Subhechcha Ganguly 
What inspired you to write The Affairs of Baxiganj, and how did the idea first take shape?
To be apt, it was my boss. He was such a – to be a bit decent we can use- sleazeball type of personality that there actually were random thoughts on how in a parallel universe, I would have loved to kill him. That was the central idea. Now, at the time, I used to stay in Mumbai and it was a good 180 minutes commute from my home to office and back. So, you could say I got enough time to elaborate on my idea and that’s how the first draft of my manuscript took shape. Now a disclaimer, my boss is safe and healthy and he hasn’t yet read my book.
Your childhood in Durgapur seems to have shaped you deeply. How does that nostalgia reflect in your storytelling?
It does happen for most of us. Your surroundings in your childhood phase of life becomes ingrained and often defines some of your personality traits. During my school days, Durgapur was a still a growing town with a prevalent liberal, socialist-leaning and very much cosmopolitan culture. People, when they were not working or studying, were engaged in pursuing different forms of art or sports and there were clubs and institutes in almost every colony that taught or trained them in these facilities. There were book fairs, theatre and film festivals that made it culturally vibrant. So growing up in Durgapur at that time was really wonderful. I believe, I probably inherited at least the liberal and multi-cultural vibe from my childhood Durgapur.
Now the second part of your question. Durgapur holds a special place in my life and I still carry its sights and smells in my consciousness. So, as you can expect, they spill out in most of my writings, even in my present book “The Affairs of Baxiganj”. To cite an example, Durgapur at that time was mostly rolling uplands filled with forests or plantations of sal, palash, teak and mahua that were later cut down to build new localities. One of our favourite past-times at that time was cycling through the different trails within these forests, exploring the wilderness, trying to discover new routes that could take you to a different corner of the forest. These were childish things but these memories stayed vividly alive in my memory. In my book, the description of the jungles around Baxiganj was mainly based on these experiences.
You mention being heavily influenced by retro Bollywood and Bengali cinema. How does that cinematic flavour appear in your book?
Yes that’s true. These were the only movies that were telecasted at the time by Doordarshan and I grew up watching them. So the fashion, style, music, moral values manifested in these movies obviously influenced my young mind and to some extent defined my life style. I was particularly a fan of retro-thriller movies that were directed by Vijay Anand like Jewel Thief and Teesri Manzil, something like movies of Hitchkock, and later I wanted my book to have a similar sort of essence. Other than that, there are a lot of bollywood references in my book “The Affairs of Baxiganj like a character wearing mismatched sized shoes, size 8 in one foot and size 9 in the other or a café called Ramlal’s Cafe and many more of such easter eggs peppered in it. These are not mere references but are a part of the story setting.
Russian and classic literature impacted your formative years. Which authors or books influenced you the most and why?
We had a number of bookfairs around the year and there were a loads of Russian literature available in it. One of the authors whose works had a deep impact on me was Fyodor Dostoevosky, particularly because of the comedic and humorous undertones he uses in his books to explore human psychology and morality. Another author I liked was Anton Chekov, for his short stories. I was a fan of how he described his characters, flawed yet somehow relatable. I read the last book by a Russian author in my twelfth standard and it literally made me cry. It was “Problems in General Physics” by I.E.Irodov and I left it midway.
As someone who admits you weren’t a “great student,” how did you discover your love for writing?
I wasn’t. Neither a good one, nor a serious one. Somehow managed to scrape through to the next class. About writing, it was during an English period in one of my primary classes. Our English teacher probably got massively bored and irritated with us or had some other work to do in the class and needed to somehow keep us busy. So she gave us a few keywords and a one line idea to write a story. I wrote something that made the teacher comment that I had a vivid sense of imagination as well as knack of putting it on paper. That event probably led to the germination of the idea of me wanting to be a writer.
How did your time in Roorkee during post-graduation contribute to your growth as a writer or individual?
My first attempt to write a story was in my high school for a little magazine- I don’t know if hat concept still exists. So you can say my journey as a writer began from school. Roorkee was the first time I left home- experiencing life beyond any sort of shelter or restrictions. At the time, there wasn’t any mobiles, and we could only afford to call home once in a week from a STD/ phone booth. So, that translates to lack of any sort of parental control in my life. Life became more experimental, explorative and adventurous. My immediate family was replaced by my friends, and my hostel became my temporary home. These led my life on a completely different trajectory. Anyway that part of my life also served as the stepping stone to my professional career as a geologist. I didn’t write anything literary during my Roorkee days other than my dissertation which according to my professor appeared to be more a work of fiction and should have carried a disclaimer like those shown before any movie. However, it is my hostel life experiences with my friends that I always cherish and try to replicate in my stories.
Winning the TRI Literary Awards is a big milestone. What does this recognition mean to you personally and creatively?
Yes, it does feel great to know that the jury for the award had read my book and felt that it was good enough to be awarded. Such awards do serve as a motivation, encouraging further attempts to write. However, the most rewarding feeling is when, people approach on their own and tell that I have read your book and had enjoyed it.
What part of The Affairs of Baxiganj was the most emotionally challenging—or rewarding—to write?
The epilogue part of the story that brings a sense of closure to all the characters involved and yet provides a hint that there is more to come.
Lastly, what can readers expect next from you? Are you working on another book or exploring new themes?
Well, I am trying to expand my Baxiganj universe, a book with short stories with the same characters. I am still writing it, maybe, I will finish it in a month or two.
