Interview: May 4, 2007

May 4, 2007

Monica Pradhan's debut novel, THE HINDI-BINDI CLUB, is a tale about the meaningful but complex relationships between mothers and daughters, as well as the struggles that first-generation Indian-American children experience with their immigrant parents.

In this interview with Bookreporter.com's Bronwyn Miller, Pradhan describes the event that inspired her to write this book and expresses her desire to fully capture the various facets of the Indian-American experience. She also discusses her writing roots as a romance novelist and her decision to venture into mainstream fiction, shares which aspects of her parents' culture she treasures most, and touches upon the disparities between eastern beliefs and western practices.

Bookreporter.com: Did you grow up with your own "Hindi-Bindi Club," or what drew you to write this book?

Monica Pradhan: Not exactly, but similar. My parents had their "Indian Friends Circle," my mom had a handful of close girlfriends, and I had many surrogate aunties and uncles.

The pivotal event that inspired me to write this book was when my mom, after spending her entire adult life in the U.S., decided to retire in India instead of Florida, bringing my heritage from the past to the present.

BRC: The novel is such a wonderful portrait of mothers and daughters. Did you draw upon your own relationship with your mother for inspiration?

MP: Absolutely. The wonderful thing about being a writer is that no life experience is ever wasted. Every ingredient goes into the mix, and you wind up with all these delicious layers of flavors.

BRC: You start THE HINDI-BINDI CLUB with a quote from Rabindranath Tagore: "Truth in her dress finds facts too tight. In fiction she moves with ease." What's the significance of this?

MP: Now, I can't speak for Tagore and allege to know his intended meaning. I can only share what his quote means to me, and that is: Where nonfiction must strictly adhere to facts without deviation or embellishment, fiction permits wiggle room --- literary license.

As a storyteller, while I have the responsibility to do my homework and learn the facts to the best of my ability, I also have the right to bend the truth.

BRC: You vividly capture the Indian-American experience from all angles --- east coast, midwest, west coast --- and you do the same for the mothers, by exploring the many different Indian cultures such as Bengali and Punjabi. Was it important for you to give a complete landscape of the modern-day Indian experience, and does it vary geographically?

MP: It was important for me to show a landscape of the human experience, which is as much a component of biology as geography. I wanted to show that no culture is homogenous, and I wanted readers from all backgrounds to see aspects of themselves, or people they knew, in these story people whom they might previously have viewed as "other." It's when you see similarities that you can accept, even celebrate, differences.

I considered writing a novel about just one family --- a kind of Indian-American "Gilmore Girls" with three generations of women --- but I didn't want to risk readers extrapolating that this was my portrayal of "the typical Indian-American family." There's no such thing.

BRC: How much research did this book require?

MP: Tons. I researched the entire time, from inception to completion, constantly fleshing out and revising the manuscript over four years.

BRC: Were you nervous writing about such a volatile time as Partition? How did you conduct your research? Was this event something that touched your own family?

MP: Very nervous. But it was also very important to me, because my friends and I learned nothing about Partition in school. That's as unfathomable to our counterparts in South Asia as a learned person who's never heard of World War II. While the holocaust of Partition spared my Maharashtrian family living in Mumbai, every Punjabi family has a Partition story. In addition to reading hundreds of books and periodicals, I spoke with dozens of Punjabi families, including Partition survivors from India and Pakistan.

BRC: The relationship between Kiran and Preity is so interesting --- the classic "fremenies" (friend/enemy). Can you relate to Kiran's jealousy and to Preity's endless struggle to be the perfect Indian daughter?

MP: Definitely! Don't we all have that "someone" whose praises we must endure ad nauseam? Then, we come to find out that this seemingly perfect person has problems, too.

BRC: Meenal's "Top Five Reasons to Ding an Unsuitable Groom Candidate" certainly simplifies the romantic process. Would her criterion (or most of it) be useful in the western world?

MP: Swap "horoscopes" for "Myers-Briggs Type Indicators."

BRC: Because marriage is a big part of both Indian and American cultures, it's also a big part of the book. Meenal tells her daughter, "Here, you talk about love. There, it's compatibility. Love's fickle. Compatibility endures, sustains marriages…Here, marriage is about the two people on the wedding cake." What are some other differences between Indian and American marriages?

MP: I'm no authority on this subject (those would be Sudhir Kakar and Vijay Nagaswami), but it does fascinate me, and as a writer, I'm more than a casual observer. Last fall, my husband and I attended the North American premiere/gala screening of Never Say Goodbye (Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehn) at the Toronto International Film Festival. The first-ever Bollywood film chosen for the prestigious "gala" section, exceptional director Karan Johar's film seemed to me a great choice to introduce the western audience to the musical format of Bollywood.

The film involves two couples who, despite their best efforts, find they cannot make their marriages work. They are good people; they're just incompatible with their spouses, and therefore are miserable. In the end, they care enough about each other to set the other free. Divorce, as always, is sad and unfortunate, but eventually, each finds happiness apart that they couldn't have together.

I loved this film! What's not to love? If you agree with me, chances are, you're American.

This film was highly controversial in India. Critics accused the director of pandering to the west, misrepresenting and undermining Indian family values. The characters were viewed as selfish and self-centered. The root of the disparity in viewpoints, I believe, goes back to what Meenal told Kiran… In America, marriage is more about the individuals. In India, it's more about the larger families. Abuse is the only reason, if that, for dissolving a marriage. Not unhappiness. Or ennui. Or irreconcilable differences.

BRC: You've written three romance novels under the name Monica McLean. What made you switch genres to mainstream fiction? How did writing THE HINDI-BINDI CLUB differ from your earlier works? Was the process more difficult?

MP: Romance will always be my first love. I'm a sucker for a good love story with a satisfying ending. The romance genre, like Bollywood, tells courtship stories. Relationship novels that spotlight the man-woman mating dance. I'm still able to do everything I love about romance in mainstream fiction. I haven't given up anything. But now, I have a larger canvas. I'm able to explore other relationships, too, and that's the reason I chose mainstream.

Writing THE HINDI-BINDI CLUB was like writing six novels with six protagonists. I never could have pulled it off without my previous work, a solid craft foundation on which to build.

BRC: You once said that you wanted to "create novels that are unifying and healing." Do you feel that THE HINDI-BINDI CLUB accomplishes that? The format of the book is so engaging, with the stories, recipes, e-mails and letters. How did you decide to incorporate different mediums?

MP: I wrote the kind of book that I wanted to read, with the hopes I wasn't alone, and others shared my tastes. I sure hope I've accomplished what I intended. I've certainly done my very best, and at the end of the day, that's what I tell myself.

BRC: The recipes all sound mouth-watering. When did you decide to place them throughout the story? How did you choose which ones to incorporate? Did you acquire them from family members, and who were the lucky taste-testers?

MP: I knew from the start that I wanted recipes in the book. My favorite part of Indian culture is the food. My mom is an amazing cook. Everyone says so! Food has always been a big part of my life, and osmosis into my characters' lives led me to their dishes. All recipes came to me through my mom, which was like pulling teeth --- she's one of those naturals in the kitchen who doesn't measure, whereas I need COOKING FOR DUMMIES and require remedial steps with everything quantified. So after I managed to draft recipes, my friends and I (my friends being far better chefs than I) tested and tweaked. My good pal Deb Dixon's gourmet-cook husband Wayne, self-professed "Redneck Chef," tested some. Another longtime friend, suspense novelist Danielle Girard, tested others by throwing a Hindi-Bindi dinner party (read about it on my website). And Renaissance-woman Karen Solem, my amazing agent, made every recipe in the book and served them up at various dinner parties!

BRC: What would you like readers to take away from THE HINDI-BINDI CLUB?

MP: East is East, and West is West; in Truth, the twain are One.

BRC: Who are some of your favorite Indian authors? Who are some other writers who have inspired you or your writing?

MP: My favorite, hands down, is Arundhati Roy. An extraordinary writer and human being, she's one of the most brilliant minds of our time. I read somewhere on the Internet a quote from her that went something like this: "Throughout time, there have been those who sought to draw lines between people, and those who sought to erase them."

I really can't mention other writers in the same breath! Can we come back to this?

BRC: You and your husband divide your time between Minnesota and Toronto. How do you keep your Indian culture alive in your life? Which customs/holidays are your favorites?

MP: Food. Food. And more food… My husband and I vacationed in India this past February. This was Jim's first time, and we had a blast! Did I mention the food? Amazing!

I'm thrilled to report that I finally have a mangalsutra, the wedding necklace I've always wanted but insisted my husband (not my mom!) select. Jim chose a beautiful diamond-studded pendant that combines modernity and tradition. I love it and wear it every day.

As for Jim, his favorite keepsake is a T-shirt from our dear friends, the Durgas, in Mumbai: May Ganesh Be With You. Years ago, during the Ganpati celebration, which is big in my parents' birthplace of Mumbai, I received an e-mail with the cutest stuffed-animal-type Ganesha. The pot-bellied, elephant-headed deity wore a T-shirt that said "Ganesh. He Cares." This is analogous to "Jesus Loves You," and my Catholic husband loved it! From that moment on, the "Remover of Obstacles" has been his favorite Hindu god. Not even knowing this, a (Muslim) co-worker of his went to a wedding in Mumbai and brought back for Jim a sandalwood Ganesh carved figurine, telling him, "For good luck." The co-worker was amazed when Jim said, "Hey, it's Ganpati!" Later, Jim told me something he realized later: "A Muslim guy giving a Catholic guy a Hindu god. That's pretty cool." Yes, indeed. How's that for the removing of obstacles?

BRC: What are you currently working on, and when can readers expect to see it?

MP: It's called THE BANGLE BAZAAR, Rani and Bryan's expat adventures in Bangalore. As for when you can expect to see it, my U.S. publisher has this notion that if I want a career, I must write faster than a snail on Valium (my ideal pace). To that end, they've mandated a very aggressive deadline, so it shouldn't be too terribly long before readers have another serving!