News Articles From India Book Tour

Posted on 2 February 2014

India Abroad Article on Ved Mehta

http://www.indiaabroad-digital.com/indiaabroad/20140221/?pg=26&pm=1&u1=friend

Launch for new title THE ESSENTIAL VED MEHTA in Mumbai celebrated in the press. 

Full text:

The launch of Ved Mehta’s tome, The Essential Ved Mehta (a terrific read, if one may say so) at The Table ran to a packed house with the author recalling many anecdotes from his prolific career. Journalist Vishwas Kulkarni read an excerpt from an essay of the author’s absurd experience of getting naturalized as an American citizen. At a later point, Mehta had the audience in splits as he recalled his experience of writing about Morarji Desai’s experiments with is own urine. “My editor at the New Yorker,” said Mehta referring to the legendary William Shawn about whom he has also written a book, “called me into his cabin and said, ‘Ved, this might be a bit much to carry about the Prime Minister of any country’.”
 Click here to visit the Mumbai Mirror website:  Mumbai Mirror reports successful book launch

Articles from book tour, Jaipur Literary Festival, and other recent speaking engagements in India:

  • Spotlight on Ved Mehta from NY Times guide to the Jaipur Literature Festival by Aayush Soni:

    Ved Mehta, one of the earliest Indian writers in English, will discuss his oeuvre of 27 books with the journalist Samanth Subramanian on Friday at 12:30 p.m. Mr. Mehta, whose books include a 12 volume autobiographical series titled “Continents of Exile,” will also be part of a panel discussion on writing memoirs on Sunday at 10 a.m.

Click here to read the full article New York Times Pocket Guide to the 2014 Jaipur Literature Festival

V for Ved Mehta: This writer of many-an-exquisite books who also happens to be blind left everyone dumbstruck with his pitch-perfect take on the world. Here’s what he said about India, “It is a functioning anarchy. Now, anarchy is fine as long as you can see.”

 

  • Daily Mail Reports on Ved Mehta’s Political insight:

Author Ved Mehta, who has been writing about Indian current affairs for the last five decades, meanwhile made his stand clear. The 80-year-old simply said that BJP Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi would pose a “danger” to India.

“He (Modi) will be a great danger to India because of his thinking differentiating between Hindus and Muslims,” Mehta said.

“I am born in a secular race and I will die in a secular race. India is a secular country and we need someone with greater tolerance to helm the country.”

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/indiahome/indianews/article-2541546/Jaipur-Literature-Festival-hits-gear-day-one.html#ixzz2sGfoqxow

 

 

Reports from Panel Discussion on Autobiography and Crafting Truth

  • The Wall Street Journal Reports on Memoir discussions at the festival. In this excerpt from the article Ved Mehta talks about getting at the greater truth:

Ved Mehta, the eminent Indian-American memoirist and journalist, didn’t have to think long about how much license he felt he had to fictionalize. “If it calls for embellishment, I never think of embellishment as falsehood. It’s getting at a greater truth.”

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Read the full Wall Street Journal Article by Raymond Zhong

  • Hindu Business Line also features Ved Mehta’s participation in Memoir Panel

Panel discussion on memoir and the autobiographical novel with Ru Freeman and Philip Hensher

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  • The Daily Beast Reports on the success of the Jaipur Literature Festival

2014 Jaipur Literary Festival Breaks Records in The Daily Beast

 

  • Times of India prints recap of the festival and India Today Chooses Ten Highlights

Recap of the Jaipur Literary Festival in  Times of India

Ten highlights from the Jaipur Literary Festival in India Today

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  •  Asian Age reports launch of THE ESSENTIAL VED MEHTA and follows Mehta’s appearance at the Jaipur Literature festival. Mehta is quoted about his temperament as a writer:

“I am a serious writer, but I am not a solemn writer. I am not against smiles and laughter,” he says as he explains his reputation as a serious writer.