Friday 23 April 2021

Questionnaire with Roopali Sircar Gaur

So this month featuring author is ' Roopali Sircar Gaur '


Can you tell us a little about yourself? Your profession and your hobbies!!

 I am a former Associate Professor of English, Delhi University. I taught creative writing in Indira Gandhi Open University. My interests lie in the study of women and other marginalised groups. I am a social justice activist and have worked with women, children, the elderly and people with disability.

 

Questionnaire with Roopali Sircar Gaur

1.       How did you first get involved in with writing, are you an imaginative person?

As a student and teacher of literature I was bound to write academically as well as creatively. I am a person with imagination but my academic and creative work is grounded in reality. 

2.       What do you find most challenging about your writing?

A writer faces many challenges. She/he must have an authentic voice, the right language skills, knowledge of literary methodology, an understanding of social processes and a sharp communicative skill. I am constantly concerned with getting my story across. Clarity and truth is exceptional challenges.

3.       What do you do when you are not writing?

I constantly want to write. Even as I cook and clean and look after my family, the garden and my dogs and the birds that visits.

4.       Where do you see yourself in the next 6 months, and 5 years down the road?

I see myself as a poet performer, a novelist and short-story writer and a serious mentor to younger poets and writers. I want to help young people publish.

5.       How do you keep coming up with material/content for your story?

My creative material is all around me. In the visibility of people, their lives, the irony of social behaviour and rituals. Eg. I just wrote on Holika Dahan. The whole idea of us getting together to burn a woman because we are told she is wicked. Or Sita walking on fire to prove she is pure. And Surpnakha’s nose being cut off because she shows desire. We accept these as truths. I write about this and about the whitewash man, or the tile layer or the grass cutter or the mango tree that only gives and gives.

6.    Any specific tips you have for new writers who want to make it big in the world of published books?

Younger writers must feel a sense of dedication. They must be true to the craft of writing. Their language must be good and very clear. Their writing must be passionate and correct. They must see the world as their canvas. Words must come from deep within only then will their writing draw attention. Developing one’s own style is very important.

7.       What’s the best thing a a writer can give to his readers?

Money should not be the reason for writing unless you are into content development and corporate writing. There are many sites that can guide a freelancer. If it's poetry then there is no money in poetry and no poetry in money!

8.  A lot of people are interested in writing for the money earning potential. What are some tips for people interesting in making money from writing? What are some realistic expectations in regards to what can be made?

I am motivated by service. I come from a soldier’s family. My father, father in law my husband and many members of my family have served and are serving in the armed forces. I have worked with our soldiers' families and have made efforts to successfully empower them. Others have been doctors and teachers. A totally service-oriented life.

9.       What motivates you most in life?

I am the Founder Director of YUVATI and Mera Kitab Ghar works with women and children in urban and rural areas. Nothing gives me greater pleasure than helping somebody to improve his or her life. Be it an 80-year-old or a 14-year-old. I have written and edited a number of books and am continuously writing and publishing. It gives me opportunities to publish others and help them launch into a literary or writing career.

10.   What are your views on increasing plagiarism?

Plagiarism is a criminal act. All efforts to track a plagiarist should be made. Today there are lots of Apps for this so it is easy. My advice to any writer young and old would be to desist from such criminal activity. It has severe repercussions and once discovered a loss of reputation.