Dr. Rakhshanda Jalil, a literary historian, writer and an institution in herself, goes for a candid conversation with WT…
WT: Achieving so much has not been easy for you, how did you realize your writing forte?
RJ: By reading a lot. I tell young people everywhere not to be in a hurry. You can not run before you learn to walk. And you can not write before you read, read, read!
WT: Mostly female writers are considered as feminist writers but you write in another genre i.e. history. Why?
RJ: This is terribly stereotyped questions, there is no reason to assume female writers are all feminists. I am a feminist but that doesn’t mean I should write only about things that are of interest to women. And what, according to you, is or should be of interest to women? Cooking? Knitting? Gardening? Why can not history, or literary history, be of interest to women?
WT: Your works on rare monuments in Delhi has been praiseworthy and a benchmark for historical writings. Have you ever thought of doing the same for any other city? I would love to do it for another city…. but I have lived in Delhi all my life. I know this city better than any other. But yes given the opportunity I would like to write about the lesser-known monuments of Agra or Lucknow or Kolkatta.
The status of women in India is a work in progress!
RJ: I would love to do it for another city but I have lived in Delhi all my life. I know this city better than any other. But yes given the opportunity I would like to write about the lesser-known monuments of Agra or Lucknow or Kolkatta.
WT: Tell us something about Hindustani Awaaz and your upcoming writings, if any?
RJ: Launched in 2003, Hindustani Awaaz is an organization dedicated to the promotion of Hindustani literature and its rich oral tradition. It seeks to publish, position and popularize various elements culled from the different genres of Urdu and Hindi language and literature. In the broadest sense, it endeavors to provide a platform for scholarly and non-scholarly views and voices in Hindustani on Hindustani. In doing so, it also seeks to showcase the rich pluralistic heritage of India that is also known as Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb.
The name, Hindustani Awaaz, has been registered with the Registrar of Copyrights, India. No money is taken from any individual or organization and, in turn, Hindustani Awaaz offers no money to the performers who participate in our programs. It only seeks collaboration with organizations that offer infrastructural support.
For the past two years, I have been doing a monthly series of book discussions called New Urdu Writings in collaboration with Oxford Bookstore. We meet every month with a new book. This month we will be discussing an Urdu novel, Nadeed by Joginder Paul, translated into English by Sukrita Paul Kumar and Hina Nandrajog and published by Harper Collins, on 20 Dec 2016 at 6 pm.
Writers of commercial fiction can make a living out of writing but not others.
WT: You have co-joined Urdu and Hindi literature and culture in promoting them together. Why so?
RJ: Yes, it is because Hindi and Urdu are sister languages with similar grammar and syntax. They come together in a sweet mixture called Hindustani which is spoken and understood by large numbers of people.
WT: Do you think Indian literature has become more commercialized?
RJ: Indian English writing has certainly become very commercialized. All these books on mythology, romantic, fiction and chick lit sell far better than serious books. Commercial fiction is very much a fact of our lives today whether we like it or not.
WT: What do think about the 21st women in India? Has their position been better or it is still a long way to go?
RJ: We still are a long way to go. The status of women in India is a work in progress!
WT: Writing for a profession is a big ‘NO’ for bread earners, why can writing be not a daily living source?
RJ: It is for the Chetan Bhagat(s) and the Ravindra Kumar(s) and the Amish(s) of our literary firmament but not for writers of other genres. Writers of commercial fiction can make a living out of writing but not others.
WT: You have voiced your opinion on ‘Triple Talaq’, can you say something here?
RJ: It is wrong morally and legally bad.
WT: Your message for Woman Times readers.
RJ: Be the Change!
WT: Rapid Fire:
Three things you must have in your purse – Cell phone, some form of identity and money
Life for you – Is Good
Favorite contemporary writer – Jerry Pinto
Favorite Hangout – India International Centre
First love – Books
