Coverage of the Book Discussion on DD News

The book, Fly on the Wall & Other Stories has received an overwhelming response from readers. After the last book discussion organized by the Civil Services Officers' Institute, New Delhi, another discussion was held in Oxford Book Depot, New Delhi on 28 December 2013. Some of the photos of the panelists, Shri Jawhar Sircar, Dr.Yashodhara Mishra and Dr.Asaduddin and other guests are available for viewing on the blog. The event was also covered by DD News and one can view the video on the link below:

http://youtu.be/Eh-e_2z37Iw

Some Photographs of the Book Discussion

A book discussion was organized on 28 December 2013 at Oxford Book Depot, New Delhi. The panel comprised of eminent persons from the field of literature- (from Left) Dr.Yashodhara Mishra, Guest Editor, Indian Literature; Dr.Mohd. Asaduddin, Head, Department of English, Jamia Milia Islamia and Shri Jawhar Sircar, Chief Executive Officer, Prasar Bharati and educationist. Here are the panelists and the author, Shubha Sarma.

The evening began with a short reading of excerpts from two stories from the book. The idea was to give the audience a flavour of the book. 

This was followed by comments from the panelists. Dr.Yashodhara Mishra also played the role of the Moderator of the session. Here Dr.Asaduddin is seen making a point.

A large number of friends and well-wishers turned up for the book discussion. Scholars such as Shri Nirmal Kanti Bhattacharjee and Mr.Sreenivas Rao, Secretary of the Sahitya Akademi graced the occasion.

Thank you Allhadini for making an effort to read the book, sharing your views on it and joining us for the book discussion.

Shri Jawhar Sircar, CEO, Prasar Bharati, listening to the other panelists.

Dr.Yashodhara Mishra, Guest Editor, Indian Literature, enthralled the audience with her incisive comments.

The publisher, Mr.Mittal, and his entire team was there to lend support.

Bhaskar, Anu, Sandeep, Mrinmayee and Kausalya were all ears for the discussion. Thank you for coming and above all, giving me your honest feedback about the book.

Mr.Jawhar Sircar's wit and energy was the highlight of the day. His comments were sharp and oh so true!

During the course of the discussion, Dr.Yashodhara Mishra wanted a particular phrase from the story, The Buda. Here, we are trying to find the exact reference.

My husband, Bhaskar, in deep thought.

Fly on the Wall & Other Stories on sale at Oxford Book Depot.

Femina carries an article on "Fly on the Wall & Other Stories"

In its December 2013 issue, Femina has carried a small feature on women from different walks of life. I have been very fortunate to have been included among them, as the author of "Fly on the Wall & Other Stories".

Unlike most of the other publications, Femina has focussed more upon my career and personal life, and its impact upon my writing. I could not agree more. If my professional life was not spent in the rural hinterlands of Odisha and my personal life so closely linked to Assam, the stories would have been altogether different.....

My book is a 'Potpourri'

This is the second review which refers to Fly on the Wall & Other Stories as a potpourri. First it was The Hindu and now The Pioneer. 
The Free Online Dictionary defines potpourri as  'A miscellaneous anthology or collection: a potpourri of short stories and humorous verse' (Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/potpourri)
Indeed some of the stories are humorous, though it is wry humor and not of the slap-stick variety. Others are full of pathos and mixed emotions that stir the reader. It's a great review and I am glad they reviewed the book soon after its launch. I have only one disagreement- unlike what the reviewer states at the end, there is no message for the reader. 
Read the Review

Sharing space with Power Women

Good Housekeeping in its anniversary issue celebrates nine years of existence. It is called the Special Power Issue and features the very glamourous and beautiful Karisma Kapoor on the cover. Its contents include Power wives, power naps and good reads. The section on good reads carries a full article on yours truly, in my new avatar of author, courtesy Fly on the Wall & Other Stories.
The article raised difficult questions such as how does one balance work and personal life and ended with celebrating the fact that despite being a mother, wife and professional, one was able to find time to write. For most of the women I know, balancing work and personal life is a continuous struggle. For me, on more occasions than one, it has meant guilt pangs, guilt pangs and some more guilt pangs. Each time one is not around when needed by one's family, the monster of a guilty conscience raises its ugly head.
In this interview by Good Housekeeping, I have been portrayed as a multi-tasker, who manages work, family and a book. I am not sure if it is entirely true. But if they think so, great!

India Today Woman carries a snippet on the author of Fly on the Wall & Other Stories

The Reviews are coming in.....

And on an online site (Induswomanwriting.com), that promotes creative writing by Indian women, there is another review.

This site encourages writing and allows contributions to be published online for a wider audience. 

The review is succinct and hard-hitting. It captures, in very few words, the essence of the book. As the reviewer states, I do admit that my stories, at least some of them, are not really short. However, the dictionary defines a short story as "a prose narrative of shorter length than the novel, esp one that concentrates on a single theme". I believe that most of my stories are focussed and deal with one issue at a time. Further, a "short story" is supposed to be shorter than a novel and deals with only a few characters. So my tales will pass both tests and can qualify as 'short stories' though they may not all be very short!

Read more of the review on Induswoman.

LiFi Publications stall at the Delhi Book Fair

It's always been a pleasure to visit book fairs. I still recall the ones at Lucknow, where I would go with my parents and come back with books. So, it's a matter of great honour to have my book occupying centre stage at LiFi Publications Stall at the Delhi Book Fair. Several well-wishers who visited the book fair, came back with copies of the book. Happy reading to them and all the other readers.

Review in Governance Now by Trithesh Nandan

A lot of people have expressed surprise that bureaucrats can write. Some have been astonished that those who spend their lives immersed in officialese are able to write a few pages that does not put the reader to sleep.
This feeling has been captured by the review carried by Governance Now, which finds parallels between some of the stories about government and real life. incidentally, all these were written several years ago and have no relationship to the current developments, which the reviewer alludes to. It just shows that somethings never change.
Read the review
 An officer and a writer: beyond mundane bureaucratic notes

A 'Fly on the Wall' touches theme of different facets of life by a member of Indian civil services.

TRITHESH NANDAN | SEPTEMBER 27 2013

Shubha Sarma, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, is inspired by Tolstoy, Chekov, O Henry and Indian literary greats like Premchand and Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Like these literary greats, Sarma has woven compelling narrative of short fictional stories in her maiden book, titled 'Fly on the Wall and Other Stories'. The book has 13 engaging stories that capture Read more

Book Discussion at Civil Services' Officers Institute, New Delhi- 1.9.2013

It is not everyday that one shares the dais with a Secretary, an Additional Secretary and a Joint Secretary to Government of India. More so when one is the the so-called centre of attraction of the programme. 

Thus, starts the story of my book discussion. which was part of the series of Books & Authors that the Civil Services' Officers Institutes has initiated. It was a privilege, to be invited to have a discussion on my book, Fly on the Wall & Other Stories, barely a month after it was released amidst much fanfare. A more eminent panel could not have been wished for. There was Secretary, DoPT (Department of Personnel & Training), Mr.Shyamal Sarkar, Mr.Raghav Chandra, Additional Secretary and Financial Advisor in the Ministry of Agriculture and Mr.Sanjeev Chopra, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture. 

The room was reasonably full to begin with and by the end of the session, there was no place left! My publisher celebrated the sale of some more copies. More importantly, the audience comprised of people who had read the book and had their own views about the stories and characters. It was interesting to see how different people interpret the same piece of writing.... it convinced me, yet again, that there is no universal truth. Each of us has our own opinion on events and people, seen from our individual perspective. There was heated discussion on certain issues, ably fueled by Mr.Chopra's observations and comments on the different characters. Mr.Chandra tested the readers' knowledge and provoked a feisty response from the otherwise sedate audience. At the end of the day, I emerged a champion of women's rights, perhaps a man-hater and in all likelihood a murderess in disguise. A promise was extracted that the next book (if there is one!) would focus only on male characters as they have been short-changed in all the stories in this book. My feeble attempts to defend myself by saying that some stories did have men, and saintly ones at that, were brushed aside. Finding no escape, I capitulated. Sigh! Now you know why my next book will take forever.

The Q & A Session was one of the liveliest I have encountered. Thank you Mrs.Lippi Parida, Mrs. Rashmi Chopra and Mrs. Jyoti who had some of the most wonderful insights to share. My personal favourite- when Mrs. Raashmi Chopra observed that the protagonist in the title story 'Fly on the Wall' took far too long to bump off her undeserving husband. (I guess I stand guilty, as charged, for being a violent feminist!)

However, the best comments of the evening were from Secretary, Mr.Shyamal Sarkar. A soft spoken speaker, he turned his address into an inspirational speech on the need for bureaucrats to develop multi-faceted personality. How I wish all our bosses could hear and adhere to his advice. If they gave us a little more respite, and sent us on long travels (on the international circuit only, mind you), there would be greater display of talent in the bureaucracy. Better still, we should be given mandatory vacations every year to reach out to our inner soul and re-discover ourselves.

By the end of the session, I was left marveling at the fact that so many people had read the book and actually wanted to discuss it. 

THANK YOU.  

Oriya Daily Pragitivadi carries news of the book launch

Book Review in Governance Now (Hindi)

Nav Bharat, Bhopal 27 Aug 2013

Coverage in Central Chronicle, Aug 27, 2013

Coverage in Hindi Press