Joseph Anton
discussion
Live Video Chat with Salman Rushdie
q Was it difficult to strip down the story of Midnights Children when adapting it into the screenplay of the new film and how many times have people tried to adapt your books to the screen in the past?
Do you think there will ever be "reform"in Islam or are we stuck with zealots forever?
I am completely fascinated with science fiction because from the perspective of other worlds (and necessarily other cultures) we can see ourselves more clearly. Doctor Who is a recent fascination... in all of time and space The Doctor returns again and again to the worth and dignity of individuals, whatever their species/beliefs... but when he gets to fanatical killers (Daleks, Cybermen, etc.) then he is merciless in his drive to stop them from genocide. Andrew Wiggin (from the Ender's Game series) committed genocide and lived the rest of his days repenting in a truly remarkable series of novels. Mr. Rushdie, build a planet for us, with cultures that clash but do not kill because of clashes. Write that novel. Show us what it looks like when clashes are fodder for growth, when clashes are always seen as fodder for growth and renewal. I want to read the novel, not of gooey new agey "we all love each other" nonsense, not of automatons ruled by inflexible "we must not kill" morals (who don't understand why they must not), but the novel of a planet where profoundly technology immersed creatures remember when they killed for cultures' sake, but no longer do so because of the steps they took to grow out of that impulse. I want to see your name in print on this novel. Thank you. (PS: I loved Grimus and left if for a resort worker in Cozumel who told me he loved Sci-Fi. I will never forget that dance...)
From all your books, the image that has stayed with me most profoundly is that of Saleem deciding to prefer his own date for the death of Ghandi over the one given by history--because that's how he remembers it. Is this for you emblematic of the novel's relationship to official history--wilfully distorting the "facts" to get at the truth from another route? If so, how does the novel monitor history? Upon what hook does it hang its superior truth to make it generally and not just personally available? Taken to its extreme, how does Saleem/the novel avoid insanity?
q What is it like, being a published author? Does it make your approach to writing any different from if you wrote just because you felt like it? How does it feel when your first book gets published? And also, did the fatwa make you think twice before sending something you've written to the publishers?
q I remember reading an article of yours in India Today, which was basically your entire speech at the annual forum they hold in Mumbai. In your speech you mentioned, that great art pushes against boundaries and wishes to become and be. This to me has been a long source of inspiration, and I’ve always wondered if that applied to Satanic Verses, was it a need to question Islam and its beliefs or was it just a good story that you wanted to tell?
qMost of your books have had been upsetting to a lot of people, midnights children with Indira Gandhi, Shame on Zial-Ul-Haq, of course we all know about satanic verses. Do you feel, particularily after writing Satanic Verses that you yourself wish to curtail your writing, or do you still sort of lash out against the idea and write what you feel?
q How did you become friends with Christopher Hitchens?
Do you see any correlation between modern Islam and 14th century Christianity and is there any way we can learn from the past to stop or at least slow Muslim extremism?
qDo you see any correlation between modern Islam and 14th century Christianity and is there any way we can learn from the past to stop or at least slow Muslim extremism?
What in your childhood led you to writing? How did you keep your spirits up during the fatwa? By the way, I took the day off from work to watch this interview. I think your interviews are very funny as well as insightful. The Moors Last Sigh is the funniest book I have ever read, but highly nuanced in language and ideas as well.
Georgia
Looking back today at all the books you have written in the past, which of them do you consider to be your best work and why?
Q which part of the writing process do you hate the most? or do you love everything about it?
In Luka and the fire of Life, your writing seemed to be driven by a lot of video-game play. Was it a deliberate attempt to insinuate a video-game feel to the book?
Q Thank you for introducing books like Shalimar the Clown to us. I truly loved it. My question is: how long did you take to complete writing Joseph Anton? What challenges did you face while writing the book? Thanks.
q What do you think about your books being classified as "Magical Realism"? Do you agree with it, or does it bother you that people feel the need to sort books that way?
q Did you believe in your 'satanic verses', ever?
Regarding the Satanic Verses, was one man's freedom of expression worth the price of the mayhem and death it caused throughout the world?
q I have a question relating to the memoir. How do you approach writing about a real person who is still alive, how do you make them live as a 'character' within the book when the real person may object to the ways in which you have written about them? Is this a conflict for you?Thanks,
Sam.
Are you unhappy with the fact that the satanic verses gets more publicity than your other books simply because it angered someone? When you wrote the book did you anticipate that it would trigger something so huge and different from your other books? When did you come up with the concept, and how did you see it as it was being written?
q Are you unhappy with the fact that the satanic verses gets more publicity than your other books simply because it angered someone? When you wrote the book did you anticipate that it would trigger something so huge and different from your other books? When did you come up with the concept, and how did you see it as it was being written?
q Are you unhappy with the fact that the satanic verses gets more publicity than your other books simply because it angered someone? When you wrote the book did you anticipate that it would trigger something so huge and different from your other books? When did you come up with the concept, and how did you see it as it was being written?
Do you think you have written your masterpiece yet, or is it still to come?
I like to know your point of view about people when they do show reasonable respect to religious matters as a writer / as a person ?
q I understand that the topic of Islam is going to be highlighted in today's conversation, but I'd like to ask another question, more concerning your literature. I'm a writer too, and recently decided to go English. I've been a long-time fan of your "Satanic Verses", and one thing I loved about it was the "immigrant" air of the narrative, the book didn't pretend to be written by an English writer; it felt like the book itself was an immigrant. So in my latest short story, "The Nightingale", I avoided imitating the usual styles used by English-language and tried to be as honest with the style as I could. So, though fame and commercial success aren't the aim, but are a good result, what could you possibly advice a fellow "immigrant writer" to be successful on the English-language scene and to get published?
How has your writing style developed and changed over the years? Are you writing differently these days?
Why or how you chose the genre of magic realism? Or can we talk about "choice"? Would you recommend some authors who are not well-known (yet) but worth paying attention to them? Thank you for answering my questions in advance, Sir. :)
q Why or how you chose the genre of magic realism? Or can we talk about "choice"? Would you recommend some authors who are not well-known (yet) but worth paying attention to them? Thank you for answering my questions in advance, Sir. :)
q Storytelling is one of the most important elements in your books, why? Another element is the contrast between East and West. What is the relationship between both?
q: Please describe your Beckettian moods (i.e. Didi + Gogo in Waiting for Godot, NYT Book Review).
q Do you plan on writing any more children's books?
qDid you even want to give up writing because of all the protests and fatwas?
qDo you see any chance for open societies in this part of the world?
q (rephrasng) Obviously Satanic Verses has been your most commercially successful novel, probably helped by the controvercial publicity that it received. But you have received critical acclaim for several novels, such as Shalamar the Clown. Do you believe that you have written your masterpiece yet, and if so, which story?
q Sir, I have read and watched as many interviews as I can about your new book. I am amused to see how everybody's usual first question is about why you wrote this book now or something else that could be termed predictable. Is there something else about this book that you'd like to tell us? Is there a challenging question about the book along with an answer you'd like us to know? (Talk about interviewing becoming lazy!)
Do you ever plan to write a memoir about your childhood and growing up in India?
qNow that you've adapted the script for the Midnight's Children film, have you thought about others? (Satanic Verses, Enchantress of Florence, etc). How do you negotiate the complexities of language, narrative, and metatextual histories into film adaptations?
q Any predictions on the influence of the "immigrant identity" on the future of literature and story-telling?
qDid the playscript you wrote of Midnight's Children years ago help with the current project?
This is a true Honor, to enjoy your company, Sir. Thank you for this opportunity.
Hear hear, Michael - I too am honoured to be here.
How have the women in your life affected your writing?
q After my reading of Satanic Verses, I pondered a lot on the parallels with Othello. How closely were you influenced by Othello? How much has Shakespeare influenced your writings? I postulated in my review that Satanic Verses was written originally as a literary exercise of providing motive to Othello and the religiosity was only a byproduct -would you agree to this? If so, isn't it sweetly ironic that it unleashed such evil in its aftermath? (for my review - http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...)
q After my reading of Satanic Verses, I pondered a lot on the parallels with Othello. How closely were you influenced by Othello? How much has Shakespeare influenced your writings? I postulated in my review that Satanic Verses was written originally as a literary exercise of providing motive to Othello and the religiosity was only a byproduct -would you agree to this? If so, isn't it sweetly ironic that it unleashed such evil in its aftermath? (for my review - http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...)
q what was the impetus that turned you towards your chosen genre of writing? Who is your 'literary mentor' whose works inspired you to move in this direction? or was it because India was just so inherently mystical in the telling that you could not avoid the genre?
qYou sir are of the finest minds produced by the sub-continent. It is unfortunate how things took a turn after 'Satanic Verses' the subcontinent lost a gem. What is your stand on organised religion? do you think religion today is the biggest discriminator?
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