Thiruvananthapuram: “It is difficult to judge a writer, but easy to see the sincerity with which she expresses herself.” Famous filmmaker Balachandra Menon was releasing, ‘Buddhante Punchiri’, a collection of short stories written by techie –turned-writer Indu Lekshmi at the Press Club here.
He was impressed by the simplicity of her prose and sure it would find resonance in the heart of many who read it. ‘Buddhante Punchiri,’ he said, is a collection which everyone could relate to. Talking at length about his experience as a writer, Menon who has made more than 35 movies said Indu Lekshmi’s ability to come up with characters so close to life in this book was what stood out.
J. Lalithambika, IAS (retired) who chaired the event said that Indu Lekshmi drew inspiration from the life and people around her and wrote about it in her intrinsic style. “What I like about the way Indu writes”, she said “is that everyone can understand what she writes. She does not put on the airs of a new generation writer or a feminist; neither does she indulge in wordy output that no one can understand.”
Saraswathy Nagarajan, Associate Editor of The Hindu introduced the book. “There is a bit of sadness in the stories,” she said. “Each story will touch your hearts, and it is only natural that you may identify with one of the characters.”
Responding, Indu Lekshmi said, “the stories deal with my perception of some experiences and lives I know of, known, and the unknown. There are some totally imaginary stories too, but even they are intertwined by some aspects of people I know in reality.”
‘Buddhante Punchiri’, a slim collection of short stories, is Indu Lekshmi’s second book and her first one in Malayalam. In her own words, ‘Buddhante Punchiri’ is a collection of twelve short stories written over a span of two years. Indu used to work with Infosys before the writing bug bit her. She is a freelance writer and a home maker now. Her collection of poems ‘Riddles of Time’ was released in 2009.