Welcome to the Southasia Review of Books Podcast, where we speak to celebrated authors and emerging literary voices from across Southasia. In this episode, Shwetha Srikanthan speaks to the Assamese writer, translator and poet, Aruni Kashyap about his new collection of short stories, The Way You Want to Be Loved (Gaudy Boy, October 2024).
In The Way You Want to Be Loved, we are introduced to characters who are outsiders – immigrants, queer individuals in conservative societies or minorities marginalised in Western and academic spaces – struggling to hold onto their identity while still seeking connection and belonging. They wrestle with repression and the search for personhood in societies where identity is shaped, and often compromised, by forces larger than themselves.
Aruni Kashyap’s collection is also a powerful critique of the broken promises of democracy in both India and the United States. With unflinching honesty and moments of darkness, these stories navigate absurdity, grief and resilience against a backdrop of violence and state repression in Assam and beyond.
This episode is now available on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
Let’s keep the conversation going – please share your thoughts on the episode or on Aruni Kashyap’s book. If something resonated with you – or even challenged you – leave us a comment on Youtube or send me an email (shwethas[at]himalmag[dot]com). We promise to read and reply to all of them!
Episode notes:
The Way You Want to Be Loved: Short Stories by Aruni Kashyap (Gaudy Boy, October 2024)
Short fiction, poetry, and non-fiction by Aruni Kashyap
The ‘secret killings’ of Assam in literature: The violent history of Assam is often considered marginal to the Indian nation, but literature can help readers understand the global implications of this - Amit R Baishya (March 2014, Himal Southasian)
Fragments from a fractured time: Reminiscences on an education money could never buy - Anuraag Baruah (November 2013, Himal Southasian)
Those school-less days - Pankaz K Sharma (July 2010, Himal Southasian)
The persistent risks of love across social norms in India - Ankush Pal, Alfiya Azeem Khan (April 2024, Himal Southasian)
India’s queer politics after Section 377: On the limits of the Supreme Court decision that decriminalised same-sex acts in India - Ian Miller (December 2018, Himal Southasian)
The 25-year-long battle against India’s anti-queer law - Chayanika Shah (September 2018, Himal Southasian)
Inside and Out: New queer writing from Southasia suggests shifts in attitudes since 2009 - Annie McCarthy (January 2014, Himal Southasian)
Indo-Anglian Writing - Nandi Bhatia (August 1999, Himal Southasian)