How and when did you first realize your calling for writing the book titled, Shadows in the Night? Can you tell us a bit about your book? How long did it take you to complete the work?

I am a teacher, and I believe, a teacher’s duty is not to educate his students only. We have our obligations towards society too. During the lockdown phase, I witnessed several people getting affected by depression or many other forms of mental health issues. But there is a stigma in our society around mental health that prevents a person to seek medical help. I thought of doing something to eradicate that.
Furthermore, there is a grave situation created in several villages of Malda and Murshidabad due to the Ganga River Bank Erosion. I wanted to make people aware of the situation. Shadows in the Night is the outcome of these thoughts

Shadows in the Night is my debut novel. Though the novel is basically a romance, but there are, essentially, elements of mystery and a strong message on mental health awareness.

Ambarish gets off at a mistaken station at the dead of a winter night. He learns from the Stationmaster that the station is an abandoned one. He receives some phone calls there. After every call, he meets a person and the readers get a flashback: from his high school days to his marriage, from his childbirth to the fateful accident that snatched his child, from his broken promise to his encounter with the problem that devastated his life.

Be a part of Ambarish’s journey as he falls in love, goes through several ups and downs, leads a happy life till he meets his predicament, and fights back. But remember,

Reality is not always what it seems.

It took me something around 3 to 4 months to complete my first draft. And the total process of publication, as you know, takes time.

“Sometimes, we do not get a chance to thank each one who has helped us in our Journey.” Let the readers get a chance to know about all the important people who have played a part in this ‘Author Journey of Yours’

I would like to start my acknowledgment by thanking my Guruji, Late Sri Sisir Sarma. I thank my parents, Sankar Lal Misra and Late Mousumi Misra, who noticed my flair from a tender age and nurtured me thus. Being brought up in a joint family, my family members influenced my life greatly. I thank my grandmother, Late Siddheswari Misra, who had always said that I would carry the family name forward, but through my education; my uncles, my aunts and all my cousins for playing an integral part in shaping me into what I am today.

I am eternally grateful to all my teachers. I cannot but mention Subhashis Sen, Bangaratna Professor Saktipada Patra and Chandan Podder among the lot. I would like to thank my Taekwondo master, Ramashis Das for instilling in me the spirit to hit the bull’s eye.

Acknowledgment is an undersized word for what I would like to convey to my (literally) better half, Manisha. She has arranged my entire life into an organized whole. Loving thanks to my daughter, Aaroohi, whose gleaming eyes induce in me the craving to achieve distinction. Thanks to all my in-laws, my extended family, my present and ex-colleagues.

I thank all the members of Kiwi Books India, especially, Mr. Afroz Alam, for giving my book a shape. I thank my readers. Whatever success my book has got is because of them investing their time in my work.

In the end, I would like to thank God for blessing me with the faculty to express my feelings in words. Nothing would have been possible without His being at my side.

According to you which are the 5 books that everyone should read and who are your top 3 Authors and what impact did they have in your journey as a writer?

It’s really hard for me to name only five books that everyone should read, but if you ask my favourite, I would choose: Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Lord of the Flies by William Golding, The Incredible Adventures of Professor Shonku by Satyajit Ray and The Blue Umbrella by Ruskin Bond.

I don’t consider myself worthy enough to choose top three authors from at least a hundred that I revere. But I can tell you that I have learnt from several authors. Their style of writing, the use of language, characterisation and plot have brought out an author out of a reader like me. The three authors from whom I learnt the most are Satyajit Ray, Ruskin Bond and Neil D’Silva.

How does it feel to be born in Prasaddhu-Manohar Gharana aka Misra Gharana of Banaras of Indian Classical Music? Do you also practice music?

I feel blessed to have taken birth in a lineage of artists. My fondness for artistic pursuit is something that I have acquired through inheritance. As I am born into a house of extraordinary legacy, you may think that I have an added pressure to live up to the incredible heritage.  On the contrary, my family has always been supportive. I have always been told that I do not need to walk on the trodden path if I can carve my own. My late grandmother, my Dadi, used to say that I would someday make my family proud, not by my musical talent, but with my studies.

Yes. Though I am an amateur, unlike my grandfather and great-grandfather, I do practice music. I play the Tabla, the harmonica, and a few other musical instruments.

What interests you the most among Music, Photography, and writing?

This is impossible for me to tell. It’s like you’re asking a person what would he choose between oxygen and water. All of these are but indispensable parts of my existence and I am incomplete without any one of these things.

Could you share a few tips for budding Authors and aspiring writers?

I am still in the learning phase. I have learnt from my seniors in this field that an aspiring author must sit to write every day without a miss. Secondly, all writing is rewriting. Completing the first draft is less than 50% of the work done. So I strive to edit my writing several times.

These would be my only tips for budding authors and aspiring writers.

What has been your most cherished experience as an author? What inspires you to write?

Smile and tears rarely meet, but when they meet the moment is that of pride and happiness. When you know that you are the reason why your family is having smiles on their lips and tears in their eyes, it becomes the most cherished experience, most cherished memory as an author, as a human being.

My family has always been my inspiration. But, Success is the best motivation, I believe. I became the winner of a national story writing competition by Storymirror in 2020. It was my first appearance as an author nationwide. Then came my novel, Shadows in the Night, which became a best seller. I met people all around the globe, virtually though, who applauded my work, asked me for interviews, and whatnot. What more inspiration can a man need?

Are you working on anything at present that you would like to share with your readers? What are your future plans?

Yes, I am currently working on my second novel, Murder of the Roses. It is a psychological thriller, a murder mystery with a serial killer in it. It is undergoing a publication process now.

How can a writer keep the mental block or writer’s block away from his/her creativity?

I believe, when one door closes, several others open. When as a writer, I get a block, I seek refuge in other artistic pursuits. The easiest option that I have is just playing my harmonica or the tabla, or get my camera and click some photos of birds or small insects or any other beauty of nature. In this way, I build a roadblock in the path of the writer’s block itself.

At Sharing Stories, we have an ongoing campaign ‘Let’s Empower Our Kids’. Please suggest some books here that you would want your child to read before the age of 15 which could help her in understanding certain dimensions of human life like empathy, sympathy, relationships, etc.

I would like my daughter to read books like Panchatantra Tales by Vishnu Sharma, Malgudi Days and Swami and Friends by R. K. Narayan, Ruskin Bond’s and Sudha Murthy’s books for children, all the short stories by Satyajit Ray and many more.

Rapid Fire Round

1. Favorite Place: Home sweet home.

Actor: Can’t choose only one. Amitabh Bachchan, Irfan Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Saswata Chatterjee, Ritwick Chakraborty, Anirban Bhattacharya, Johnny Depp and Rowan Atkinson, to name a few. 

Actress: Anjelina Jolie, if I have to choose only one.

Person: My wife, Manisha. I am uxorious, you may say. But I would have not been here if she were not there by my side.

Food: Nimona (without onion and garlic).

Beverage: Milk, cow milk.

2. Your other Talents apart from writing: Well, I can play the Harmonica, the Tabla and few other musical instruments; I am a photographer; I am a taekwondo enthusiast; I am trying my hand at painting now.

3. Your First Love: Books

4. Favorite Quote: “With great power comes great responsibility.”

5. Favourite Character from a book: Satyajit Ray’s Professor Shonku

What if Round 

1. What if you had to live with only three things all your life, what would the three things be?

Considering food, water and oxygen are free, I would go for an endless supply of pen and paper and my harmonica.

2. What if you were given the power to change one thing from this world, what would you change?

Human mindset. I believe whatever problem the World has been facing since time immemorial is due to the imbalanced mindset of people.

3. What if you had all the money in this world, what would you do first?

I dream of opening an orphanage someday, and I don’t think I would need that much money for achieving my dream.

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