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@Ramya
Ramya V
@Ramya · 1:15

The Hippo Girl and Other Stories - Author Shah Tazrian Ashrafi in Conversation.

article image placeholderUploaded by @Ramya
article image placeholderUploaded by @Ramya
Hello and welcome to today's episode of the Ask an author series of interviews. I'm Ramya, and I'm going to be talking to Shah Tazrian Ashrafi today about his anthology 'The Hippo Girl and Other Stories' published by Hachette. This compelling collection takes us on a journey through the heart of Bangladesh, exploring the raw and unfiltered human experience in a landscape defined by violence, rage, and grief

#askanauthor #authorinterview #hachette #anthology #Bangladesh #amreading

@Ramya
Ramya V
@Ramya · 0:22

1. What sparked the idea for the anthology?

I must say that I am very curious to know how the idea for this collection came about and evolve into the powerful narrative that it has become. So, basically, what sparked the idea for this anthology, focusing on the theme of violence and its multifaceted impact?
@Shah12
Shah Tazrian Ashrafi
@Shah12 · 1:28

@Ramya

And then luckily, I found my agent, Kanishka Gupta from writer's side. And I'm very thankful that his acceptance truly made me believe that this book could be a solid thing out in the world because before that, I didn't have much faith in it
@Swell
Swell Team
@Swell · 0:15

Welcome to Swell!

@Ramya
Ramya V
@Ramya · 0:24

2. The Bangladesh Liberation War - your personal connection to the historical event and its impact on the depiction of conflict in your stories?

The acknowledgement of the Bangladesh Liberation war in your collection of stories suggests a deeply personal connection to this historical event. How did your own experiences or family history influence your writing, especially the depiction of violence and conflict in your stories?
@Shah12
Shah Tazrian Ashrafi
@Shah12 · 1:59

@Ramya

With the power of narrative to the victims of the war who. Some of whom are dead, some of whom are alive. And I do remember being impacted on a subconscious level by the stories that I heard from my family. Like, I had this relative who had to escape from West Pakistan, I mean, from Karachi into, now Bangladesh, I mean, then East Pakistan
@Ramya
Ramya V
@Ramya · 1:05

3. Coming up with characters who are both products of their time and fiercely individual..

Could you talk a little bit about your process of coming up with such characters, who are both products of their time and yet so uniquely individual in how they navigate the situations that life puts them in?
@Shah12
Shah Tazrian Ashrafi
@Shah12 · 1:39

@Ramya

I think because of these, it allows you to create characters who resemble people from real life, and also it allows you to insert depth into your characters rather than making them some sort of one dimensional, flat characters, tokenistic characters. So, yeah, I mean, on the surface, this framework might not look so complex. I mean, it might look very simple and it's very easy to fall into the trap of writing more one dimensional characters using these framework
@Ramya
Ramya V
@Ramya · 0:46

4. Any challenges you faced while bringing these stories to life?

.. I just have one more question for you, but before that, I'd like to thank you for taking the time out and joining me today. It was fascinating getting to know what went into the writing of these stories, the inspiration behind them, and how you kind of brought it all together so beautifully. Congratulations once again. And here comes the last question for you
@Shah12
Shah Tazrian Ashrafi
@Shah12 · 3:43

@Ramya

I am very lucky that I did not have any challenge to. I didn't face any challenge when I was writing these stories because, as I've mentioned before, when I was writing these stories, I wasn't consciously planning to compile them into a book. So I was really taking in the pleasure of the language and the. The art, you know? So. So, yeah, I think
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