Social change is key
April 19, 2012
SRAVASTI DATTA
Anna Hazare's movement against corruption inspired the writer within
S.V. Divvaakar to write his debut novel The Winner's Price
Anna Hazare's fight against corruption not only revealed
middle-class frustration at an inept Government, but also inspired
business consultant S.V. Divvaakar's debut novel “The Winner's Price:
Life Beyond Campus” (Konark Publishers, Rs. 250).
The writer in
Divvaakar could not be contained when he had attended Anna's agitation
at the Ramlila Grounds in Delhi. It prompted him to pen an eight-verse
poem in Hindi and begin work on “Winner's Price”, which was launched at
Reliance Time Out, Bangalore.
“The Winner's Price”
addresses issues such as institutional problems of the IITs and the Jan
Lokpal Bill as well as the Karnataka Mining Scam. “All four protagonists
in my book have studied at IIT and meet at their college reunion after
20 years. They eventually unite to fight for a larger cause,” says
Divvaakar,
“Two threads run through the novel. I wanted to explore if
the IITs are only about engineering. Even after thirty years, is it
worth living and dying for? Not everyone who passes out from the IITs
are engineers. Some, like me, become business consultants, some social
workers while some others, journalists. Besides, I wanted to depict that
we cannot consider ourselves winners until we bring about change in our
society.”
The novel is set in India of 2015 where
the Jan Lokpal Bill has been passed and RTI-twin policies that are
UID-based programmes (Unique Identification number) are being
implemented. “Don't mistake RTI with Right to Information,” Divvaakar
laughs and continues, “The policies are Real Time Intelligence and
Retail Transaction Interface. The former ensures complete transparency
while the latter a cashless society.”
The UID has,
however, been criticised for being an intrusive measure. “If you want to
end corruption, you must be prepared to be thoroughly accountable,”
argues Divvaakar. America's financial meltdown was largely due to it
being a cashless society. “Most bank transactions in India are done
online, so bank account details are known. If someone were to put a bug,
money from the accounts can easily be siphoned out. There are risks,
but solutions through technology are workable,” he contends.
Divvaakar has re-created Chitragupta's ideal in “The
Winner's Price”. “Conserve the truth and defend justice is the book's
essence.” Divvaakar is proficient in Tamil and Hindi and can speak
Telugu, Punjabi and Bengali. Divvaakar's “The Winner's Price” garnered
attention for the similarities it shares with Chetan Bhagat. They both
studied at IIT Delhi, and occupied the same hostel room. But the
similarity ends there. “Five Point Someone” and “The Winner's Price” may
revolve around the IITs, but the intentions behind writing their
respective works are different.