when he wants to. If I’m not in the mood, I don’t even try it. It doesn’t come to me naturally, and I don’t go on writing for days, weeks or months. Maybe it’s because I’m perpetually suffering from writer’s block. But by now, I’ve been writing for long enough to know and realize that if some inspiration strikes me, then I shouldn’t let it go. It’s then I try to isolate myself from the world and not have any social commitments whatsoever and just focus.
Is there any message you want the readers to grasp through the book?
I’m often asked if there’s any analogy behind the book, or if I want to bring about social or political changes. There might be something in the contents of the book that brings attention to some social ills but that’s purely coincidental as I’m a writer of fiction who just writes stories. I may do it due to a call or something else, but I write with the purpose of telling stories, and that’s it.
Are there any authors who have inspired you?
I wouldn’t say there are any authors who have inspired me. But I like a few writers like Charles Dickens and Jane Austen, to name a few. JK Rowling’s life story really inspires me as well. But you know, the list of my favorite writers keeps changing as I may have a whole set of a new list the next time.
Tell us something about your novel, “Land Where I Flee.”
It’s been a few months since I completed writing the novel. The book is about four siblings who live in various parts of the world and come together in their hometown in Gangtok, Sikkim. The reason they have united is to celebrate their grandmother’s 84th birthday, and then things happen. The book’s done and will be published at the same time my first book was published – in November next year.
Do you have any suggestions for aspiring writers?
If you think you can write and want to write, start doing that now. The important thing is you need to read a lot and write. If you’re already a writer, then try writing better by improving your writing skills. I’ve met a lot of people who claim that they want to be writers but they haven’t acted yet. I also think it’s important to get out of your inhibitions and go ahead and see the possibilities.
Talk program with Prajwal Parajuly
The young writer Prajwal Parajuly, who has earned quite a reputation for his first published book, “The Gurkha’s Daughter,” is here on his
book-launch tour.Organized by The Indian Embassy in collaboration with Quixote’s Cove, a talk program is being held at IACER College, Baneshwor Heights, as part of the event on December 21.
“It’s a matter of great honor that we have Prajwal Parajuly with us who has written short stories regarding Nepal as well. He’s someone who has created an international sensation through his book. When we invited him over, he was keen to be here as well to share his experiences,” says Suvani Singh, proprietor of Quixote’s Cove.
The event included Parajuly’s book launch at Nepal Bharat Library and an interaction session with the author at the Educational Book House at Jamal in Kathmandu, and Bookworm at Jhamsikhel in Patan.
“The main highlight of the program is that we’ll be having a long Q & A session with Prajwal Parajuly where his readers and admirers can have close interactions with him,” says Singh.
The program is open to all and starts from 3.30 pm to 5 pm.
Related story
Prajwal Parajuly and 'The Gurkha's Daughter' in Ktm!
