
B. S. Dara: The Voice Indian Fiction Cannot Ignore
New Delhi [India], August 19: B. S. Dara turned from concrete beams to sentences, from architecture to ache. Now he builds stories that hold what most people try to hide. Erotic. Emotional. Unforgiving. His Stories you swore you'd burn.
His Books
The Insatiable
His debut novel, The Insatiable, was a storm of desire and consequence, earning praise from critics and a place in libraries that rarely open their shelves to debuts. Critics noticed. Readers felt seen. The book found its way into Top 10 Books of the Month by Delhi Wire, was among the Top 10 Books of Year 2024 to be considered worthy of Netflix series, was added to the Goodreads premier author category, and secured a place in the prestigious Qatar National Library collection, a rare honour for a debut writer.
It marked Dara as someone willing to write love without filters, exposing the beauty and the damage in the same breath.
Then came the second.
I, You and Pune
I, You and Pune is a love story that doesn't try to be one. It follows Ananya Sharma, an MBA graduate with deadlines in her calendar and damage in her chest. Enter Veer Singh. He opens doors, listens too well, kisses too deeply, and ruins her in all the quiet ways no one prepares you for.
Sex mistaken for love, and love mistaken for freedom. They move in together. They make love. They fall apart. There's no happy ending. Just real ones.
Set against rain-slicked streets of Pune, where loneliness feels louder than love, the novel doesn't give easy answers. It asks the harder questions: What do you do when love is real but not enough? How do you carry desire when it turns into recklessness?
Click here to find "I, You and Pune" and "The Insatiable" by B. S. Dara on Amazon today.
Writing Unfiltered. Unforgiving. Undone. Sensual. Stark.
B. S. Dara undresses the wounds most writers avoid, love, loneliness, sex, shame, and writes them raw, wet, and unedited. No silk-draped love scenes, he writes intimacy like a commitment whispered mid-orgasm. His stories don't give you closure. They give you reminders.
The Man Outside the Books
Quiet in life, fearless on the page, Dara brings a rare emotional precision to Indian fiction.
He writes of women who count the cost of staying, and men who only learn too late what they ruined.
In a country where writers often reach for masks, Dara insists on unmasking. He has carved out a place in Indian fiction as a dangerous voice, one who writes the price of being real in a world that rewards pretending.
Building His Place in Indian Literature
Two books in, and B. S. Dara isn't just writing fiction, he's rewriting the anatomy of desire in Indian English literature. His stories have struck a chord with readers who know that love isn't always beautiful, that love isn't always tender. Sometimes it's unspoken. Sometimes it's wet. Sometimes it's brutal. And that's exactly why it matters
"Quiet in life, dangerous in fiction--B. S. Dara is Indian literature's most precise knife."
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Indian Express
17 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Zakir Khan at Madison Square Garden: The next global comedy superstar may be an Indian
On August 17, just two days after India celebrated its 79th Independence Day, stand-up comedian Zakir Khan made history by being the first Indian comic to sell out the iconic Madison Square Garden in the heart of New York City. With this, Khan joins an esteemed list of artists like Chris Rock, Eddie Murphy, Dave Chappelle and George Carlin who have sold out the venue in the past. 'The Garden', as it has come to be known in the pop culture lexicon, has also hosted legendary musical acts like the Rolling Stones, and memorable sporting events like the Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier boxing match. What makes Zakir's performance at the venue unique is that his act is almost completely in Hindi or 'Hindustani' — a blend of Hindi and Urdu, which he peppers with dollops of an Indori cadence. To truly enjoy the nuances of a stand-up performance, an audience needs to have more of a hold on the language than, say, a musical or dance performance. To have more than 15,000 people show up to listen to a Hindi comedian in New York is truly a special moment. An interesting phenomenon has emerged over the past couple of years, where influential South Asians abroad from the fields of entertainment and politics have infused Indian languages, or 'Indian-isms' in their videos and messaging, giving rise to a seamless blending of English with Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi, etc. Take, for example, New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. During his campaign, he made a tongue-in-cheek video reaching out to his South Asian supporters entirely in Hindi. He mouthed popular Hindi film dialogues while taking playful digs at desis and their relationship with elders. Or comedian Hasan Minhaj, who was present at the Garden to warm up the crowd and reverentially addressed Zakir as 'Zakir bhai'. Despite English being the primary medium of Hasan's comedy, he questions American institutions and systems while also familiarising audiences with stringent Indian family customs and his struggles with them as a second-generation immigrant. With Indian comedians making the US and European cities a constant fixture on their tours, there has been a growing camaraderie between comedians in India and those of Indian descent abroad. While this leads to mutual cheerleading when they perform at notable venues and comedy festivals, it has also helped turn the attention of their primarily American and European audiences to controversial issues where comedians in India have faced the wrath of the moral police or of those in positions of power. Comedian Akaash Singh, who co-hosts the popular podcast Flagrant (which has nearly two million subscribers on YouTube), has, in the recent past, discussed how performers like Samay Raina, Vir Das and Kunal Kamra have faced pushback from the authorities and how narratives created by the media and online troll armies shape public perception in India. Akaash even sat down for a one-on-one conversation with Kunal about the state of comedy in India. With the likes of Vir Das and Zakir Khan making waves in the West, there has also been an influx of big names from their comedy scene visiting India for shows. Just in the past two years Anthony Jeselnik, Jimmy Carr, Max Amini have been here and the next six to eight months will see Kevin Hart, Louis C K, Sammy Obeid and Daniel Sloss (making this his third trip to India). With stand-up specials and clips being accessible to millions through YouTube and Netflix, and comedians making pit stops on each other's podcasts, comedy has truly gone global in the last decade. A South African like Trevor Noah got the reins of The Daily Show, steeped in US politics, Egyptian doctor turned comedian Bassem Youssef has been performing sold out shows across the US while also becoming the face for Palestinian solidarity after his appearance on the Piers Morgan show. With subtitles and AI tools aiding translations, language is slowly ceasing to be a barrier. If Zakir's sold-out show at MSG is anything to go by, it isn't outside the realm of possibility that the next global comedy superstar will be a homegrown comedian who speaks an Indian language. The writer is a podcast producer and stand-up comedian
&w=3840&q=100)

First Post
19 minutes ago
- First Post
‘Hard Work is the only guarantee': SRK on Aryan's directorial debut with 'The Ba***ds of Bollywood'
There is no guarantee of box office or critical acclaim. That is the advice Shah Rukh Khan gave his son Aryan who makes his directorial debut with the series 'The Ba***ds of Bollywood'. There is no guarantee of box office or critical acclaim. That is the advice Shah Rukh Khan gave his son Aryan who makes his directorial debut with the series 'The Ba***ds of Bollywood'. Addressing an event where the show's first footage was unveiled before the media, the superstar on Friday said it is a special day as Aryan takes his first steps in the world of showbiz. 'He is very hard working because we've taught him only a couple of things at home, that there's no guarantee of box office success and there's no guarantee that critics will give positive reviews, but when you work hard, there's full guarantee. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'So, today when he comes in front of you, if you like his work, applaud him, but more importantly shower your blessings and prayers on him. The amount of love that you all have given to me, if you can give 10, 20, 30, 40 per cent or 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100 or 150 per cent of that, then just give it all to him,' Shah Rukh told reporters. He added that it was an 'emotional moment' and one of the biggest high points for him. 'The Ba***ds of Bollywood', which will premiere on Netflix on September 18, is described as a genre-defying series that blends self-awareness with cheeky humour. It features an ensemble cast of Bobby Deol, Lakshya, Sahher Bambba, Manoj Pahwa, Mona Singh, Manish Chaudhari, Raghav Juyal, Anya Singh, Vijayant Kohli, and Gautami Kapoor. The 59-year-old actor, known for his witty comebacks, also cracked a joke about his son's maiden project. 'When Aryan told me that he is going to do a show about Bollywood which will be raw, edgy and with a bit of madness, then I wondered — is he going to upload the CCTV footage from Mannat on YouTube?' he said. Shah Rukh then praised the newcomer for creating something 'fresh and unique'. 'I will be honest that it took me a while to really catch on. And when I caught on, I was really drawn in. I'm really happy about it. And not only about the show, but the entire cast that has come together to tell this story because it is the characters that breathe life into a story and create magic on screen,' he added. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Aryan, reflecting shades of Shah Rukh Khan's trademark wit and self-deprecating humour, acknowledged feeling nervous while addressing the audience for the first time. The newcomer said, 'The aim behind making the show was to entertain a wider audience. After four years of hard work, countless discussions and thousands of takes, the show is finally ready.' Aryan has co-created and co-written the series with Bilal Siddiqi and Manav Chauhan. Gauri Khan has produced under the banner Red Chillies Entertainments Pvt. Ltd. Before showcasing the footage from the show, Shah Rukh introduced the actors and their characters. 'They have done such a good job, all of them — the surprise packages, the craftmasters, and the goodies and baddies that put the 'Bads' in the 'The Ba***ds Of Bollywood',' he said. The preview footage opens with Shah Rukh offering a tongue-in-cheek definition of Bollywood, drawing a line between those who dream of becoming heroes and those destined to be one. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The spotlight then shifts to Lakshya's Aasman Singh, an ambitious newcomer navigating the highs and lows of the industry, alongside his best friend, played by Raghav Juyal. The show features Manish Chaudhry as Sodawallah, a wealthy producer determined to mount the grandest family drama ever, while Bobby Deol storms in as Ajay Talvar, a superstar at the peak of his fame. Shah Rukh's close friends — superstar Salman Khan and filmmaker Karan Johar — also make an appearance in the clip, along with actor Ranveer Singh. The actor thanked Bobby for making the show happen with Aryan. 'We have been working together for the past 30 years, so we are not formal with each other. But I never thought that before we know it, we'll have kids, and then we'll be working alongside our own children. 'Thank you Bobby, you brought so much warmth, so much love and so much gravitas to the show,' he said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Bobby said it was a special day for him as well. 'I can feel what you're going through in your heart at this moment. I'm feeling it too because I have seen Aryan when he was younger. And then I met him when he was a bit older… The way he spoke and shared a few things here and there, I just felt that there is something magical about him and he was ready to conquer the world. And today is the day.' The actor, 56, said he instantly agreed to the project after receiving a call from Red Chillies. 'They said 'Aryan is doing a show, will you come and meet?' And I said I will do it, I don't need to hear it. But Aryan said he wanted to narrate it to me, so I went there. I sat there for seven hours and heard the script. But more than hearing the script, I was looking at Aryan…I was just so happy,' he added. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD . .

The Hindu
19 minutes ago
- The Hindu
A city with strong cultural moorings: Sharath Kamal
'I like the way the people of Chennai have strong cultural moorings, the way people are grounded out here, defines Chennai as a city. Even though it is deemed a conservative place, the perception I feel has helped people establish a strong cultural identity,' says former Indian table tennis player Sharath Kamal. 'I like how the city has bonded in terms of different aspects of life: through music, culture, arts, and sports. Our involvement in all these aspects shape us all as the people of Chennai.' 'A lot of tradition still continues in a strong way in Chennai, for example the music festival during the winter months. This in a way defines the identity of the city and the people of the city.' 'The legacy that has been built by the generations before continue to be passed on to the next generation. Alongside, the sporting culture has also had pretty strong roots. Chennai always had a sizeable number of spectators showing up to watch different sports. Many are hardcore sports fans and keep themselves well aware across different disciplines and games. I get recognised in Chennai, which doesn't happen in many other places. This is true for many other sportspersons as well.' (As told to Saptarshi Bhattacharya)