Author of several books, Ahmed Faiyaz is no stranger to bestsellers, so much so that his new book is called Bestseller. From love to drama, and a bit of comedy thrown in, the writer who has earlier written Love, Life and All That Jazz, Another Chance and Down the Road, etc revisits his childhood, growing up in Bengaluru. Ahmed used to love writing compositions, was an expert in making up stories. He was also chief editor for a college magazine. The alumni of both Sophia High School and Bishop Cotton’s Boys School reveals, “Writing fiction, however, was driven by ideas that evolved in my head. I realised I wanted to write when I was a teenager, but never got down to it till 10 years ago.” An admirer of authors like Premchand, RK Narayan, Saadat Hassan Manto, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Graham Greene, etc, he classifies his style of writing, “I’ve been fortunate to have written books across genres. I have written contemporary romance novels, corporate sagas, books of love, intrigue, humour and crime.” Bestseller is Ahmed’s comeback to writing after a long gap of six years. “I had come out with four novels in four years. I wanted to rejuvenate, get inspired and draw energy,” he explains. Bestseller is a comic satire on the publishing business in India, and the story is set in Mumbai. The tale has a love story in the backdrop, drama, intrigue and behind the scene politics depicted with a dash of humour, the author explains, “Akshay Mathur is an out of work editor who is charged with the responsibility of shoring up the value of Kalim, an ailing Indian publisher. He has to publish books that he never would with a motley crew, wannabe writers and his affections for Zorah Kalim, the impulsive daughter of his former boss.” “I believe it’s a story that cuts across genres and has universal appeal just like Roald Dahl’s stories or anything Jonas Jonasson has written,” he adds.
Bestseller Ahmed Faiyaz Publisher: Rupa Publications India Pp: 196 Price: Rs 220.
On whether he believes in the so-called happy endings, Ahmed adds, “My stories have had happy endings given the lives of the protagonists and their journey and evolution over time. I would say my endings are positive and hopeful rather than happy as I’m an eternal optimist, but that might change with something else I have been writing more recently.” He has two books in the pipeline, “One is about several interconnected lives who try to make sense of love and life in these technologically-charged times, and the other is titled Starlit Skies and Rain, a story of a boy and a girl across 20 years, when they find what they believe is love, lose each other, and what happens with each of their lives going from there.”
