Page 88 - DENG503_INDIAN_WRITINGS_IN_LITERATURE

Indian Writings in Literature Gowher Ahmad Naik, Lovely Professional University

Notes
Unit 10: Rupa Bajwa: Sari Shop—Detailed Study of the Text

CONTENTS
Objectives
Introduction
10.1 Brief Introduction to the Text
10.2 Sari Shop—Detailed Study of the Text
10.3 Summary
10.4 Key-Words
10.5 Review Questions
10.6 Further Readings

Objectives

After reading this Unit students will be able to:
• Make a brief introduction to the Sari Shop.
• Discuss Sari Shop.

Introduction

Rupa Bajwa's debut book The Sari Shop was longlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2004, an
award that was eventually won by Andrea Levy for Small Island. The book has won the 27-year-
old Amritsar girl flattering reviews the world over with reviewers calling her India's new literary
find.
Ever since she put pen to paper nothing else has mattered to Rupa Bajwa - not the various jobs she
juggled over the years, not marriage that her folks thought was the most important thing for her.
It was just writing. And, as she says, "I had to write just to exist." For this 27-year-old Amritsar-
based author time away from writing is time wasted. And it was a brave choice indeed, because
despite the occasional news of an Indian getting a fat royalty cheque and big publicity, only a
handful of writers can afford to live by their muse alone. For the majority, writing can barely pay
for basic amenities.
But Rupa Bajwa has been a lucky author. Her debut book The Sari Shop (Penguin) was long listed
for the Orange Prize for Fiction 2004. The book has won her favourable reviews the world over
and she has been hailed as India's latest literary find.
However the journey to establish herself was a bumpy one for this young writer. From rented
rooms in various cities she visited `in search of peace to write' and hired computers on which she
punched her story, Rupa Bajwa did have her moments of frustration and despair. Now riding on
the wave of success of The Sari Shop, she has embarked on a full time career in writing. She is a
prolific and a disciplined writer and is already on her second novel which she says would see the
light of day soon.
Bajwa says she drags herself to her writing desk everyday no matter how hard it is. "I have a fairly
regular schedule and write daily though sometimes creativity doesn't flow and it can get very
frustrating. Everything is blank - mind, paper, computer screen. But one has to keep at it. Because
there are times when I write intensely and non-stop for ten to twelve hours a day," she says.

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