New chapter for the city

Unlike most authors whove featured in this section Nikhil Raj didnt want to write a book Das his debut novel is now out in an ebook and audiobook format mdash the latter features narrations by some of the citys most prominent faces in the art entertainment and FampB circuit including comedian Daniel Fernandes chef Thomas Zacharias actor Hazel Keech musician Maalavika Manoj and radio professional Rohini Ramanathan It happened by chance I had jotted down some parts of it and one day a couple of friends happened to discover it they planted the idea into my head I put it away for a while but then got to writing half of it The idea of it becoming a novel took shape in early 2019 he tells usHazel KeechEven though the thought of writing a book was iffy the author knew his protagonist inside and out Raj 32 was sure that the plot would revolve around a certain Vikas Das before he could even prepare a character sketch Vikas Das coincidentally translates to slave to progress which is the underlying theme of the novel An entrepreneur who runs an advertising business Das is crippled by copious amounts of alcohol and finds himself in difficult situations with the police politicians and priestsThomas ZachariasThe title has been selfpublished and elaborating on his reasons for doing so Raj says It was a very organic journey for me I did speak to a publisher but when I was told about how the deal would work out for firsttime authors it didnt sound promising The five per cent royalty didnt mean much and I wasnt doing this for money anyway It was always about getting more people to read it which is why I collaborated with these personalities for the audiobook since it would attract a diverse audienceMaalavika ManojThe book wasnt meant to be released specifically during the lockdown and the recordings commenced last year Manoj was instantly hooked on to the story mdash As I read the chapter out aloud line after line I felt my heart racing she says Ramanathan states that it was an interesting project to work on because the first interface to experience this book would be via audio She recalls I remember recording this from my home studio at one go and was parched by the end of it But it got me curious to go read the chapters after the one I had narrated And thats what you want in agood bookNikhil RajRaj offers a glimpse of his background in the indie music scene and his tryst with people in the advertising industry too In the ad world you dont see people talking about the big Bollywood movies but theyll gravitate towards Batman instead Hence you see references to the superhero in the story he explains He also captures the spirit of Mumbai through the use of colloquialism and intricacies like the automatic switch to Hindi while talking to an autowallahRohini RamanathanCiting Neil Gaiman and Jeet Thayil as his influences Raj is aware of his limitations as a writer he knows he cannot write prose that sounds pretty or a sentence deep enough to qualify as a quote on Instagram or on a poster on the wall I would like to think its a nice easy fastpaced read I dont think its like a Chetan Bhagat book because its not meant for a mass audience But for a person from the city or who has friends or family here you can imagine people talking like my characters he sharesLog on to httpslinktreenikhilraj to access the ebook and audiobookCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and a complete guide from food to things to do and events across Mumbai Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates MidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest news