Dev Ayan's Blog

The lunch box

The classroom was getting restless in the last few minutes before the much-awaited lunch break. The teacher could feel the students shift in attention. She banged the duster twice on the desk to bring back the focus of the students to whatever she was saying. The students were immediately alerted only to hear the next lunch bell; the harbinger of their joy.


This was the usual scene every day during the fourth period of my school. We couldn’t have waited to open our lunch boxes, much less to see what other students have brought.


The lunch break used to commence as usual- with everyone opening their boxes and trying to eat what they can before going for a hunt to others’ tables. But that day was a bit unusual. The introvert Naveen was sitting idle with his tiffin box lay in front of him. We all had waited for him to open so that we could jump on it. He was one of those rare students who picked from other people. His innocence was often mistaken as his stupidity as is always the human nature to substitute any virtue with naiveté.


We were busy wondering why he wasn’t opening his box. It was then he grabbed it and made a move towards the door. He wanted to eat alone that day. There had to be something special, we thought. We began calling him from behind. He didn’t respond and continued walking. We started following him, he paced up. We realised he was avoiding us. There is something special, we were assured. We doubled our pace. Being not the fastest runner, he was finally outrun and caught.


He begged not to snatch his lunch. We were in no state to negotiate. He threatened to complain. We were in no mood to listen. One of us snatched his box and tried opening it. Naveen protested and tried getting his box back. In the strife, the box broke open, and the entire content fell out, resulting in no one getting anything. Naveen broke down in tears shouting and blaming us. His wail was loud enough to get teachers’ attention. Two of them came out running towards the commotion. They hurried towards the crying fourth standard boy. Learning on what happened, they took him inside the staff room. Before leaving, one of them gave an angry look. We knew we were up for some severe punishment.


But sir had something else in store for us. After the school got over, he took us to the nearby slum. He showed us the way children live there. They merely had anything to eat. And we waste food without thinking. We were all very silent. Coming back home only one thought haunted me. What if I had to live that way? Why can’t they live like me?


As a child, I was never able to answer these then. That day didn’t just make me feel how fortunate we were or that we shouldn’t waste food like that. It opened my eyes towards another India. I wanted to do something for them.


Often we take what we have for granted not realising how it affects others around us. We need to understand that this world is for everyone and everyone is liable to the same respect we think we deserve. It is my urge to everyone to understand, appreciate and respect what we have.


This incident inspired me in ways more than one. My story ‘The Bottle’ in my upcoming book is one such story dedicated to those marginalised children around the country.

The Bottola- an evening spent with literature and much more...

Being an independent self-published author, I had always wanted to meet and interact with people with an equal knack for storytelling and literature. They are not the authors you find in the bookstores or online portals; because they are the ones who write for themselves, for the sheer pleasure of writing, to answer their urge for story-telling.
My cousin Ushni Dasgupta reading her storyOne such opportunity came in my way when I received an invitation to attend a ‘Bottola’ gathering in Faridabad, last weekend. It was hosted by my aunt, Dr. Mousumi Dasgupta, and my uncle, Mr. Shantanil Dasgupta A Bottola is a gathering of like-minded literature enthusiasts who meet regularly and discuss literature. They read their stories, poetries and anything they’ve written to an audience and experience and appreciate other people’s literature. I was invited as a guest along with my mother. She’d written her periodic short story pertaining to that theme of that gathering - ‘It was your promise, you’d write to me.’ There were people from varied profession from artists to travellers, from retired people to the ones having a 9-5 job, almost everyone who sought refuge in literature.
Bottola Story-telling session running full fledgedly. 

A section of the members present 

Another section of the attendeees The host of the evening Dr. Mousumi Dasgupta with Ushni and the moderator for the evening-Mr. Dipak Mukhopadhyay




It was my opportunity to express myself about my book- “Laments and Virtues”, also a book giveaway and book signing followed. I received an overwhelming response and blessings from the members, all of whom were much elder and much-experienced people when it came to writing.
Me signing the copies of Laments and Virtues. In the chair- Mr Kishore, a senior Bottola member
This Bottola, is remarkable in more than one ways for it witnesses and sustains Bengali while miles away from Bengal. This shows the attachment of people towards their mother-tongue and the enthusiasm to recreate the same passion in home away from home.
Often, in the modern urban lives, the pursuit of our career (job or studies) makes us leave our home and make living in an alien land far away from our culture. I was born in Howrah (West Bengal), but had my childhood in Chowduar, Cuttack (Orissa), Dehri-on-son (Bihar) and Bardhhaman (West Bengal), Kakinada (Seemandhra) and Haldia (West Bengal) before joining college in Jadavpur University. While my nomadic childhood offered me the various experiences and understanding of different cultures, which wouldn’t have been possible if I were brought up in one place, it also kept me away from my own culture. There was one point where I had difficulty understanding the quirks and sarcasm in my own language.
But these people I met here in Bottola had a similar life. They were away from their home and culture, yet they took time every day from their busy schedule to nurture and relish their language and come together once a month to exchange their views and words.
That evening left me both baffled and inspired. I felt a sudden tinge in myself that I have many stories in me trying to come out. There was an imminent urge to write, feel and enjoy. More than anything I felt at home after a long time.
I take this opportunity to thank every member of Bottola for inviting me and giving me an evening to remember for a long time to come.

The Selection of our new Class Monitor.

Every year at the beginning of each academic year, our class teacher appoints one of us to be the ‘class monitor’. His/her job is to mind the class in absence of any teacher, collect all the notebooks for the teacher and accompany her with the lot to the staffroom. In other words, he was the ‘teacher ka chamcha’. The monitor was who enjoyed a special status in the eyes of his classmates. And his friends enjoyed a special status of never getting punished.


It happens in every school, and in everywhere the procedure is more or less the same. One of the few toppers is selected from the batch of scores of students and given the honourable position of the ‘class monitor’. Every probable leader- everyone from the last year’s top rankers began to ally and tried to be in the good books of the teachers. And the entire class tried to be in their good books.

I still remember the time we were in our fifth standard. That was our first day. We were fresh with enthusiasm and optimism. The smell of new books was still lingering and could be felt every time we opened our bags. Like every time, our new class teacher entered. While many of us had known her previously, a handful of newcomers didn’t. She was known for her anger and strictness. With her commanding voice, she introduced herself. Then she asked us to introduce ourselves. One by one, right from the first bench, each of us stood up and said our names and one line about us. The last benchers though had to repeat their words for their voices were inaudible. The backbenchers had lost their voices on learning about their new class-teacher.
After the introductory session, it was time for declaring the class monitor. Every expectant eye looked at our teacher. The first benchers could well be predicted have their fingers crossed.
Then she called out the name of a student who was never bothered except during attendance call and declared him to be the Class Monitor. At her announce, even her prestige couldn’t prevent the classroom from the imminent commotion that followed. How could a non-topper be given that respect? Hardly were any of the back-benchers or timid non-participants ever noticed, except a few talented ones who were only acknowledged during the annual Sports Day or School Fest. The class was becoming unruly.                         
The teacher banged the duster twice to bring back order in the class. Everyone returned to an uncomfortable silence. However, no one dared question her authority. Our desire to be answered remained unquenched even to this day. The only thing significant on that event was the realisation that there were students beyond the regular good scorers and active participants in the classroom and that they had equal chances and opportunities like the rest of them.

Why sometimes we must let it be with one?

Recently, I have read somewhere about a probable sequel of Christopher Nolan's 'Inception' and somewhere I was left feeling uneasy about it. Unable to comprehend it back then, I decided to work it out myself.


To begin with, it's evident that most, if not all, sequels disappoint. The reason being far too many. Below is the list of reasons I feel sequels disappoint:-

1) The package goes missing:-

The first of any book/movie sets up some universe adds characters and plots that at times serve the dual purpose of entertaining and teaching a life lesson. It serves as an entire package. Sometimes while doing the sequels, this entire package gets lost in the plot. Sometimes characters don't live up to the expectations, sometimes the moral is weakly delivered or sometimes the plot itself dilutes (e.g.  Rock on 2 by Shujaat Saudagar).

2) Easy formulae do not work:-

Most of the plot lines, in case where the story isn't continued in the sequels, work on the same formula, like in case of any Jack Reacher stories, the protagonist always finds himself amidst a plot of some conspiracy that can only be solved by him. Sometimes, these formulae work in the beginning for they promise novelty, but this gets used and overused the readers don't feel monotonous and regressive. As a result, the sequel fails e.g. Inferno by Ron Howard..

3) No one likes to be forced:-

At times, we feel that the purpose isn't strong enough and the plot feels kind of 'Forced' into the sequel to match with its predecessor. The readers or any movie goer, reads or watches for entertainment (primarily) and out of one free will. Now what if one is forced to watch something. Surely one'll end up hating it. For the stories can be as out of the world as they want, for as long as the 'suspension of disbelief' isn't forced, it will always be appreciated. (like- Hangover 2 by Todd Phillips)

Though some exceptions to watch out for:-

When most of the sequels fail to deliver, there are some sequels who outperform their predecessors as enlisted below:-

1) Godfather II by Francis Ford Coppola- The sequel to the classic Gangster family movie is still considered by and large the best sequel ever made.

2) The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan- Christopher Nolan's only story that ever got made into a franchise was his batman trilogy. No one can ever forget Heath Ledger's last on screen performance which left the audience loving the antagonist to the protagonist.

3) The Empire Strikes Back Irvin Kershner- The fans of the Star Wars' franchise would unanimously agree that this is so far the best movie in the series.

4) The two towers (LOTR 2) by Peter Jackson- This adaptation of the Tolkein's novel is said to have bettered its prequel.

5) Home Alone 2 by Chris Colombus- A young boy lost in New York. The makers decision to stick with the previous formula of a left alone boy and yet come up with a different background was appreciated as well as enjoyed by the audience.


The list is really long and exhaustive. I would love if the list is furthered by the readers. Thanks.

So, as it turns out while most of them disapoint, not everyone deserves our frown. So if there is at all any chance of Inception having a sequel let's keep our finger's cross and hope it falls into the latter category.

Laments and Virtues

Hello, everyone! apologies for not being able to update any blogs since long. Not that I didn't feel like blogging during the interim, with so many things going right from the Rio Olympics to the election of Donald Trump to demonetization of the Indian currency with higher denominations to the issue of the Cauvery water distribution. there indeed were many things that needed writing about, but as it turns out, I was pretty preoccupied with the publication of my first book. Yes, my prolonged struggled to get myself published is finally coming true with the publication of "Laments and Virtues" my collection of poetries and short stories.

With the arrival of my book due December, I finally have some time to spare to write update my blog and highlight some points about the book which may not be possible to convey through my facebook page, twitter or Instagram. So here it is:-

LaV is a collection of ten poems and three short stories. The essential theme that binds them together is the plight, dilemma and laments that seem to engulf us during our day to day lives. Sometimes, we feel like breaking free and escaping, sometimes we stay and fight, sometimes we succeed while in other times, we fail. Whatever might our decision be, or whatever be their consequences, we always find them become part and parcel of our lives insomuch as they end up being the defining elements of our lives. We find some virtues in our laments. This is the heart of the book to be realised through every piece of writing.

LaV was not incepted the way it has turned out. My first book was supposed to be a collection of short stories for middle-grade children and the poetries were not to be published anytime soon. But as it turned out, I found that many of my poetries seem to be telling more or less the same thing in ways more than one, yet each having its own way of expressing its meaning. It was then I came up with the idea of getting them published under one title. And the result was the emergence of 'Laments and Virtues'.

So, till the time it comes out and reaches your bookshelves, KEEP READING, KEEP LOVING.

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable...

The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable by Amitav Ghosh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

An eye opening account of our negligence to the most important and influential factor of our very existence-Climate change.
It urges the writer in us to question the established norms of narration and wants us to encompass collective narration involving greater and richer literature, because what else has the world recorded its history in but literature itself. It's imperative for us to leave a mark and ask questions and write about the prevalent issue of climate for the future generations as witnesses in our justification for our negligence amidst politics war and other issues.


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The DESIRE PATH

The government made the roads for tourists’ convenience. They spend a great amount and labour trying to maintain them. Every year, tonnes of tourists can be witnessed in their polluting vehicle marching up and down the hilly roads, risking their lives, just to get a glimpse of a well-known lake which contained water only for a certain period in the whole year. The toils of the local people can be realised in the very rubbles of the previously fallen boulders. The song of nature can be heard in the rumblings of the clouds hovering upon the mountains.Amidst all these painstaking efforts to give a pleasant experience to the tourists alongside maintaining the serenity of the very mountains, the lives of the local people often go unnoticed. As it always is the case, any place is known for its beauty, but always it is remembered by the people who inhabit the place. When people were busy in their vacation from their daily jobs appreciating the nature only to forget it upon their return, the locals chose the desire path for their daily jobs, collecting wood, nurturing tea gardens and preparing steamed food in their shops for the resting tourists. Being a tourist one can know the beauty of the place, but looking at the same place from a residence’s point of view, one can realise the place much more than any prolonged tourist can. To work, make a living, raise a family amidst the uncertain weather and roads, are the things that make life really challenging and unveils the true nature of nature. The extreme at which it could go is beyond the predictability of mere mortals.
So next time, we visit any hill station or any other mountainous place, along with appreciating the nature, we also need to keep in mind the people who make this place what it is. We can talk to them, know their culture, their problems. We don’t have to bring them up from their drudgery, but at least we can take some time to appreciate them. For without them, the place won’t be the same.

THE CIRCLE OF REASON, BY AMITAV GHOSH

The Circle of Reason by Amitav Ghosh
My rating: 1 of 5 stars




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The AUTORPRENEURS and their era..

“Literature” has, in both form and way it reached the readers, evolved during its course of history. The long dramas of Shakespearean Era refuting the dogmas and structure of the erstwhile Elizabethan Era, the emergence of various forms of poetries and establishing certain conventions in the usage of symbolism and appreciation of beauty of the Romantic Era, the rise to prominence of the ‘novel’ genre in the Victorian Era (which still continues as one of the foremost genre), cite only one thing- that Literature, like any other thing in the universe, follows the only constant thing “Change“.With the evolution of lifestyles, has evolved our literature. There was a certain time writing was seen as a non paying profession. Unless the current time when some writers who by employing certain celluloid-inspired methods to promote their books, garner greater readership and hence make huge profits in this “dying business”. They treat their book as a “startup” or business and go on to profit from it. This group of authors who run this enterprise are known as “AUTHORPRENEURS”.
These authorpreneurs have given a new dimension to modern literature. We can find many a newcomers taking up writing as a profession. The authors who reach the level of stardom can boast of having readership equivalent to that of fans of any superstar.
Why do we need authorpreneurs?
Often there were instances of many good books never see the light of the day or even upon doing so, they barely reach beyond a handful number of bookshelves. These authorpreneurs take it to themselves to make it reach satisfactory number of readers. The number of bestsellers has increased, so did the number of readers. His is certainly a positive sign for those taking up writing as a profession. They no longer have to worry about money to some extent.
But how far does commercialization of literature help literature?
As a matter of fact literature was never bereft of commercialization. Shakespeare never out rightly opposed Elizabethan beliefs so as to maintain the number of audience visiting his theatre. Dickens began serializing his novels to keep the readers always in want of the complete story. In the current times however obtaining better profits from books has become more prior to coming up with better books. We know how a product rightly advertised sells irrespective of its quality. So will looking at a form of art as a product mean the decline of its quality imminent? Well to some extent it does so. Many writers without putting in much research and hard work bring out their novels. This situation gives rise to two different segments of readers. On one hand we have selective readers (the class) who settle for nothing less than good, on the other hand, we have the mass, who give in to popular fiction without considering about literature. The readers of belonging to the class feel low towards the mass and look down upon them as mere less educated. This causes dissent to the writers of the mass. This gives way to “LITERAL DISCRIMINATION”.
Moreover the business these books do currently in the market has no indication whether it would go down in the history as “classical”. Whether our era of authorpreneurs will be regarded of as highly in future as the erstwhile eras are? Well it will be better to leave these questions for time to answer.As it has always been difficult to identify something as black or white distinctively for everything is to varying extents “grey”. We have to accept the two sides of the coin. Being literal about literature, if thorns could be appreciated in spite of bearing thorns, we must all see the good about our era thus adjusting ourselves to the thorn. We as readers, pivotal to the whole scenario, must understand the difference and appreciate the good. We must not allow someone to take advantage of our aloofness and misguide us towards having a bleak conception about literature.

Hope to see better days in future. Keep reading, keep loving. 

Of Christmas... and us.

Being a fan of Dicken’s literature since childhood, Christmas always reminds me of the famous character of Ebenezer Scrooge. The man, as miser as a miser could be and as cold in emotions as his suppers would be, when visited by ghosts of past, present and future and looks at his situation undergoes a change of heart and unleashes the spirit of Christmas . This being the plot of the story not only is fascinating for the children but is motivating for the grown ups alike.In our everyday life we do come across many people who seem to be of similar nature, not that they are cold, but they seem to have lost the track of time. They think they have plenty of life ahead of them to enjoy, but what they do not realise is that the time they think they have is actually the time that is spent on thinking so. It is often so that when we really think of enjoying our time, we realise we haven”t really got much.All those things we worry about, our career, our finance, our position, if reflected upon introspection, we shall find that it is all a hollow thing we are all chasing. It seems meaningful from the outside, but within it, it contains nothing but void. Life is not meant to be a void.
So in this Christmas, let us not just worship Christ,let us take time to rejoice what the almighty has left us with. LIFE. Let us try to bring some smile on our fellow being faces, let us restore hope to the people in despair. Let us live in this Christmas. Merry  Christmas. Spread love.