tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post1308203250018803256..comments2024-03-29T15:45:04.867+05:30Comments on Jabberwock: Pandavas in the sky with diamonds (on Sandipan Deb’s modern Mahabharata)Jabberwockhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-76282659710729174472013-05-03T15:10:27.439+05:302013-05-03T15:10:27.439+05:30Okay, Jai, so you stay free of reader expectations...Okay, Jai, so you stay free of reader expectations, which is both fine and admirable. Don't let the burden bother you.<br /><br />I have not made up my mind about jazzy-mythy fiction. From what you say of Mr Deb's 'The Last War', I reckon it is good for India by and large. On the Shiva Trilogy, am waiting for faith-neutral responses. No reviewer has yet written any review that allows me to draw any conclusion either way. To answer your question: if you are laudatory in your appraisal of the trilogy, that would be your prerogative. Your f-dharma would be to exercise your judgment and craft the way you usually do, with intellectual honesty, and thus helping us make up our minds (to the extent possible). Thanks. Give it a thought Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-78756437684366077572013-05-03T09:09:26.287+05:302013-05-03T09:09:26.287+05:30Anon: thanks for the kind words, but no, I don'...Anon: thanks for the kind words, but no, I don't feel like I owe my readers any such thing. In any case, if I were the sort of reviewer who was hung up on my "responsibilities" or "duties", I'd probably spend most of my time concentrating on literary fiction.<br /><br />(Just curious: what if I read the Shiva trilogy and really liked it, and wrote a laudatory post about it? Would you still reckon I had honoured my f***ing dharma then?)Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-43172034201538287712013-05-02T15:30:25.740+05:302013-05-02T15:30:25.740+05:30Thanks for your response. Jazzy mythy books that c...Thanks for your response. Jazzy mythy books that catch on like crazy can be either good or bad for India's secular future (feel free to disagree). So, if you allow me, I would like to say I <br />look forward to your review/send-up/whatever-you-write of the Shiva Trilogy. <br /><br />Being of sound mind and body, you may perhaps be a little reluctant to read all three books (I know, I Know), but Jai, as India's foremost and easily most readable reviewer of fiction, you owe your readers as much: think of it as your dharma--your fucking duty!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-63598096296408694472013-05-01T20:20:35.703+05:302013-05-01T20:20:35.703+05:30Anon: haven't read Amish's writings, so ca...Anon: haven't read Amish's writings, so can't say anything about those specifically, but I have no problem with "jazzy mythy stuff" as a category. It can be done with as much imagination and skill as any other type of writing can be. Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-67213464507772369072013-05-01T20:07:42.899+05:302013-05-01T20:07:42.899+05:30What is your take on Amish? Is all this jazzy myth...What is your take on Amish? Is all this jazzy mythy stuff good for the mental health of Indians at large? Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-74484830403710251552013-04-17T11:02:26.946+05:302013-04-17T11:02:26.946+05:30Marvin: well, I specified "about the great ep...Marvin: well, I specified "about the great epic". But if you pay me obscenely well, I may consider not writing about anything else for a few years at least.Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-31269202798619901832013-04-17T10:59:44.495+05:302013-04-17T10:59:44.495+05:30THE LAST THING YOU WILL EVER WRITE?
That is a bit...THE LAST THING YOU WILL EVER WRITE?<br /><br />That is a bit final, don't you think?Marvinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08469943928047272771noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-31524373843193554122013-04-17T10:45:49.882+05:302013-04-17T10:45:49.882+05:30What a shame. Sounded like it had so much potentia...What a shame. Sounded like it had so much potentialArSENikhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09772597502937491090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-45181925815389891242013-04-16T23:55:18.475+05:302013-04-16T23:55:18.475+05:30Sid: yes, I wrote about Tezuka's Buddha series...Sid: yes, I wrote about Tezuka's Buddha series <a href="http://jaiarjun.blogspot.in/2006/12/osamu-tezukas-buddha.html" rel="nofollow">here</a>. Only read it that once though - haven't gone back to it yet.Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-19734808090175739062013-04-16T23:53:30.532+05:302013-04-16T23:53:30.532+05:30Amongst the links to other works you have provided...Amongst the links to other works you have provided, I am a big fan of Yuganta. It resonanted strongly with some of the opinions I had about some of the characters in Mahabharat, specifically about Bhishma. <br /><br />Haven't read this one yet. As long as we are on the topic of adapting old stories, have you read Osamu Tezukas Buddha series? I highly recommend it.Sidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-4266767777301611622013-04-16T23:25:10.937+05:302013-04-16T23:25:10.937+05:30Smita: yes, I suppose I should be glad that show g...Smita: yes, I suppose I should be glad that show got cancelled - otherwise it would be 300 episodes old by now and I would be writing about nothing else!<br /><br />Pessimist Fool: liked it well enough when I read it more than a decade ago, but there was a lot of novelty value then since I was reading hardly any contemporary Indian fiction - don't know what I would think of it today.Jabberwockhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10210195396120573794noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-57786851792748448662013-04-16T21:31:33.240+05:302013-04-16T21:31:33.240+05:30lol, i think this review is a better read than the...lol, i think this review is a better read than the book. I was pleasantly surprised to see you mentioning the word "ridiculous" in the review :)Btw, what do you think of The Great Indian Novel. I quite liked it. Pessimist Foolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06057153008708242962noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8204542.post-53635252449312402072013-04-16T18:46:14.539+05:302013-04-16T18:46:14.539+05:30Well, umm, thanks to this post and the links you&#...Well, umm, thanks to this post and the links you've helpfully provided at the bottom, I re-read the ekta ki mahabharata posts you'd written - had a good laugh I did! Smitanoreply@blogger.com