I hate chained challenge,
like they do it in those shit fund (opps ! chit funds schemes), So when a
phenomenon called ‘ice bucket challenge’ was circulating in the social media I
found it irritating. After a few days another kind of request was hovering
around –it was a favorite book challenge. Throughout my life I am very much
into book (may be because we were born and brought up in a different kind of
world than today).It hurts when people say reading out of syllabus is a not so
cool thing. So when the name ten book challenges was circulating and a friend
requested me to name my favorite books I thought I should accept it. I went
back to my memories and chalked out a plan about how to approach it .To
includes books I liked or books that had some influence on me? I took a mean
between them and come out with the following list.
1Bhagwat Gita: There are many versions of Bhagwat Gita .I liked the ‘BhagwatGita
as it is’ by Swami Prabhupad. First I read the English version that was in my
friends place then I brought the Assamese version translated by Mukunda Madhab
Sharma.The translation is also brilliantly done.
As
the book is titled –Bhagwat Gita as it is (যথাযত) few people have some strong inhibition with the word
‘as it is’. That may be actually true. Things can be interpreted differently by
different people under different condition. As a snssrkit sloka goes -ekseyisha padrathai nanarupe prakalpanum. To make my understanding
even I have never gone through the explanations given in the book. I read one sloka a day, then its
translation: then try to think what it means and have my own interpretation.
Throughout my life the book has shown me light in many of my dark days of
confusion.
2.Yairuingam(ঈয়াৰুইঙ্গম) :by Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya : I think the first novel of my life was Mrityunjay by the same writer .I was in class III and blown away by it .Later when I came across yiauingam I fell in love with the narration and the plot. It is a novel about Naga ways of life –seen through the eyes of a young teacher from the Brahmaputra valley .I dreamt about making a big budget movie –a cinematic adaptation of the novel. Now life has moved ahead and I don’t have that much of resources to do justice to the project but some where I someone come out with the dedication I still think it is an Oscar wining idea.
3. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky; May be first classic I read in English, the murder scene is still entrapped in my mind .May be my fascination for dark literature has roots to this book .To be precise it made me what the dark painter as many of my friend and reader puts it.
4.Eyi Bondoror Abeli ,এই বন্দৰৰ আবেলি /ভবেন্দ্র নাথ শইকীয়াৰ নাট্য সংকলন: it is the book or his writing or the book? I would put it as the persona .As many put it as এজন মানুহ এখন আকাশ(one man and the sky)Why two book clubbed together? ‘Ei bondoror abeli’ because the book gave me the idea of writing short story one day. It is a collection about love and longing of the writer towards his land when he was faraway doing his PHD in United Kingdom. Many years later similar themed movies were brought into mainstream what we know as –NRI movies .
and natya sankalan because of its quality and overall influence of
his plays (or persona) on me. Many people don't think that drama is a thing to
enjoy on stage not a thing to read .Many who reads drama shy away from naming
some play in their favorite books as it is an unconventional thing. But
surprisingly when it comes to learning literature methodically people start
with Shakespeare first.
For
me many dramas their styles have enriched my love for literature as it is. To
name a few: all Girish Karnards play, collection of plays by Mahesh Dattani and
a few.But first and foremost these dramas by master playwright Bhabendra Nath
Saikia
5 The Unbearable Lightness Of Being by Milan Kundera: -It was love at first sight . May be it was in early nineties when I found his book in the district library shelves and one of my friend recommended him to me. The style the content of his writing had many inspirations. After a decade I have brought the book again and have re read it to found that the effect was same.
There
is no doubt about his class and what boosted me more was the fact that he don’t write in English.He
is from a small country and he writes in a local language but he has readership
across the globe.I had problem against few of the English writer whom I thought
were not worthy of the attention they use to get . Being from a small state of
local language, iconic status of Milan Kundera boosted on my moral. Though I had
a issue against him ,not about the class but about possibility of bias. As he
was vindicated by one party that had certain political and economic believe and
he writes against them my apprehension was that he is promoted by people who
had the opposite lineage. Even though I admit Kundera is Kundera when it comes
to writing.
6. Mahabharata the complete collection by Aamar Chitra Katha: I have read Mahabharata in many forms, but first love for books was through comic .The foundation of my knowledge of history and mythology was through amar chitra katha, just to revisits my past I brought this complete collection of Mahabharata by amar chitra katha the thrill is same like in those good old days, I found out that the pleasure and taste of discovery was all the same.Thank you uncle pifor enriching our childhood.
7. Xugandhi Pokhila (সুগন্ধী পখিলা); by Hiren Bhattacharya. I brought this book in class V just because the name was so popular, and today I have to admit this is the second book whose pages I have flipped over and over again after Bhagwad Gita. His lines always it takes me to a different hasnahana nights. Unknowingly his words has mutated inside my vocabulary .may be because of which I dare not to write poetry. Because if you write any –invariably you might find some his influence or may be his replica of his poetry only. May be same is the case with many of us.
8. Golam (গোলাম): by Sourabh KumarChaliha. I believe in structure and plot of a story, when I ask myself -why can't we narrate a story around a plot (like mental arithmetic around incident, a notation of a song or an idle afternoon.) There is a fear that the narration can be dull, product can be without outcome.story can be without a kahani/ But with skc rest assure that you are in for an unusual treat.
9. Tintin. (Name any, Hergé,): My loves with books were before I was acquainted with written words, and every frame of any Tintin book was source of amusement and pleasure. Even today I enjoy those books. In Tintin pictures even a bystander who has nothing to do with story or a stray dog have many things to say.
10. Alchemist by Paulo CoelhoSapiosexuals tend to avoid mentioning alchemist, may be to avoid cliché. And may be because of simple way of his writing (not the content). When I first read this book I was sad, as me too had something similar in mind . With time I have realized that everything is there in the universe since antiquity and time and time again people write in down on their own way and people will accept or reject it on their merit.
The list can continue, but I was to select 10 so hence the list.
