A Life Time of Reflection
Brunch|January 29, 2017

In a Rare Interview, India’s Greatest Writer Tells Ht Brunch What Gets His Goat.
 

Ananya Ghosh
A Life Time of Reflection

IT’S 2017, and Amitav Ghosh is entering his 31st year as a published author –quite a milestone in the life of a non-pulp writer. (His first book, The Circle of Reason,was published in 1986.) Perhaps that’s why he was recently honored with a Life time Achievement Award at the Tata Literature Live! festival. His millions of fans in India and around the world, however, point out that they’re expecting many more books from their favourite author, thank you, so perhaps a life time award might have been a bit premature. Yet, at this juncture of his literary career –one that in the barren, pre-liberalisation days of 1986, he’d never thought he’d have –he’s a bit mystified by what’s happening in the world of the arts. Specifically, Ghosh is wondering why, despite the clear and present danger of climate change, few writers are focusing on the subject at all.

ALWAYS TAKE THE WEATHER WITH YOU

Ghosh’s own non-fiction work on the issue, The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable, published last year, is still a best seller. But as he points out, though there are quite a few books available on nature, very few say much about the biggest danger the earth has been in since the dinosaurs were wiped out several millennia ago.

“Climate change is the greatest crisis that human beings, as a species,have ever faced,” says Ghosh. “Yet it is largely absent from the arts.Ithink this raises many serious questions.”

Bu hikaye Brunch dergisinin January 29, 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

Bu hikaye Brunch dergisinin January 29, 2017 sayısından alınmıştır.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

BRUNCH DERGISINDEN DAHA FAZLA HIKAYETümünü görüntüle
Let's tri all the angles
Brunch

Let's tri all the angles

BFFs falling for the same girl, kidnap twists, murders, bromances. These 10 three-way love stories play with geometry and our feelings

time-read
3 dak  |
November 09, 2024
Should you Q up for this?
Brunch

Should you Q up for this?

Audi's luxury SUV, the Q8, has had a refresh. But a sleeker grille and headlight tech don't make up for what's still missing

time-read
2 dak  |
November 09, 2024
How to plan a great escape
Brunch

How to plan a great escape

It's getting colder. It's already hard to breathe. Why not plan a winter vacation that's a world away but not too far away?

time-read
2 dak  |
November 09, 2024
Kababs, yes, but khandvi too
Brunch

Kababs, yes, but khandvi too

Mughlai cuisine has as many vegetarian dishes as meaty ones. A new translation of a 16th century manuscript shows how we ate, and why modern labels are pointless

time-read
3 dak  |
November 09, 2024
I can be your hero
Brunch

I can be your hero

Gurfateh Pirzada, only afewroles old, is the green flag we didn't know we needed. He's learning from women. He wants to be more thana lover and a fighter. He's hoping we all do better. No wonder everyone's crushing on him

time-read
4 dak  |
November 09, 2024
Meet the export experts
Brunch

Meet the export experts

Khadi crop-tops in Spain, faux-leather hoodies in London, fairytale wedding gowns in the UAE. See how some desi labels are killing it on foreign shores

time-read
3 dak  |
November 09, 2024
Why we're all feeling Blue
Brunch

Why we're all feeling Blue

Coco Mellors's new novel is about grief, sisterhood, and of course, addiction and unlikeable women. How does she make it work?

time-read
4 dak  |
November 09, 2024
This week, we're...
Brunch

This week, we're...

Changing the momo game, listening to kids, starting a new business, and supporting pro waxxers

time-read
2 dak  |
November 09, 2024
Rohit Chawla
Brunch

Rohit Chawla

Photographer, artist, @RohitChawlaPhotography_

time-read
1 min  |
November 02, 2024
Congratulations, it's a goal
Brunch

Congratulations, it's a goal

Lakeside vows, pastel palettes, bayous, backyards and boats. These celeb weddings are what modern fairytales are made of

time-read
2 dak  |
November 02, 2024