All the characters in Cyrus Daruwala&rsquo;s books are fictional. Any resemblance to a real person is purely coincidental. Said no one, ever.
<img title="Alok Nanda" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2015/aug/Alok-Nanda.jpg" alt="Alok Nanda" /> The creative director of Alok Nanda &amp; Company feels the characters in his new book will resonate with residents across Indian metros. Pic/Bipin Kokate
In his 2013 title, I Take This Train Too, 32-year-old Daruwala sketched eccentric people he ran into on his daily journey on the Mumbai local from Andheri to Churchgate. His latest is an &lsquo;angry rant&rsquo; (his words, and ours) on the nausea-inducing, hair-splitting, expletive-provoking residents of India&rsquo;s metros (in the hope that it will induce behavioural change).
There is for instance, the Criss-Crosser who jaywalks, across highways and railway tracks &mdash; &ldquo;train motormen be damned&rdquo;. There&rsquo;s also &lsquo;Wrong Turn&rsquo; &mdash; people who drive like raging bulls on the roads, overtake rashly and have no sense of lane discipline.
<img title="Criss-Crosser" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2015/aug/Criss_crosser.jpg" alt="Criss-Crosser" /> One of Daruwala&rsquo;s pet enemies is the Criss-Crosser who makes a 100-metre dash on railway tracks or highways &ldquo;because taking the foot over bridge is just so last century&rdquo;
&ldquo;For them, lanes are a like a game of Temple Run. And most of us have come across them. Hence, it merited a double illustration of a man and woman,&rdquo; adds Daruwala, who works as a copywriter for Kala Ghoda advertising firm Alok Nanda &amp; Company, which also published the book. &ldquo;I certainly haven&rsquo;t picked on a particular person. In fact, I had so many characters in mind, that it was tough cutting the list down to 20,&rdquo; he jokes.
<img title="Late Goer" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/2015/aug/Hey-late-goer.jpg" alt="Late Goer" /> The &lsquo;Late Goer&rsquo; represents the large mass of people for whom the clock is just another accessory. &ldquo;Time, after all, is relative&rdquo;
While the first book was specific to Mumbai, Daruwala says this one should resonate with everyone, everywhere. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s part of the same genre, in that it&rsquo;s full of humourous observations and illustrations. The characters, however, are totally different from those in the first that was specifically linked to a certain experience; the train journey. This encompasses a broader spectrum,&rdquo; he adds.
But, its readers may be numbered. The book, he shares, is limited edition with only 1,000 copies, because the 94-pager, he says, has been entirely hand-written. &ldquo;Since it is about what bothers me, I wanted the book to have a personal touch, and what better way than writing out the copy by hand?&rdquo;.
However, he had to digitally enhance his handwriting, which he doesn&rsquo;t find legible enough. The illustrations were created using hand-stamps for each character. &ldquo;The sketches had too much character to be printed. So, each illustration was individually stamped on paper,&rdquo; he says. The creative process of ideation and sketching took him six months, but the final product was ready in a year.
Research was more about conversations and observations than in-depth study. Daruwala says he would make caricatures on his phone with a stylus, spend his weekends sketching, and even sneak in a couple of hours of drawing at work. &ldquo;Fortunately, I have the freedom to pursue my creative passion at my workplace, as long as I meet my deadlines. My boss doesn&rsquo;t breathe down my neck, and that helped me finish my work,&rdquo; says Daruwala, who claims to have no formal training in art.
However, don&rsquo;t expect another I Take This Train Too, where the illustrations were the highlight. In this book, Daruwala wants his rant to win you over. &ldquo;The sketches are mostly black and white. I felt the writing had to be the hero in this particular book. The illustration is simply meant to complement the experience,&rdquo; he says.
Another departure is that the illustrator has consciously chosen to steer clear of crowd funding the venture. &ldquo;The last time, a lot of people thought the money was going into my pocket last time, which is not true. It was entirely used for funding the book.&rdquo;
And he is already planning his next book. &ldquo;It may be a graphic novel. It&rsquo;ll surely be different from my previous work. Let&rsquo;s see where it takes me,&rdquo; he smiles.
Before we leave, we have to ask: which character does he find the most painful? &ldquo;I&rsquo;d rather let the reader figure that out. But it&rsquo;s evident in my writing. Some of the write-ups have more angst than others,&rdquo; he says. Now, that&rsquo;s some homework for you.

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Adman Cyrus Daruwala's arty rant about Mumbai's pain-in-the-neck residents

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Home / Mumbai-guide / Mumbai Food / Article / Adman Cyrus Daruwala's arty rant about Mumbai's pain-in-the-neck residents

Adman Cyrus Daruwala's arty rant about Mumbai's pain-in-the-neck residents

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