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| With Mahrukh at The Festival of Literary Diversity (FOLD) May 2017 |
I return to A Decade in Toronto after a long gap.
The story of my decade has reached the ninth year - 2017 - and life in
Canada became predictable, routine, mundane.
The publication of my debut novel in 2016 was a turning point.
I was invited to many readings and the one that I enjoyed the most was chatting
with Saima Hussain at the Mississauga Central Library. Saima edited a collection
of personal stories by Muslim women The Muslimah who fell to earth,
which Mawenzi House published in 2016, along with Belief.
I bought table space at the Word on the Street in the hope
that I’d be able to sell my book, but – unsurprisingly – didn’t sell enough
copies to justify the steep price I paid. Undeterred, I also took a table space
at Brampton Book Bash (organised by FOLD) and sold nearly two dozen copies.
In 2017 spring, after I was featured at the Festival of
Literary Diversity, my friend Gavin Barrett – who came to nearly all my
readings, and who couldn’t make it to FOLD – wrote to me about an idea he had
of organizing a reading series. Without a moment’s hesitation, I agreed.
Gavin named it the Tartan Turban Secret Reading Series (Tartan
Turban is the logo of the advertising agency Barrett & Welsh – where Gavin
is the co-founder, partner and creative head) and we started in May 2017 (18
May 2017).
Gavin had obviously put a lot of thought into what he wanted
the series to be and evolve into. In his own words, “The Tartan Turban Secret
Readings celebrate and support writing by multicultural/visible minority
Canadian writers with a special focus on those who self-identify as black,
indigenous or people of colour, who have few such platforms.
“At the same time, all writers who want to celebrate Canada’s
multiculturalism, diversity and indigenous heritage, and have talent to share
are warmly welcomed. Please feel free to bring any of your friends of every
minority whether "visible" or otherwise - non-minorities are warmly
welcomed too.”
When we launched the series, we planned to do a few readings during
the summer of 2017 and then when the season changed, to bring down the curtain.
However, the series caught on with the literary community and there was no way
we could just stop.
Two years later, it continues to grow. I believe the main
reason for its popularity is that Gavin invites an author/poet to curate the
series, and then she invites six other authors/poets to read. This brings
variety to the series.
I must shamefacedly admit that I share the credit for an
immensely impactful, relevant, and popular program for which my only occasional
contribution is to suggest names of authors who may be invited to read or
curate.
Gavin does everything – including arranging for wine and
samosas – and all I do is just show up for the readings.
Our lives are strange in many ways and the strangest is the way
we make friends. Suddenly, for no apparent reason, someone becomes a friend and
even when one doesn’t meet or interact with this person for long periods of
time, or even consistently, s/he remains a friend that one thinks of first on a
special occasion or when something important happens in one’s life.
Gavin Barrett is that friend. I have written extensively about
him here and if you are interested, you may read all about Gavin on GAB here:
o-o-o-o-o
2017 was an important year because it was the seventieth year
of India’s independence. It was the centenary year of the Bolshevik Revolution
in Russia; also, the centenary of Indira Gandhi (To read the post, click here: She
knew India’s heartbeat).
It was 50 years since Che Guevara was murdered in Bolivia (and
20 years since his remains were discovered); also, 50 years of India’s Maoist Naxalbari
movement.
Many who contributed to our culture passed away into history.
Among them were actors Shashi Kapoor, Vinod Khanna, and Om Puri. All great
actors and stars. Shashi Kapoor was a bit more special to me than the others
and I couldn’t help but blog about him (To read the post, click here: Shashi
Kapoor).
Musicians Girija Devi (Hindustani classical vocalist), Gord
Downie; journalists Gauri Lankesh (murdered by Hindutva terrorists) and Piroj
Wadia (a dear friend. To read the post, click here: Piroj Wadia).
Poet Eunice de Souza, who I had the privilege of knowing briefly when I worked
at the Indian Post with Veena Gokhale, among others, and Eunice was the editor
of the literary page.
We also lost authors Robert Pirsig and Bharati Mukherjee.
Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (To read the post,
click here: Zen)
is an important book that I read two times – first when I was in my late teens
and then in my late twenties – and it was only upon the second reading that I
understood it.
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| Winter morning in Brampton |
In 2017, I gifted the book to my then colleague, who in jest
told me she needed Zen more than Yoga.
I want to briefly segue into an issue that is misinterpreted
often deliberately by newcomers to Canada. Nearly all newcomers to Canada feel
that their qualifications and experience are ignored because they lack what is euphemistically
termed as “Canadian experience”.
Now let me narrate the experience of my former colleague’s husband
(the colleague to whom I gifted Pirsig’s book). He is a Caucasian Canadian,
born and raised in Canada, studied to become an engineer, and served in the
Canadian Armed Forces in the Balkans and in Iraq and Afghanistan.
One would imagine than upon his return to civilian life, he
would be welcomed by our people and would easily get a job matched his
engineering qualification and incredible experience of having served the nation.
However, that is not what happened. Neither does his present
job reflect his qualifications, nor his abilities and experience.
If our system cannot take care of our veterans, there will be
many who will legitimately ask, “Why should then Canada give favoured treatment
to refugees and immigrants?”
Until we don’t have a satisfactory and logical answer to this question,
the issue of immigration will continue to be polarising and it will always turn
ugly and emotive.
During my days as a journalist, I’ve seen exclusivist political
formulations demand protection of the rights of the native people (sons of the
soil). In today’s context, the forces that oppose immigration globally represent
the same values.
However, unless there is a real solution to securing economic
opportunities for the native people, the ire against immigrants and refugees will rise, not dissipate.
