Interview with Bapsi Sidhwa

Bapsi Sidhwa is the author of four internationally acclaimed novels. She lives in Houston, Texas, but was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and raised in Lahore. She graduated from Kinnaird College for Women, Lahore, and began writing in her twenties after the birth of two children.

In 1978, at a time when publishing in English was practically non-existent in Pakistan, Sidhwa self-published her novel The Crow Eaters. Since then, The Crow Eaters has been published and translated in numerous Eurapean and Asian countries. While The Bride was the first novel Sidhwa wrote, it was the second to be published. Cracking India, Sidhwa's third novel, was declared a New York Times Notable Book for1991, received the LiBerature Prize in Germany and was nominated by the American Library Association as a Notable Book the same year. An American Brat, was published in 1993.

Following is an excerpt from a short interview of Mis. Sidhwa taken by myself:

First of all, your first novel was published when there was hardly any concept of english authors from Pakistan and despite that you got international appreciation. What was the response at home? And being a Parsi and a Pakistani, what problems did you face in early years as a writer? Was there an issue of acceptability?

When I self-published Crow Eaters in Lahore, I had to peddle the book from shop to shop and the rare reviews were dismal. Most writers though loved it, specially Faiz, Ashfaq, Bano Qudsia. Once the book was published by Cape in UK, the slew of positive reviews changed the perception in Pak. and I was suddenly commented on favorably and interviewed as a celebrity. There is a slight problem being Parsi. Some reviewers harp on it to discredit me, saying things like 'Can you be a true Pakistani as a Parsee? etc.' It is v. hurtful, but fortunately there are not too many such people. There is a warmer feeling for Muslim writers in general. But I shouldn't quibble because on the whole I have been embraced and lionized.

Pirated book stalls are like a haven for avid readers because they are at a quarter of a fraction of the real cost. It obviously affects sales. What can authors do to prevent this from happening? Moreover, why aren’t prices kept to suit the pocket of an average Pakistani?

Piracy is a problem because of the steep prices. However some pirates are developing a conscience and assigning my previously pirated books to publishers. They have made a packet off me, but so long as books are read, I don't mind as much as I should. If we have more publishers and a larger reading public, the prices could be better controlled.

Finally, do you think much is being done to promote english language authors in Pakistan?

The small increase in publishers encourages writers and the media is kind and encouraging for the most part. Schools and Colleges should be teaching/assigning the books on a regular basis. The professors are scared of teaching my novels because of censorship fears. We are too squeamish about even mild sexual content.