From: rags@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Raghavan Jayaraman)
Subject: An Interview on Modern Literature:- Sujata style
Organization: Northwestern University, Evanston Illinois.
Date: Wed, 30 Sep 1992 16:58:20 GMT

Before Sthan coins more PJ's on this topic and snatch away that honor from
me, Lemme go ahead with the translation.

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Sujata [Rangarajan] is a very popular writer in tamil and he is GM at BEL,
Bangalore. He has enthralled his readers by introducing scientific concepts
in  his stories. Padigal is a literary [so called] magazine .

I reserve my comments for a latter day
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Padigal:-
	Mr. Sujata! We consider  'Thanimai kondu' , Nagaram ['Kurushetiram'
collection] as few best stories of yours. You may accept that too. Moreover you
acknowledge  'Gnana Koothan' to be the best 'modern' poet; Sundara
Ramaswamy  as good short-story writer; Vannadasan, Poomani, Vannanilavan as
the best short-story writers. U also commend Vannanilavan's 'Kadal
Puratil'. All these vouch for  the high standards of your literary
propensity. We see a cultural difference in the above mentioned works [yours
as well as others]  when compared to those in the commercial magazines. The
latter are subject to standards of commercialism. Do U consciously or
otherwise follow such standards? If not how would U like to delineate the
qualitative differences between 'Thanimai Kondu' and the story about the
experience of travelling with a blind person in a train[ which is in
'Nagaram' collection]? How would U differentiate the stories of Sundara
Ramaswamy and those in the commercial magazines? can U eloborate on your
scale of measure?

Sujata:-
	Irrespective of  whether I follow such criteria or not, let us
visulaize the situation in which such rules have been formulated, as a
'sociological Phenomenon'. U acknowledge 'Nagaram' to be good. It also came
in commercial magazines. So were 'Thanimai Kondu' and other short stories of
mine. I don't think anyone can create a short story proclaiming it to be of
'literary' value. It is imperative that a writer keeps writing.  How is it
rated? -whether it satisfies some ?-these are  of secondary importance.
Do you know how much  of unchartered area, 'virgin Pastures'  in tamil?
How many have done those 'sociology' essays written in "Padigal" but for
few foreigners. So leave the cultural analysis to sociologists.
Good-writing will be identified anywhere. But I don't believe that the
qualititative differences in my writing are due to 
literay-commercial magazine differences. When I write, sometimes they turn out
to be good. Sometimes they are bad. Thats all. Sundara Ramaswamy refuses to
write, now-a-days. I don't believe that his short stories will be rejected
by popular magazines.

Padigal:-
	Do U think that Sundara Ramaswamy's stories will be published in
popular magazines?

Sujata:-
	Why not? But he never sends which I think is due to his stubbornness.
Stories like 'Prasadam'- it will be published any where. If he had been
writing like that, he would have been as popular as I am. He has talent.
Talent will surface anyhow.

padigal:-
	Is an individual or a group of writers responsible for such worst
predilection, trend in tamil? Or do U think this is because of something
else?

Sujata:-
	This is because of something else. This can't be due to individual
writers. This is a big phenomenon. There is philistinism among tamil
readers. Many rasons like this.

Padigal:-
	So to say, even the literates in cities like Bombay, Delhi,
Calcutta, Bangalore  choose 'kumudam' when it comes to literature. Don't U
think this is due to writers like U who cater to such needs or are there
any other reasons?

Sujata:-
	Yes! Even I have noticed. When some one comes to me for
good-writing, I always show the little-magazines. Big question is how many
of them get such magazines? This is a viscious circle and we can't single
out from such a complex situation.

	
----[To Be Continued]---

raghavan

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