Love for Literatute: Amrit Sinha

Ananya: What inspired to choose such a fetching title?

Amrit Sinha: Ananya, to be honest with you, it came very naturally. Comma in ‘Beginning with a Comma’ is the hiccup, not only a pause. One can never imagine where a breath pauses, where adolescence can get acquainted with adulthood, its shadow lines, blurred realities which make the appearance and likeliness a mere binary to each other! I have tried to capture that, therefore, I call it a hiccup, an ‘uncomfortable’ pause- one that either continues till you gulp down something else or vanishes forever, miraculous!

I begin with the comma that remains never to end in a period.

AD: Is the plot of ‘Beginning with a Comma’inspired by your own life events?

AS: Often we write about things we see around us. I wouldn’t call it autobiographical in nature, but having said that, you cannot also segregate the imprints the society has had on you from your writing. Myth, mystery, spirituality, love and religion- sensitive topics within and outside media till date constitute the plot. My relationships as portrayed have been secular, so has the context, the setting, the theme and the mood.

AD: Do you, someday, plan on being a full time writer?

AS: It would depend on multiple factors. It would depend on my life experiences, on how the publishing industry evolves in the coming few years among others. If the universe were my canvas and I had to paint it, I would be a full time writer in the next 3 years.