Sahitya Akademi, Saraswati Samman and Padma Shri awardee novelist SL Bhyrappa was in the city on an invitation of Vidarbha Sahitya Sangh. He spoke exclusively with TOI on various topics
At 91, SL Bhyrappa can hear and understand every word you speak, can remember every anecdote from history and politics, and can speak for hours together on philosophy – his forte. The only thing the nonagenarian regrets is that he can’t sit and read for hours together like he used to do earlier.
“Nowadays, I feel tired after reading for an hour at a stretch. If I read lying on the bed, I feel drowsy within a few minutes and lose continuity. I really miss the way I used to read earlier – making notes, marking references and getting immersed in the book,” he says while giving insight into the ideal way of reading and how reading made him one of modern India’s most popular novelists.
“Books do not die,” he says and adds, “Neither do I believe that the culture of reading is dying. People still buy my novels edition after editions. It’s a responsibility of a writer to create content that readers would love to read.”
He believes the educated youngsters – especially software engineers – are sharp and they have seen and observed a lot at a very young age as they often get the opportunity to visit other countries. “Creativity should be innate. You cannot become a writer just by studying literature. In fact, the formal education of literature just cannot make you a writer,” he says.
So, do we have such writers in the new generation? “Yes. There are a few,” says Bhyrappa while particularly mentioning Sahana Vijayakumar, a young novelist whose Kannada novel ‘Kasheera’ has Kashmir as its theme. While he narrates how Sahana researched for this novel and presented a truth of Kashmir, the discussion naturally moves to the movie ‘The Kashmir Files’.
“I haven’t seen the movie yet. But I know the issue very well. I have seen how our first Prime Minister made blunders and created this mess,” Bhyrappa says adding that the relationships between communities (Hindu and Muslim) should not be built on false foundations but on solid truths. For such views, he is often called a right wing supporter.
“Once, I was the only litterateur who openly supported Narendra Modi as Prime Minister of India. I had been in Gujarat for years and I know the people there. I have seen the state transforming for good under Modi. No one can deny that the country has also seen tremendous progress during his tenure as PM. I sincerely believe we should give a clear mandate to Modi for the next two terms,” says Bhyrappa loud and clear.
Bhyarappa’s thoughts on Tipu Sultan and debate with the late Girish Karnad had created waves in the past. “Tipu was a fanatic and the atrocities that he had committed in the name of religion cannot be neglected. Even today, terrorists are radicalizing Muslim youths in the name of religion. Young boys are told that they will get a place in heaven along with 72 wives who are beautiful and virgins, with whom they can have eternal physical satisfaction. The desire for unlimited sex is making them terrorists, and not the urge to fight for the religion,” says Bhyrappa firmly. With the same firmness, the litterateur also states that he is not a right-winger, but a humanist.
“Had I been a rightist, I would never have penned ‘Uttarakanda’ in which Lord Rama is criticized many times while I present the point of view of Sita. I have made several enemies in the so-called ‘right wing’ after this novel. In ‘Parva’, I humanized Krishna over and above his image of a supreme god. I am a humanist,” he says.
Religion, epics, mythology, music, art, beauty, truth, ethics have been the themes of his 26 novels. But, he says, all came with the urge to present philosophy. “Philosophy cannot be taught in a rigid manner. It can be taught only through art, literature and poetry. Indian culture is spread across the subcontinent through Ramayana and Mahabharata. These epics taught the world’s richest philosophy to us,” says Bhyrappa.
He declares that he won’t write anything after ‘Uttarkanda’. “One has to stop somewhere. I am 91 now and I know my limits. Uttarkanda is my last novel. Especially, the last two years were very disappointing for all of us, including me. I could not travel, could not meet people and even visitors were not allowed at my place. During those days, I decided not to write anymore,” he says while mentioning Covid-19.
In fact, Bhyrappa has seen a plague outbreak in the late 1940s in which he lost his siblings and mother within an interval of few hours. Watching death so closely turned him towards philosophy and later towards writing novels. Now, another pandemic has made him decide to stop writing.
People who appreciate Bhyrappa still believe he will come up with another masterpiece, once the world comes out of the shadow of the pandemic. “I have many well-wishers who believe something more will come from me. And I know, this is the best time to stop,” he says with a mystic smile.
