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Ashok Banker

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Ashok K. Banker
BornAshok Kumar Banker
(1964-02-07) February 7, 1964 (age 60)
Mumbai, India
OccupationAuthor
NationalityIndian
Periodcontemporary
Notable worksThe Forest of Stories (2012)
Website
http://www.ashokbanker.com/

Ashok Kumar Banker (born 7 February 1964 in Mumbai, India) is an author and former journalist of mixed-race parentage. His writing spans crime thrillers, essays, literary criticism, fiction and mythological retellings.[1] The author of several well-received novels including a trilogy billed as "India's first crime novels in English",[2] he became widely known for his retellings of Indian mythological epics, starting with the internationally acclaimed and bestselling eight-volume Ramayana Series, which has been credited with the resurgence of mythology in Indian publishing. His books have sold 1.4 million copies and have been published in 12 languages in 56 countries. His Epic India Library is an attempt to retell all the myths, legends and itihasa of the Indian sub-continent in one massive story cycle comprising over 70 volumes, "an epic library of India".[3][4]

Early life

Parentage

Born of mixed parentage, Banker was the son of an Anglo-Indian Christian mother and the biological son of a Gujarati Hindu Non-Resident Indian. His parents were estranged before he was born and he was subsequently raised by his mother and maternal grandmother but due to his biological father having been a Hindu, he was given the freedom to decide which religion he wished to pursue if any. His mother famously entered "Indian" in the then-contentious column for Religion/Caste in his birth certificate. Since she converted to Islam in order to secure a divorce from her Hindu husband, Banker was raised in an Islamic-Christian atmosphere and spent most of his school career at a Jewish school. Subsequently, Banker has said in numerous interviews that when the time came for him to choose which religion he wished to belong to, he chose simply "to stay human".[5]

Childhood

Ashok Banker age 15 (far left).

His British grandmother, May Agnes Smith, was the only one of her family to migrate from her birthplace Sri Lanka to India, with the rest of her family choosing to claim British citizenship and return to the UK or migrate to other countries. She married D'Souza a Portuguese-Goan and settled in the neighborhood of Byculla in Bombay as it was then known. After Banker's mother fell prey to alcoholism in the wake of her second failed marriage to an abusive husband who subsequently abandoned both her and her young son, it was his British grandmother who effectively raised and supported him. Banker has mentioned in interviews how she not only encouraged him to write but even financed the publication of his first book, a collection of his poetry titled Ashes In The Dust Of Time, which he self-published at age 15 and which was selected to represent Young India at the World Book Fair in Paris, France that year.[6] He also found early support from his school Principal, Miss Sophy Kelly, a prominent patron of the arts and leader of the Bene Israeli Jewish community in Mumbai at the time, and among his first literary efforts was an ambitious play based on the Book of Revelations of St. John from the Bible, produced by Kelly and performed by Banker and other students at their high school auditorium, Hill Grange. The school itself was the alma mater of many prominent personalities.[7]

Abuse Due to Racial, Religious and Caste Prejudice

Banker has often commented publicly about abuse he faced growing up on account of his lack of religion, caste or racial identity. Describing himself as a 'post-racial post-religious' Indian. His refusal to identify himself as belonging to a caste, religion or community has caused many conflicts, since it is at odds with India's traditional caste-based social structure and has resulted in his being ostracized by his peers. This culture of segregation and systematic bias has turned him away from his estranged biological father's religion Hinduism, and Banker grew up with little or no exposure to Hindu culture, religion or literature. He identified himself with other minorities and his closest friends were Muslims, Parsis, Christians and Jews. He took Farsi and Urdu lessons for a time and even won a college-level prize for Urdu-Translation in collaboration with a Pakistani friend. The son of an Iranian dissident fleeing the Shah regime stayed briefly with Banker's grandmother in Byculla, exposing Banker further to radical Islamic thought and culture. Among his close friends were the son and daughter of the Rabbi of the Magen David Synagogue in Byculla, who also studied at the same high school.

Career

Journalism

Ashok Banker worked as a successful freelance journalist and columnist for several years, breaking front-page news for publications such as The Times of India, Mumbai, and cover stories[8] for Outlook magazine, New Delhi. He was earlier also known as a prolific reviewer and commentator on contemporary Indian literature, and as a candid essayist with a particular focus on media hypocrisy in India, and the western racial bias against South Asian writers.[9] He was a prolific literary critic and reviewer, known for his candour and bluntness in reviewing books by Indian authors. His views often veered from the outright derogatory[10] to effusive praise.

Literary Contribution

Banker is a contemporary Indian novelist often counted among the significant literary names in post-colonial Indian literature His work is the focus of several academic studies[11] for its cross-cultural themes and realistic portrayals of Indian urban issues.[12] He is one of few contemporary Indian authors writing in English to be included in prestigious anthologies such as The Vintage Book of Modern Indian Literature[13] and The Picador Book of Modern Indian Literature.[14] His work has been the subject of dissertations, course study material, and is frequently included in the syllabi or reading lists of management institutes and studies of modern Indian English Literature.

Crime Fiction

Banker (far right) at a panel discussion in November 2012

Banker has published in several genres, ranging from contemporary fiction about urban life in India to multi-volume mythological epics, as well as cross-genre works. Three of his early novels to be published were crime thrillers, claimed to be the first written by an Indian novelist in English. They gained him widespread attention and still continue to be regarded with critical approval. Most recently, literary critic Zac O'Yeah wrote: "Slimmer and much more hard-boiled are three striking crime novels written by Ashok Banker many years ago. I still remember reading The Iron Bra, a blood-soaked story of a female investigator, Sheila Ray, whose finger rests lightly on the trigger as she defends her family’s reputation and takes on gangsters in a particularly unforgettable shootout. The growing city’s construction sites were a crucial component in the tight plot. Tragically, my own copy is long lost and second-hand copies cost $129 (approx. Rs6,000) plus shipping on an online bookshop, so it looks like it’s high time to have this gem of a crime novel reissued in an omnibus edition along with Banker’s Ten Dead Admen and Murder & Champagne (all three originally published in 1993)."[15] His Kali Rising is a contemporary radical feminist thriller series featuring only women protagonists. The first book, Blood Red Sari, was launched at the Tata Literature Live! literary festival in Mumbai in November 2012.[16]

Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror

The stories of his "Devi" series are short works featuring Avatars of the Hindu goddess Devi, and have appeared in various science fiction, fantasy, and horror magazines. Several of these genre publications have claimed that his was the first speculative fiction by an Indian Author writing in English to be published. Due to his early association with the scifi genres, his work is often found on several recommended reading lists and discussed in seminars, conventions, essays and books. His Gods of War was released by Penguin in 2009.[17]

Autobiographical Work

Three of his novels contain autobiographical elements and are closely related to one another. His first novel (though the fifth published) Vertigo is about a man struggling to make a successful career and home life in Bombay (the former name of Mumbai). Byculla Boy takes its name from the Byculla suburb of Bombay where he and his mother grew up. Beautiful Ugly and the complementary documentary of the same title are a tribute to his mother, portraying the tragic events of her life.[18]

Mythological Retellings

Banker is best known for his Ramayana Series, a freely imaginative retelling of the ancient Sanskrit epic poem. The series is ranked at No.1 on the "Internet Book List".[19] The eight-book Series was published in 56 countries and 7 languages to considerable critical acclaim. In India, the Series continues to enjoy popularity and sales. It is often credited with being either directly or largely responsible for the current resurgence of interest in mythology. It has been called "super-cool" (The Hindu), "a milestone" (India Today) and "a magnificent labor of love" (Outlook) and appeared on most major recommended reading lists during its publication. The first series fiction to find such success in Indian publishing, it has since been followed by numerous imitators, spawning the burgeoning mythology genre. At least one Indian publisher, Westland Books, has capitalized on the success of Banker's Ramayana Series by publishing other authors such as Amish Tripathi and Ashwin Sanghi, finally signing on the "epic Indian storyteller" himself in 2012[20] for his 18-volume Mahabharata Series.

eBook Success

One of the first Indian authors to embrace changing technology, Banker began sharing his work online with readers as early as 1995, when public internet access began in India. He has been credited as the author of the first ebook by an Indian author, the first online serial novel, the first multimedia novel, and numerous other early experiments with digital publishing. In response to increasing demand from his readers and the considerable delay by Indian publishers in embracing electronic publishing technologies, Banker began publishing and distributing ebook editions of his own work through his website and later through a dedicated ebookstore. The result was India's first ebook bestsellers and first successful independent ebookstore. As of March 2012, three months after launching, AKB eBOOKS claimed to have sold over 14,500 ebooks.[21] As a result, Banker has said he intends to use the knowledge he has acquired in the course of researching and writing his epic mythology series into creating "informative, interactive books for the iPad".

Bibliography

His previously published works include:

  • Amazing Adventure at Chotta Sheher (1992)
  • The Iron Bra (1993)
  • Murder & Champagne (1993)
  • Ten Dead Admen (1993)
  • Vertigo (1993)
  • Byculla Boy (1994)
  • The Missing Parents Mystery (1994)
  • The Pocket Essential Bollywood (2001)

Ramayana Series

  • "Prince of Ayodhya: Volume I, The Graphic Novel" (2010)[22]

Collected as omnibus volumes

  • Prince of Dharma (2007)
  • Prince in Exile (2007)
  • Prince at War (2007)
  • King of Dharma (2011)

Krishna Coriolis Series

Mahabharata Series

Kali Rising

Non-Fiction Books

Other works

  • Gods of War(novel) (2009)[23]
  • A Mouthful of Sky -TV Series created and written by Banker (1995–96)[24]
  • "City of the Rich" -TV Series co-written by Banker (1996–98), credited as Malaysia's first Television Series in English.
  • Bad Karma Online serial (first published on Top Write Corner website) (1998)
  • Brandwarriors Magazine series published in The Advertising Brief, now defunct ad magazine published by Mid-day Group (1999)
  • Swing City (2000) Book-length novel published as an online serial on Rediff.com
  • Vortal (2000–01) Multimedia serial published in CD-Rom magazine "Mahazine"

References

  1. ^ Ashok Banker on real art, honest emotions Times of India, April 6, 2012
  2. ^ Mystery of the missing jasoos Times of India May 16, 2010
  3. ^ The Forest of Stories The Telegraph, March 15, 2012
  4. ^ An epic undertaking The Hindu, March 21, 2012
  5. ^ "I have no caste, I am an Indian.", Interview in Hindustan Times, May 27, 2012
  6. ^ Bollywood, the worst example of storytelling DNA, April 22, 2012
  7. ^ Writing epics was healthier and more sustainable Bangalore Mirror, April 22, 2012
  8. ^ Star's Final Assault|Ashok K. Banker Outlook, March 15, 1999
  9. ^ "View from the top : Colours of fiction", Banker's views about bias: article at the Times of India website.
  10. ^ Derogatory book reviews: article from the New Statesman website.
  11. ^ The Great Indian Novelists on English Literature/Naval Kishore Singh. Delhi, Manglam Pub., 2008, viii, 268 p., ISBN 978-81-906650-2-5]
  12. ^ Sistla, Lakshmi, Towards Integration: Childhood in Ashok Banker's Byculla Boy (6 December 2008). The Icfai University Journal of English Studies, Vol. III, No. 4, pp. 29-35, December 2008. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1312203]
  13. ^ "The Vintage Book of Modern Indian Literature": Random House Academic Resources website.
  14. ^ "The Picador Book of Modern Indian Literature": Pan Macmillan website.
  15. ^ "Murder in the city" Article on Indian Crime Fiction at Livemint, Wall Street Journal India website.
  16. ^ "Blood Red Sari by Ashok Banker book review"
  17. ^ http://www.flipkart.com/gods-war-01/p/itmczyrphpzyhpkp
  18. ^ My mother and I: An intensely personal note by Ashok Banker on his film project Beautiful Ugly (Expanded and Revised by Ashok on 22 June)
  19. ^ "Internet Book List": Internet Book List website.
  20. ^ An epic undertaking/The Hindu
  21. ^ Your favorite books, on the digital highway - Business of Life - livemint.com
  22. ^ Epics reloaded in a modern avatar/The Asian Age
  23. ^ Penguin Books website website
  24. ^ A Mouthful of Sky (1995 TV series): IMDB.com website, credited as India's first Television Series in English.
  2. Sunday, article in issue of January 1993.
  3. Society Magazine, cover story titled "Byculla Boy", August 1993.
  4. The Week, cover story, August 1993.

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