“Lucifer she could count on; he might not always get her, but he would never leave her side even if it meant being thrown from side to side as she swerved to avoid the potholes on the streets of Bangalore,” writes Gayatri Chandrasekharan in her book Bangalored that released in June this year. Bangalored—is a romance novel based in the city—focusing on city girl Radha and a British man James. But, there’s a catch, this love story does not end with a happily ever after like cliched romantic stories.
Gayatri Chandrasekharan, a Chemical Engineer and alumna of the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow worked in the IT sector for 20 years. Speaking to TNM, she says she always had a flair for writing. Gayatri who has extensively read, mostly classic literature and romance novels, felt comfortable in starting her stint with the genre.
“I had been thinking of writing a book and when I finally did, I wrote a short romance novel. It took me a year to write the book; initially, it was very difficult since I did not have the discipline for writing a book. Additionally, I had to finish all my chores before sitting and writing. The latter half was relatively easier to pen,” says the writer.
Elucidating on the choice of genre, Gayatri says that romance was her safest bet. “Writing a book in itself is a daunting task. So, I wanted to write a genre that I thought would be easier to work with. Since I was working in the field of IT for very long, the novel is set against the backdrop of the IT profession.”
When questioned about the title, the author quips that Bangalored is a term used by many IT professionals based in Silicon City—San Jose or the other IT hubs abroad. “Many people in the sector were losing their jobs since Bengaluru emerged as the IT capital of India. The companies in the city would get employees here for a much lesser rate and are more efficient than in their home countries. When a person would get fired, they started using the term ‘Bangalored’ to signify the same. Since the book is set against the backdrop of IT professionals in Bengaluru, it seemed like a perfect term to title the book,” Gayatri explains.
Bengaluru in the novel features as a character in itself rather than as a setting. The reference to famous spots like Attara Kacheri near the Karnataka High Court, Airlines hotel, the description of the weather and the imagery of the auto-rickshaws are often spotted throughout the 115-page novel. Gayatri says that one of the reasons it struck a chord with people was because it rekindled memories of the city.
“My love for the city I live in, Bengaluru, formed one of the themes in the novel. Being in the city for over three decades now; I was writing things that I am familiar with and I wanted to ensure not to miss them out. The city has been welcoming, the city is laid back and has the ‘chill maadi’ (Please chill) attitude and these aspects inspired me to include the city in the novel,” she says.
Although Gayatri has just debuted with this novel, her choice of words give an impression of a literary virtuoso. The contemporary novel has an old-school charm to it. The mundane and ordinary setting reminds one of Jane Austen books, one can not miss the allusion to literary classic authors at the start of each chapter with their quotes. When quizzed about it, Gayatri says that she has a penchant for classic literature. I extensively read classic literature which was available, in the library, she says.
“I love Jane Austen’s work. Her books have a slow pace, there aren’t many plot twists crammed into one,” she speaks with a hint of glee. When questioned whether her writing is influenced by Austen’s, she affirmed the same. “Her style of writing has definitely influenced my work. The settings of peaceful countryside with people sitting in parlours of British homes and enjoying tea. Inadvertently, that reflected within my writing,” she says.
When asked about the genres she would love to explore, the author mentions that she would like to write satires like George Orwell’s Animal Farm or probably a fictional novel stemming from a real event like Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, which is set around the time when Indira Gandhi was the Prime Minister of India. “Satire requires deliberation and I am yet to master skilfully placing the metaphors with witty language to write a satire. I already have subjects planned that I want to write on, especially in the current polarised times where society is so divided,” Gayatri says.
Bangalored is available in paperback and Kindle editions on Amazon.