Celebrating India’s indie authors

Ramakrishnan Balasubramanian won the category for his book, The story of India through food: OPOS Cookbook. A chef himself, his writing journey began 15 years ago with his blog, ‘One Page Cookbooks’. A vlogger, blogger and author all rolled into one, Chef Balasubramanian says that his latest book was an attempt to understand, deskill and demystify world cuisines. He first heard about the KDP contest through a friend, and his experience with it has been unbelievable. “After burning my fingers with traditional publishing, KDP opened a land of magic. Several of my books became bestsellers, earning me more royalty and notice than I imagined,” he shares.

First time author, and a blogger by profession, Rajneesh Chaturvedi won in the category for his fantasy and science fiction book, Antarman: Ek Salesman Kee Anokhee Kahani! This Lucknawi storyteller is an avid reader himself. “I have been blogging for the last 3-4 years, but professionally Antarman… is my first work of fiction, written specifically for the KDP Pen to Publish Contest,” he tells us. When we asked him what inspired him to write this bestseller, he says, “Stories around me; stories in nature, and stories about life. These things always tempt me to write and express my thoughts in my own words”.

Bruno Guru, as he is better known, won this year’s contest with his book, Science and Psychology of Paleo Diet (Tamil Edition). A doctor by profession, Dr Mascarenhas has authored many other books on health and wellness. His writing journey began way back in 1989, when his articles and poems were published in his school magazine. Says Bruno Guru, “I went on to self-publish my first book in 1999, followed by a book on post graduate medical entrance exams in 2004.” In his own words, the inspiration to write comes from, “A desire to let everyone know with ease, what I learnt with difficulty. My penchant to teach and educate others along with a yearning for a world with better understanding drives me to write.” A caring and compassionate doctor who engages contrarian ideas with sincerity, Bruno Guru is not silenced by status quo.

Who Killed the Kaneez? is the book that landed Vijay Kakwani the winning award in this category. This first time author is the senior vice president of operations at a corporate firm. The Mumbaikar describes himself as “Part sponge and a full believer. Destiny and the inherent goodness of people are what I believe in.” On how he began writing professionally, Vijay shares that it has been a couple of years since he began putting conscious effort into writing fiction. “It’s something I enjoy doing, and the fact that people like to read what I write only makes it worthwhile.” Although Vijay had been dabbling in poetry over a longer period, he has recently discovered his talent in writing fiction instead.

Meri sakhee Sunita: Ek laghukatha (Hindi Edition) earned first time author, Mansi Dadhich Mahur, her award in this category. There is an interesting story behind how the IT manager started to write, “My father and I had always loved stationery. He used to gift me a diary every 31st of December, which I mostly used for drawings. After my mother passed away, I actually started writing in those diaries. I used to write to her about my day and about the world around me. Later my writing took a back seat, with mounting pressure from my higher studies and professional life. But now I have begun nurturing my passion again!”

This prolific author from Chennai won in the category this year for his book, 2K Kid: Thiruvalluvar Aandu (Tamil Edition). A journalist and documentary director who loves working with visual media, G Lenin has authored nearly 30 books over the years. “Writing is a mirror image of the society we live in,” shares Lenin when asked about the inspiration behind his books. Lenin feels that his experience with KDP has been good. He is also thankful for the new opportunities that have come his way, thanks to KDP. “As a writer I am travelling in a new world of readers!”