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When I saw Shobhaa Dé, last week on the cable, she was extemporizing an interview. I thought it was yet-another-talk-show where they ask questions of national importance like this, So what’s your advice for teenagers or Why men hate feminists. It wasn’t. A little better.

Shobhaa Dé spoke in length about marriage, infidelity, love, sex and what not. Only today, when I saw this page on rediff that her latest book in five years, Spouse – The truth about marriage, has been released on the Valentines day and that cable interview was a marketing effort. Rediff report describes the book as, Spouse is a personal and insightful take on the institution of marriage and offers special love tips to make your marriage strong.

Even as a teenager and much later too, I liked Shobhaa Dé. I thought she was probably the most daring writer about sex in India. The hidden agenda is that you could rightfully read a Shobhaa Dé book at home without being mistaken for reading a porn magazine and yet manage to read all the vivid sex in it. As I found better writers, I mean in the real sense, I had given up reading Shobhaa Dé. She doesn’t even feature in my list of favorite authors. The last I read of her was a book called, Shooting from the hip. I stopped reading it after the first twenty pages and threw it from the balcony.

What makes Shobhaa Dé stay in limelight even after some not-so-indepth-writing ? Probably the arena she chose to write about. Her columns are mostly targetted for the urban lot and their issues of life. My only crib here is that those are shallow. If you are an urban man/woman living in the corner of some metro of India, this writing would appeal to you. You can write tons pages about love and sex life and generalise it. It may not be completely right but readers would still not crib as you are treading down an unmanned path. Easy job. Imagine, if you get a VIP ticket to those Page 3 people’s wild parties, you could just write about the true world inside dream factory and still be politically write. Easy job again.

I have this good/bad habit of watching a film even after the reviews say it is bad. This time the reviews for her latest book says, It’s good. I am not doubting the reviews but I am going to read it for myself to get some tips on, How to write a superfluous and successful book ?

P.S – Rediff did a ‘better’ marketing effort. Shobhaa Dé’s love tips -SMS SHO to 7333. Rediff guys, give me a break. Stop such SMS gimmicks.

Athu Andha Kaalam, a book by S.V Ramakrishnan, that talks about ‘those days’, was on the Uyirmmai stall in the Chennai Book Fair and I just overlooked the author for S.Ramakrishnan. While talking with Desikan, he said it was S.V.R and no S.R. He also promised on Mettioli to publish an SVR essay on his blog. He has now posted an extract from this S.V. Ramakrishnan’s book.

The essay(extract) talks about 10 years of railway history, from 1945-1955. SVR recalls the times and conditions of a third class travel during ‘those days’ clearly communicating the lifestyle of people in the early 1940s. This short essay doesn’t have sensational stuff but still is a gripping read(atleast for me). The flow of words and usage of ancient words adds flavour the essay, thereby making SVR a writer of sheer quality.

Adding creme to coffee is Ashokamitran, who after reading this essay in Uyrimmai, was inspired to pen his thoughts on the Indian railway. And he gives due credit to SVR for bringing out his memoris of the railway. And he, for his part, details a bit of railway history from 1935. This Ashokamitran column was published on Uyirmmai as a follow-up column to SVR essay. It’s happy to see if such noble gestures happen in the contemporary literary world. These days, if one writes a comentary on an issue, the so-called-opposites, write the opposite of that or try to eclipse the better ideas. That’s the evil world of publishing for you. I only wish we have much more writers like SVR and Ashokamitran and ofcourse magazines like Uyirmmai which give time and space for such writings of ‘those days’. I loved it and earning to buy the book, ASAP.

BTW, Chenthil‘s account on Ashokamitran 50, was a nice read especially for the unfortunates like me, who missed the function. Do read. Thanks Chenthil.