Monday, July 30, 2012

The Girl I Last Loved by Smita Kaushik..Releasing this August

Title: 'The Girl I Last Loved'
Author: Smita Kaushik
ISBN: 9789380914244
Genre: Fiction/Romance
Publisher: General Press
Price:125 INR(Available at 88 INR on Flipkart)


And we finally have another treat by Smita Kaushik. Her debut book,'Let's Get Committed' has been doing well in the market since the time it got released. Let's take a peep into her latest book that'll be releasing this August. Pre-orders have already begun at Flipkart. 

About the book:Love is all about flowers, gifts, movie nights, first kiss and then many more. Or is it? Then what about one sided love...
Being friends in spite of knowing your true feelings...
The incapability to read eyes...
Don't frustration, pain and loneliness lie on the other side of love?
Meet Akash, an over achiever, who aims to conquer it all but is unable to love. 
Kasam, a girl beyond his reach.
Though destiny keeps bringing them together, their world seldom collides.
When he was a naïve geek, she was the Style Diva.
And now when he is a corporate junkie, where faces are masked. She is a professional motivator, who sees even beyond the faces.
Two people.
Single love story revisited three times.
Four proposals.
A ten year journey of finding and losing love.
Countless moments of serendipity.
Yet not a single moment of confession.
He lived all his life fighting love...
Will he ever fight for love?

And especially for the readers, we bring to you the FIRST CHAPTER of the book:

Darkness all around. Vision getting blurred. It takes some time for eyes to get adjusted to sudden darkness or brightness. Just like in life we are always taken aback by sudden pleasure or pain. This same feeling of breathlessness, why does it always surrounds me. I am gasping for air and not getting much success. Someone pushing me from behind, in turn I am pushing the one in front of me. You gotta impel others to get what you want, you can’t blame others as everyone including you is doing the same I can feel the adrenalin rush. Everyone gotta run as they have a place to reach a place they call home. A home where some one is waiting for them, who will be worried if they are late. But me, I am just getting dragged along the crowd I have no place to reach, no place to call a home, no family to wait for me. Look at the irony of the situation life is making me smirk at my very own misery.
               It’s really funny even if you are making no effort to move on, you will as this time never stops. You feel nothing is going to change much but it does, slowly and gradually that you never notice.
People who are important will cease to matter six years from now if they walk out of life at this point. You won’t forget them but you won’t even recall them now and then. Be it the person you were once ‘deeply and madly in love’ with. You may still be in love with that person but other things will get in your head and your lovers memories will be enclosed in a door you would rarely visit.
         The time progressed a minute or few and I was out of that overfilled passage. Huh! It’s Friday so I am traveling by locals. This feels great to be around so many people whom you don’t know at all but you can somewhere relate to their lives. A great place to identify yourself with several emotions which either you can’t feel or no longer have the ability to.
I used to come here as a kid. Dad used to bring me here for having a walk and to get me my favorite cutlet which Bansi bhaiya used to make around the corner.
      Everything has changed since then but nothing seems different. Except few more lights, few extra waiting seats, increased shops, more beetle strains at nooks and corners. Increased security in an attempt to prevent another 26/11. Finally jostling young crowd running between different tuitions and home, under the pressure of cracking various competitions- bearing very few seats.
    I progressed a bit further and as I just missed the last local I was lucky enough to get a place to make myself comfortable. It’s a way of regarding the situation. Here it’s my weekly luxury to travel by locals which I am still enjoying even after missing my last train but for those whose traveling by locals is a compulsion missing train can be so much annoying, something adding to their misery.
     I stretched my arms and glanced around. Three young guys in their later teens were standing close in a circle. All of them were dressed in their funky vibrant T-shirts and on-purpose tattered jeans, vibrant slippers; big dial watches, spiked hair. I reflected back at myself. I am suited up, black and grey, rado watch, well set black shinning hair. Is there such a thing like young at heart? But I was more than relieved that I no longer carry a student bag .One of the three boys lighted a cigarettes and took a very comfortable puff. After two to three puffs he passed it on to his friend. During its lifetime the stick kept on rotating among three of them. I couldn’t help but smile remembering those good old days. Now I smoke sixteen a day and its not even near  to the fun we use to have puffing from a single stick. I have no idea why smoking or drinking bring guys closer. Although hard to grasp but it’s a truth. Most of the colleagues with whom I am acquainted with, I met them at the smoking zone itself. Besides its something that serves my loneliness well. Since past few months I am quite content with my career growth. So I was able to take this immense leap in down slicing my intake from more than thirty-eight to sixteen as a New Year resolution.  
What started as an infantile attempt to feel like an adult, is my most eminent companion now. I smoke to reward myself. I snapped a deal, I smoke. I completed a report, I smoke.
I survived yet another day of this purposeless life, I smoke; but most important of all it feels like being with a friend. When it glows in the dark, it assures am not alone. Same as being in a station feels to me.
All these years I have witnessed various flavors of life here.
A kid taking blessings from his parents before leaving home for the very first time. An innocent newly wed bride with all her expectations and fear entering her new found world. Children running after vendors; parents running behind them. Lovers hugging each other while parting away. Lovers passing smile when they spot each other amidst the entire crowd. Some promising new-bees leaving for work hanging their laptop bags in one hand and news paper in other which probably they will read before reaching work. Some tired fellows unwilling to begin yet another day. Few satisfied faces reflecting they have embraced life in its every form. People coming. People going. Several unexpected convergence. Several unwanted separation.
So many people, so many eyes holding so many dreams, hope, anger, pain, desire. Those wondering awaiting eyes.
     Those eyes…those eyes confirms that you are not the only one with unfulfilled desires, you are not the only one who have assimilated in this unusual mixture of emotions.
I have always been attracted to trains especially the leaving ones. I can’t reason it out but it gives a sensation of well being. Watching them leave reminds me one day I can refuse to be what I am. One day I can run away to a very distant place where nobody knows me.
There is always a start somewhere else if not here.
“Oh! I am sorry” a stranger who just spilled half her bag over me uttered.
My thoughts or rather my repeated thoughts were interrupted.
I lifted my head gave her an odd look and directed my sight elsewhere.
She bent down and some groceries out of her carry bag spilled again.
Virtue of feminism.
Now I was crossing the line, uncivil onto rude.
I bent down gave her a weary smile and started looking for and gathering her stuffs. As they were expected to, nobody halted to join us. Even the person sitting just next to me didn’t bulge a little, absorbed in texting.
I picked few tomatoes, some oranges, actually lots of them probably she attended some ‘buy 1 kg get 1 kg free’ offer and placed it her grocery bag . I often wonder these market analysts know women better than anyone else. ‘Sale’ gathers women together, makes them run, snatch and fight; they erroneously feels like a winner if they emerge with out with bunch of shopping bags.
This lady standing in front of me, only she would be knowing what she is going to cook with three bags of tomatoes and oranges.
‘Thank you!’ she hurriedly responded to my gesture. Just then one orange slipped from her bag and rolled along the platform.
I took a brief look at her. She was struggling with two plastic bags in one hand and one in another while adjusting her hand bag to shoulder …gripping her dupatta…managing her hair.
She progressed towards that orange I signaled her that I will get it.
I took long firm steps in its direction. I crouched to lift it up. At that moment only some train arrived and the platform was overflowing with people. I fastened to get up but was ceased. I stopped. Moved my eyes aimlessly, without any direction but I definitely was in search of something. Something which I haven’t seen but it wasn’t unknown. All I can see was shoes, speeding feet following random tracks. It gets hard to scan especially when you don’t know what you are looking for. Subsequently familiar steps of someone walking struck me. There it is among all those unknown jumbled pegs. A flash of lightening and I retreated. I tried to focus. It was the mirrors. Small pieces of colored glass studded in her slip-ons tangled in beautiful threads. That soothing skin texture. That shining pink enamel. Though what captured me was the sliver stoned toe-ring. A funky pink plastic toe-ring shaped as a Cinderella shoe flashed back in front of my eyes. It may not be true ….but every no exists along with a corresponding yes. I tried to concentrate on it, as with so many people bubbling in, I lost it maybe I lost her. I got restless I drifted my eyes sideways and again she was there. I couldn’t see her in full but I was getting more and more attracted to her. In few more attempts I saw a light blue jeans faded white at few parts. I froze. My heart started thumping. Is it ?? I was afraid to find out.
Still I followed her. In few more glimpses I saw her lemon colored kurti and purple-embroided jhola. I was nearing her. My speed continued to increase. I saw her hand, her sparkling multicolored bangles, a red color thumb-ring, a sea green ring in her little finger, when she tired to stop a man who was about to crash in her.
I quit. My feet struck at the ground still my eyes following her. Again there were several others between us. She tossed her stole up in the air onto her shoulders. Everything was new but it wasn’t different. All the action, the grace, was unlike her yet there was a striking similarity. She wore a silver metallic watch with complimenting bracelets hanging just below it on her other hand. Her long sleek nails stunned me. Her stole now rested on her shoulder. It was green with yellow patches here and there, several plain mirrors shinning… blinding people. Enchanting sound of  ghun -ghuru  hanging from her stole tried to drag me to her. I was tempted to put an end to it. To know. To confront. To feel. Still the push and the pull was equal. Her hair was flowing away from her face, long silky streaked in red, coursing up to her waist. The chase was over. She turned towards me. Few strands of hair obstructed her face. She placed them behind her ear with her long slender fingers.
A chill ran through my body. I was unable to move. I choked. My hands curled. I was ecstatic for a moment I was nervous for the next I was scared in the third. I struggled with myself. Half of her hair clutched behind her ear from which hanged a rotating jhumka. Same beautiful hairline, few strands flowing onto the face but ending before her eyes began. Her enchanting eyes, ever expressive, ever transparent, always innocent.
‘Eyes are windows to the soul’ was so true for her. Her pure white face it give you an illusion that it will turn red if anyone touches her. No straight guy can ever take his eyes off her golden nose ring. Her lips, pure pink, never needed any extra color. But her smile was something to hold out for. So lively, so perfect, captivating, bewitching, delightining, enthralling…. I never found enough words to describe it.
I reversed scared to face her. I was even more scared to let her confront me. I sided. I saw her coming. She was then parallel to me. She halted. I hid across a pillar. Then glanced back again at her. She searched her bag for something, then feeling assured on finding it she smiled, typically her. Finally she passed.
The girl passed.
The girl I last loved…
The girl who used to look at me and I used to forget everything going around me and could not stop but smile back at her.
The girl ..whose teeth used to sparkle on listening to admiration of her beauty.
The girl ..whose eyes used to twinkle on seeing chocolate pastry.
The girl ..who kept on adding words to my girl’s encyclopedia.
The girl..who used to love the sound of rain.
The girl..who used to explain everything along with hand movement.
The girl..who could spent million on clothing if she had but never on gadgets.
‘You say what’s more…’ was all what was needed to trigger her off on a never ending series of stories.
The girl who ruled my dreams but I was never there in her thoughts.
The girl who was there in my life but never really came into my life still changed every bit of it.
The girl I last loved….
….The girl ..who never loved me back.


About the author: Smita Kaushik became author by chance and is now pursuing it by choice. Her first novel Let’s Get Committed not only created waves among the young generation but also pitched some notes with others as well. Though her forte lies in romance with hint of comedy, she sometimes tries to lay hands on philosophy. An ex-DPSite, she did her graduation from KIIT University and is currently based in Hyderabad. Always a creativity inclined person, she has excelled in different art forms like contemporary, madhubani & warli and has won many national level art competitions. For fun she likes to watch rom-com and read novels.


My view: I am a die hard romantic at heart and I personally enjoyed reading Smita's first book. The first chapter is quite promising and gives us an impression that the book wouldn't let us down in any perspective. the magical weaving of words is well visible in the first chapter itself. Each and every scene described could easily be pictured in my mind. This possibly explains the art of story telling the author possess. I would really love to read this book, know Akash and Kasam and their ten year journey of finding and losing love. I guess the most challenging part for an author is writing in the first person as the opposite gender. The present project that I'm working deals with the same, thinking like a guy, the kind of emotions he goes through is really a typical task for a girl because we all know Men and women differ in their nature almost poles apart, as the saying goes men are from Mars and Women are from Venus. And this is one thing I am really forward to reading in this book. While in the first chapter, it actually doesn't feel that a girl has written it all. Oh and btw did I tell you, I love the book cover :)
My fav line from the above extract is:
"People who are important will cease to matter six years from now if they walk out of life at this point. You won’t forget them but you won’t even recall them now and then"
And of course the last line:
"The Girl I last Loved...The girl who never looked back"

~SNEAK PEEP INTO A FEW LINES PRESENT IN THE BOOK~

Being Friends with someone you love is roughly equivalent to...
This is roughly equivalent to the scenario where a guy goes to a job interview and the company says, “You have a great resume, you have all the qualifications we were looking for, but we are not going to hire you. We will however, use your resume as the basis of comparison for all other applicants. But we are going to hire somebody else who is far less qualified and is probably an alcoholic. And if it doesn’t workout we will hire somebody else still not you. In fact we will never hire you. But we will call you from time to time to complain about the person we hired.

And this one's the author's favourite:

I missed her all the time. When I opened my eyes in the morning I missed her not lying by my side. When I got up I missed not seeing her brushing her wet hair with towel. I missed her not passing me the juice during the breakfast. I missed not yelling out about my wallet or mobile and getting them for me. I missed not saving her image in my eyes before leaving for work. I missed kissing her good bye at the door. Whenever I looked at my kitchen’s window from the parking I missed her not standing there, watching me till I leave...waving to me. I missed not getting abrupt calls during meetings. I missed the anxiety to reach home early. I missed the way she would have opened the door for me. If sometimes I would have arrived early I would have made coffee for her. I missed her massaging my head if I had some work related issue. I missed trying to knit her hair. I missed sitting on this sofa together fighting for remote. I missed letting her win and then watching romantic comedies. I missed lying on the corner of this hall. Her sitting in my lap.. Me smelling her hair knowing its forever. I missed her, kneeling her head onto my chest and then going to sleep. I even miss the fight we never had. I missed the kisses. The hugs. The warmth.
I missed not making all that happen.
I missed the every possibility of her being with me.


I've already ordered by copy, what are you waiting for?
Order via Flipkart or HomeShop18

Follow the book's FB page here
You can also order Smita's first book Let's get Committed

Sunday, July 29, 2012

My Novel is all about selfless love and true relationships : Vinit K Bansal


This interview was published @ Isahitya on 17.06.2012
Vinit K Bansal, a banker by profession is the new writer on the block.  Last Year He has come up with a debut novel "I Am Heartless: A Real Confession " describing few true incidents of his life. He considers it as a real confessin. The book revolves around  Viren who is a day dreamer, an egoistic, a hopeless romantic and an attention seeker afflicted with a bizarre madness and arrogance engulfing him. 
It is the story of his life which encompasses love, dedication, eccentricity, friendship and overall his discovery of his true love and also the anguish of losing it due to his obstinacy and self-centeredness. It is a repertoire of moments coated with velvetiness of love and bruised by the thorns of betrayal. It highlights the situations which ultimately turns him into a devil, who wants to annihilate the whole world with his impiety, consequences being the least he cares about; and eventually loses his happiness, identity and even himself in this process.
In a conversation with Harshita Srivastava, he talks about his experience on his debut as an author . 
(Here’s the interview)
Qus: How does it feel to hold your book in hand?
Vinit - Feels on the top of the world, with my feet still firm on the ground.:-). On a lighter note, it makes me feels royally humble.
Qus: How did writing come into existence in your life?
Vinit: I was into writing poetry and articles since my college days but writing a complete book is what I had never even thought of in my wildest dreams. But then an incident in my life (As mentioned in my book) motivated me to do so.
Qus: Being a debut author, what hardships you had to face while writing as well as getting your book published?
Vinit: I wanted to share the story in its real version only but being a novice it was little difficult for me to manage varying emotions of the characters and adjust its magnitude as per the circumstances occurring in the novel.
While at the time of publishing, I am amongst those lucky writers who didn’t have to move around publishers’ office. This story had been selected by some very well known publishing houses and amongst all of them I chose Mahaveer.     
Qus: Tell us something about your book.
Vinit: The book highlights the purest form of human emotions and the small yet intimate moments of love life which usually is evident in almost everyone but they do not get noticed. It portrays height of love and friendship, bizarre madness, internal conflicts, dilemmas and ocean full of sentiments. It touches the heart of every youngster or for that matter anyone who has ever fallen in love.
Qus: This book is inspired by some true incidents in your life. How did you come up with this idea?
Vinit: Yes it is a true story. . When I came to know about it I decided to share it with all, so that no one repeats the same mistake which the protagonist did. In short, the story itself inspired me.
Qus: How did you come up with the title of the book?
Vinit: I had decided the title the moment I heard the story. I somehow felt that the title conveys every emotion the protagonist experienced.
Qus: We’ve heard you are a poet too. When do we get to see your poems in print?
Vinit: Well, I have been writing for the poetry column for “Last Sunday” magazine and literary column for “Indiaa’h” magazine for about one year now. Apart from that I am also planning to publish a book containing my poems. I assure you to find it in your hands very soon.
Qus: Is there any message you would like to give through your novel?
Vinit: Always love the person who loves you.
Qus: Is there any particular age group you are targeting?
Vinit: No, nothing like that. This book is for every age group. It is all about selfless love and true relationships which are the essential to everyone’s life. I believe every reader will relate to it.
Qus: Tell us something about yourself.
Vinit: I am a banker and I work in State Bank of India, New Delhi. Originally I belong to Bathinda (Punjab). I’ve done my masters from Kurukshetra University.. My father is a business man and mother , a home maker. I worked as an investment consultant for over three years before joining SBI.
Qus: What are your future plans?
Vinit: Currently,  I am working on Hindi and Punjabi versions of “I am Heartless...”. After their completion I will start working on my second novel which will be a motivational one.
Qus: What kind of reviews have you got for your book till now?
Vinit: I am receiving very good and positive reviews and I’m really very excited about it.
Qus: Who has been your source of inspiration?
Vinit: Paulo Coelho and Ravinder Singh have inspired me to write and Dr. APJ Abdul Kalaam has been by all time idol.
Qus: What are your favourite works?
Vinit: My favourite works are: Eleven Minutes, I too had a love story, A thousand splendid suns and many more.
Qus: And finally, any advice or suggestion you would like to give to aspiring authors?
Vinit: Be true to yourself first and then to others. Just concentrate on the purity of story rather than on other marketing stuff because at the end of the day it is only your hard work and creativity that will take you ahead in this field. 
Thank you Sir, it was a pleasure interviewing you
Harshita Srivastava
Click here to buy the novel via flipkart . )

Life is not what you lose rather than what you gain by losing something: Soumitro Chatterjee


This interview was published @ Isahitya on 03.06.2012

An engineer by profession, Soumitro Chatterjee has come up with his debut novel ‘I am still committed’ which was released this month. Based on true incidences of his life, his book has gone into reprint in a span of just seven days. Soumitro is not just a writer and an engineer, he has a heart of gold and is actively associated with AID-Prayas, Noida. AID- Prayas is an NGO that works for the education of kids of slum in Noida.
Here Soumitro  talks about the experiences that made him turn into a writer.
(Interviewed by Harshita Srivastava)
Qus - How does it feel to hold your book in hand?
Soumitro -  I was waiting for this moment since last 400days, so it had been a mixed feeling altogether. I was happy on one hand and emotional on the other. Every debutant feels the same; but as this book talks about my own life’s journey an additional emotion is attached to it.
Qus -  How did writing come into existence in your life?
Soumitro - To be very frank the only reason why I started writing this novel was due to the failure and successes of my own life. Few memories of past was dominating my present. I wanted to speak out, I wanted to share and one fine day it sparked into my mind and henceforth, I started penning down all small incidents one after the other which finally gave the shape of “I Am Still Committed”
Qus-  Being a debut author, what hardships you had to face while writing as well as getting your book published?
Soumitro -  Indeed being a debutant it was not an easy task to come up with a novel. Since I have written Srishti publication’s name as my publisher in the acknowledgement page even before writing a single line, I have not responded to any other publishing houses from where I initially got positive responses. All I can say it was worth the wait!
Qus - Tell us something about your book.
Soumitro - This book talks about my entire journey about my college life, my memories with friends, those successes & failures, a job in the time of recession, getting everything yet ending up with nothing... In short anyone and everyone who had ever been to college can connect themselves very well and for the rest it would act as a guide.
Qus- How did you come up with the title of the book?
Soumitro -  Initially the title was not this but my publisher suggested coming up with something different. With so many rejections and disagreements, one day while I was in the loo, this title “I Am Still Committed” hit me but the tag line “as hopes are yet to die” has been suggested by my elder brother Mr. Subir Chatterjee
Qus - This book is inspired by some true incidents in your life. How did you come up with his idea?
Soumitro - As I have already mentioned that there was no prior mindset or thought that I wanted to be an Author. Suddenly one day when I was unable to hold my memories, happiness, pain, success and failure I picked up my pen and started writing. From there onwards I never looked back until it became a reality as “I Am Still Committed”
Qus -Your book has gone into reprint in just seven days. How does it feel?
Soumitro - Frankly speaking I never thought or set a benchmark while writing this book but when I am getting reviews that the ghost incidents are making people scared and they are not able to sleep whole night…Those lines where I had hide my tears while penning down my emotion are making them cry, I can feel that I have started connecting to people’s heart. And about reprint it came as a big surprise for me and for that I am thankful to all my readers 
Qus- Is there any message you would like to give through your novel?
Soumitro - Certainly! Whenever we lose something we usually give up or consider everything is over. But life is not what you lose rather than what you gain by losing something. I have tried to communicate this to people through my novel.
Qus-  Is there any particular age group you are targeting?
Soumitro -  No No, because there are few instances in the novel which every human being encounters in their respective lives. Due to the simple language used, it has attracted older people as well. I was pretty happy to receive feedback from my father, dean, and friend’s mother when they said they loved it. So I would say “I Am Still Committed” is for everyone.
Qus - Tell us something about yourself.
Soumitro - Professionally I am a Software Engineer and a ground level volunteer of AID-Noida. Writing has now become my passion. I am basically born & brought up at Dhanbad and then did my engineering from Chennai, Currently I am residing in Delhi due to my job at an IT MNC and I believe I still have miles to go before I sleep…
Qus - What are your future plans? Do you plan to take up writing on full time basis?
Soumitro - I have many dreams, few of which I want to keep within myself as of now. About full time writing I would say writing will always be my passion but won’t make it a profession.
Qus- What kind of reviews have you got for your book till now?
Soumitro - So far it’s being good. People have started connecting so well. The horror incidents of my college life are making people scared and all other emotions are equally felt by readers. As of now when I heard it’s already gone for a reprint I can assume people have started liking it. But I am looking forward to more positive and negative reviews
Qus- Are you working on a second novel?
Soumitro -  I still have to do a lot of thing for “I Am Still Committed”. So I think it will be too early to jump on the second novel. Moreover, I want to work hard before coming up with my second novel
Qus - Who has been your source of inspiration?
Soumitro - For writing if I talk precisely success and failures of my own life are my inspiration but somewhere my father’s writing zeal came into me and inspired me of what I am today. Secondly my sister Suparna Chatterjee is nonetheless the one whom I admire a lot.  
Qus-  What are your favorite works?
Soumitro -  I am very poor at reading books. Before 2010 I am sure I haven’t picked up any book apart from my curriculum books. When circumstances compelled me to write, then I started picking up a few. But unfortunately I haven’t completed them yet.  I think next time when I get this question I will have a long list to say
Qus - Authors that you believe changed the literary scenario of India.
Soumitro -  Every author, may it be a renowned or unknown plays a vital role and contribute their part in literary genre of writing. Because no job is easy to be executed. And if I have to take names those who have changed the scenario then I would say it would be Rabindra Nath Tagore, Amaryta Sen, Arundhati Roy amongst few others.
Qus-  And finally, any advice or suggestion you would like to give to aspiring authors and readers?
Soumitro - How I became an Author, I even don’t know. Might be to kick start my literary journey god has given me a beautiful experience during my college days, while my parents and friends have given me that courage to put them on paper and now readers are motivating me to take this seriously. Same can happen with anyone of you. And for readers I would say whatever be their feedback I would happily accept them, work upon them to do better and yes, readers are the assets of any Author’s life so I respect them from the core of my heart.
Thank you Harshita and Isahitya for giving me this opportunity.
The pleasure is indeed Ours
Harshita Srivastava

Click Here to Buy Flipkart 'I am still committed’ . You can Join the author's facebook fan Page here  .)

To be a good writer one has to be a good reader first :Nikhil Mukhija


This post was published @ Isahitya on 09.06.2012

Here In Our Debut Writer Special Section , this time we have Nikhil Mukhija with us, debut author of 'You & Me & Our Relationship'. Nikhil Mukhija, 21, an engineering student at Kurukshetra University bangs into the book industry with a book on the psychology of attraction. Most debut authors go for some chic lit stories but for Nikhil, it’s not the case. He has a gone a step beyond the college romance.
The book happened due to some personal experiences in his life which ignited new thoughts in his mind and the result was a book on psychology of attraction. He talks about the hurdles one goes through while falling in love and what steps should be taken in order to get successful. Suicide is not the solution after a break up. Life doesn’t end here, you have to move on. He feels love is a very delicate phenomenon and just a slight mistake can proliferate misinterpretation and misunderstanding. So in any case there's no harm in taking the precautions & being acquainted with all the dimensions.
Nikhil Mukhija, in a  chat with Harshita Srivastava, talks about his book, the literary scenario of our nation and lot more
How does it feel to hold your book in hand?
Nikhil : Like a mother holding her first baby, NAH, too dramatic, it’s good , it’s something that I have been dreaming for the past 3 years, never thought it would come so soon, I had always thought, I will be a writer someday..., yet that someday was never planned.
How did writing come into existence in your life?
Nikhil : I used to write till my 10th standard, but then got super involved in my engineering, so could not continue it but then someone knocked in my life in my 1st year and one day I wrote a small article ‘Life-the 2 sides’ and my crush called me for the first time and praised me a lot and from then I started writing regularly and posting them on my facebook profile and tag her, she fuelled my faith and inspired me, encouraged me and finally planted that seed of faith that someday I will be able to write a book and get published.
Being a debut author, what hardships you had to face while writing as well as getting your book published?
Nikhil : To get a publisher who publishes your book in the promised time period, and then also promote it from their side is the hardest thing to find.
Ques: Tell us something about your book
Nikhil : In India it is the first ever coming up with something related to psychology of attraction among youngsters, during my launch when Ravinder Singh Sir launched my book, the media people asked me how is a 20 year old guy qualified to pen down such a book, and my answer was, Only a 20 year old youngsters can relate to all that he has been through in his own past relationship, carefully noting down all his own mistakes and above all, I certainly did a lot of research with famous relationship authors from around the globe and one such chapter “the Three principles’ is inspired from one of my favourite authors SHAFIN DE ZANE. I have given my best to make it an interesting and effective book, with examples that everyone would be able to relate to.
How did you come up with the title of the book?
Nikhil : Title, trust me when it comes to finding a perfect title, your brain never stops thinking. I had thought of over 85 titles for my book, some were too classic, some were too clichéd, some were inspired from others, some were self, but one fine day, someone had asked me what is the book about, and then the idea clicked me, why not title it YOU & ME and of course since it is about relationships, so & Our Relationship became the subtitle.
Your book talks about the psychology of attraction, quite a different topic compared to the campus romance that most debut authors come up with. How did the idea crop into your mind?
Nikhil: Well, there were 2 reasons behind that, one was when I realized that how I missed her by a slight difference, I was the closest to her, yet I couldn’t become the one for her, I realized I had everything she liked yet a few things are necessary, people may say Be Yourself, but presentation matters the most, so then I thought that there would be many like me, who are true in their emotions yet fail because it is a superficial world where no one can see the heart only your personality and way of interaction can help you get through and get a chance to reach closer in the first place. Second was that a close friend of mine was on the verge of suicide, every day I used to talk to her for an hour or so when her boyfriend dumped her to prevent her from taking such a step, then I realized that I should reach the mass audience and that is the very reason why the biggest chapter of my book is based on suicide which uses reverse psychology to convince those who are inclined towards it.
Is there any message you would like to give through your novel?
Nikhil : Definitely! ‘Behind every successful guy or girl there is a person who had dumped him/her in the past, but then had she/he not dumped him/her, the guy/girl would have never been successful.’, Love is a beautiful emotion but certainly life doesn’t revolve around it, your past dreams which you have been harbouring since your childhood sometimes are suppressed in aspiration of getting that one person into your life, don’t let that happen to you.
Is there any particular age group you are targeting?
Nikhil : Yes, I suppose, Married people won’t be interested to read this book :D so I personally feel that the age group of 13 to 25 year old will definitely be able to relate to the book and so far it has been around 2 months, I have been flooded with positive reviews which makes my expectation rise higher and higher.
Your book has reached in the top 100 list of HomeShop18, how does it feel?
Nikhil : It’s one of the best things that happened to me since the launch, never imagined it would be there within 10 days of its market release, Someone told me to check my book at homeshop18 and there it was 96 position among the top 100, the next 3 days were even better 92 and now it is at 83, let’s see when it enters the top 50.
Tell us something about yourself.
Nikhil : I am the face in the crowd that you see every day but always with a thought to bring a wave of change in the society, I don’t care much for my looks, I try to be honest and straightforward with everyone I interact and I so far have tried my best to evolve as a human being by reading classic authors around the globe, because I believe everything that you read has an impact on your subconscious mind and transforms your thinking accordingly, so one should be very selective in one’s reading habits and personally I believe reading books is way better than watching movies. Someday I would like to start my own Publishing house to bring out novels with a substance and induce a change in the forefront of the society.
What are your future plans? Do you plan to take up writing on full time basis?
Nikhil : Yes and No, well considering the Indian Publishing scenario, no one can deny that it is too hard to sustain your living on the basis of the annual royalty amount, but if I am able to reach out to the masses and can manage even an average living through it, I would certainly try to go ahead with it and be a dedicated full time writer who does months of research before every plot.
What kind of reviews have you got for your book till now?
Nikhil : I am glad that I could live up to the expectations of the masses, my goal was to write a book which doesn’t involve redundant philosophical terms of psychology or use too many jargons, so I did my best to take real life examples to elaborate my point and I am thankful to the almighty that I was successful in accomplishing that, I am elated that both the genders are coming up with honest reviews of my book where they admired the practicality of the book and how it is entertaining throughout.
Are you working on a second novel?
Nikhil : Not yet, that depends on my 5th semester exam results, if the results are decent I would start penning down the story I have in my mind this July if not, then will try to focus back to academics.
Who has been your source of inspiration?
Nikhil : Chetan Bhagat was the first novelist I read, so directly or indirectly, he cannot be denied the credit to bring a change in Indian publishing scenario. But on the whole Ravinder Singh and Novoneel Chakraborty among Indians and Paulo Coelho and Oscar Wilde among International authors were some of the inspirations.
Authors that you believe changed the literary scenario of India.
Nikhil : Ravinder Singh, Novoneel Chakraborty, Arvind Adiga, Amish Tripathi, these are some that I personally admire for being distinct and creative in their writings.
An author you look up to.
Nikhil : Paulo Coelho, the Pole star for me, his works like ‘The Winner Stands alone’, ‘Eleven Minutes’ & ‘The Alchemist’ inspire me every day to polish my own skills and one day come out with a book which scales mountains at the international level.
And finally, any advice or suggestion you would like to give to aspiring authors and readers?
Nikhil : For authors- “Patience pays the best” do NOT fall for anyone who says yes to you the earliest, try to bring a flair to your writing and think beyond college/school love stories, try reading ‘The Kite Runner-Khalid Hosseini’ to know how love is just a part of the novel and there are scores and scores of subjects that need to be touched and can create a magic in the minds of the readers. & to be a good writer one has to be a good reader first, just like to be a good guitarist one has to observe all the great guitarist around the globe and then experiment on one’s own.
For Readers- ‘Be selective in what you read, everything has a profound subconscious impact on your mind and thus overdose of anything is bad, be it love or be it thriller’, diversify your domain by taking up variety of genres and move out of your comfort zone and you would realize that a vast world is waiting for you to explore and be enchanted with.
Thanks 
Harshita Srivastava

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