GUWAHATI, March 28 - From a young boy bearing the brunt of the sorrow of sudden demise of near and dear ones to a celebrated octogenarian novelist, Sahitya Akademi Award and Saraswati Samman winning author SL Bhyrappa�s life has several tales to tell and experiences to share.
Acclaimed as a candid writer putting forth his views in the form of his writing backed by thorough research, Bhyrappa has 24 novels to his credit, of which four have been made into films, receiving critical acclaim.
Currently in Guwahati to receive the Mamoni Raisom Goswami National Literary Award 2016, Bhyrappa interacted with mediapersons today as the �Guest of the Month� of the Guwahati Press Club.
�I lost my mother and a younger brother at a very young age. As a young boy I was fascinated by the concept of death so much so that it led me towards studying philosophy. It, however, helped adding depth to my creative writing and understanding different aspects of life later,� he said.
On the role of media since the pre-Independence period, he stated that while in the pre-Independence period the media was driven by a common force of patriotism, it later shifted to hero worship and praising the ruling forces. �However, with the advent of new media, Internet etc., the situation has changed a little, accommodating all sorts of views,� he said.
Supporting the victory of truth over political benefits and motives, he said that the history of India has the answer to several questions faced by society today.
�We have the liberal policies of the Mughal emperor Akbar and the destructive streak of his descendent Aurangzeb as well. When the truth is presented before the people without adulteration, there is no scope of confusion and conflict,� he said, opposing suppression of facts in the textbooks in the name of social harmony.
�People speak of intolerance today, but there was a time when the JNU ideology dominated the educational world in India and those who differed from the JNU ideologies would not get the teaching job in the top universities.
�The genesis of JNU could be traced back in the Communist support to the Indira Gandhi-led Congress government in 1969. The same ideology also dominated the ICHR at one point of time,� he added.
Also sharing his experience of shifting from a philosophy teacher to a creative writer, he said that he fell in love with his first manuscript and realised that it was the field he wanted to pursue further.
Bhyrappa also stressed the need to continue education up to high school level in Indian languages. �English should be taught efficiently as a subject in the schools. This would not just keep them closer to their roots, but would also help in effective learning,� he said.
Senior journalists DN Bezboruah, Rupam Goswami and Naba Thakuria also took part in the interactive session.
