Charu Nivedita is a noted name in transgressive, post-modern literature. He began writing at a very young age, and since then, has traversed the road less travelled, for over 35 years.
His first novel, ‘Existentialisamum Fancy Baniyanum‘ created havoc among Tamil literary circle, as it had an entirely different way of storytelling that shattered the cultural beliefs about the body and mind, considered until then a taboo. It was about how a young man overcomes the angst of his life through his writings. The emergency regime which affected the Indian life in the seventies and the lives of a few friends which were sacrificed in the naxal movement and the French existential thought were the key factors which made him write this novel.
His next novel, his Magnum Opus ‘Zero Degree‘ is considered to be one of the best in transgressive fiction, as it completely transformed what is termed as taboo – sex, violence and crime, to a very different plane, which is a beautiful, heartwarming literature. It had also been reviewed by various magazines and has proven its mettle.
His next novel ‘Raasa Leela’ proved to be a satire on governmental red tape-ism and the nuances of the novel successfully portray pragmatically the cry of a man lost amidst the numerous, colossal walls and pillars of the labyrinth that the system has created, his agony and his thirst to break the shackles.
Charu Nivedita wrote his next novel ‘Kaamarooba Kadhaigal’ as an internet novel. He says thus about the novel: “Lust is a celebration; at the same time, it’s a hell where cruel dreams are executed. This is the first time conflicting thoughts emerged in my works. There cannot be any sort of parody towards such thoughts, as it is not possible to do so when these thoughts emerge from the man-woman relationship which becomes more psychological than in any other context. I can say, this is the continuation of the Greek pathos plays created 2500 years ago. According to me, it appears that this novel talks about the bestiality in a man-woman relationship. We can trace the roots back to the Greek epics and Marquis de sade’s works. Euripides’ Medea’s blood-chilling ululation can be very well sensed in the near end of this novel.”
He also adds, “While writing this novel, there was a crowd of young, beautiful women around me. But I experienced loneliness and emptiness to the core. On the contrary, in spite of living like a recluse currently, I do not experience emptiness now. The philistine crowd can never enter the world of a creator. They are like shells and bones without life inside them. Loneliness and other such feelings are absolutely impossible in the life of a man who traces his roots back to the numerous artists the world has seen so far. It is at this point that my autobiographical writing differs from my life, however similar they both may be. What the protagonist Perumal attains in this novel, is bitterness and when he is able to overcome the bitterness through his writing, he attains the state of bliss.”
While talking about his writing, Charu Nivedita says, “There are various streams in world literature. I can never write in the style of Milorad Pavic or Umberto Eco, which is like traversing back in history, or in the style of Ray Bradbury who was able to traverse ahead in time with a giant leap. But, William Burroughs, Kathy Acker or Charles Bukowski have never written a single word without experiencing it in their own lives.”
Charu Nivedita has also written numerous articles on various topics such as politics, literature, music, cinema, post-modernism, general human beliefs and many more. His essays, articles and novels have the satirical parody towards being a goat in the herd, and they convey the message of humanism, peace and harmony, as an ultimate goal in life. He is a social activist too, having participated in various movements and protests against the governmental oppression in the neighbouring state Kerala where his writings are more popular than his native Tamilnadu and has represented the people in doing so.
While writing about few people trying to spread false allegations about him, Charu Nivedita says, “if anyone think that dumping a few false allegations on me can degrade me or can pain me, there will never be such clowns like them, as I create my writing only after shredding all the cultural and personal protections and reputations which a society levies on an individual. Not a single Tamil writer can cite a blasphemy on me more than what I write on myself. I bring this up as a challenge. I sacrifice my life every time in the altar of literature. I welcome the allegations from people who use writing as a means of garnering mere fame and falsehood. This hatred is the praise and acceptance for my writing. Unless I join this herd, there is every reason for me to keep writing.”
Charu Nivedita lives in Chennai.
There is nothing like planning in my literature, at any point of time. It’s something which gets written between the schizoid state and dreams. Hence, with this same reason, I cannot comment on my writing. Like how I don’t accept the roles of a father, a son, a lover, a friend – I despise the role of a writer too. My writing is nothing but the brush strokes of a person trying to escape from hell — Charu Nivedita.