Wednesday Oct 09, 2024
Wednesday Oct 09, 2024
Saturday, 17 August 2024 00:26 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Shankari Chandran was raised in Canberra, Australia. She spent a decade in London, working as a lawyer in the social justice field. She eventually returned home to Australia, where she now lives with her husband and four children. She is the author of Song of the Sun God, The Barrier, and Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens, which won the prestigious 2023 Miles Franklin Literary Award in Australia. Her latest novel Safe Haven was released in May 2024.
In this virtual interview with the Daily FT, Shankari shares a wide range of thoughts ranging from the close relationship that she shared with her grandmother to her routine as an author.
By Dishani Senaratne
Q: What inspired the idea for your award-winning novel Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens?
A: The nursing home depicted in Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens was owned by my uncle, where my grandmother lived alongside lots of Sri Lankan residents located in a suburb in Western Sydney. I used to visit her with my children, and she would tell us many stories of her life growing up in Sri Lanka, our family history, Sri Lanka’s political history, as well as our religion and recipes. Her stories were a window to her past. Her distant memory was stronger than her memories of yesterday, given her age. I came to realise that my grandmother was building a relationship with my children (her great-grandchildren) through this bank of memories. I thought it was a great way to write a novel revolving around a multigenerational community, using story-telling to transfer knowledge.
Q: Has writing and publishing four novels changed the way you see yourself and your community?
A: I don’t think writing about my community has changed my perspective of them. Hopefully I have been able to see them clearly throughout the years. Of course, publishing has given me the opportunity to establish a strong connection not only with readers who have Sri Lankan Tamil ancestry but also immigrants who resonate with my writing. It’s a privilege indeed to connect with readers who are not known to you but who resonate with your writing.
Q: What is your take on the stories that were and are being told nationally (both in Sri Lanka and Australia) that would shape and impact on communities?
A: In relation to the Sri Lankan context, I, unfortunately, only have access to literature written in English. I’m unable to comment on the impact of Sinhala and Tamil literature. My novels Song of the Sun God and Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens are an attempt to record, remember, recognise and celebrate Tamil identity as an author writing in English living outside Sri Lanka. In Australia, there has been a recent rise of non-Anglo European writing, especially South Asian writing. The increased diversification of the Australian society was not reflected in the literary and publishing landscape until recently. But there has been a growing presence and recognition of diverse voices ranging from curators to grant giving bodies. Even though Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens is primarily a narrative about a Sri Lankan family, the depiction of issues related to race and racism makes it an Australian novel, as well as one that speaks to universal themes and experiences.
Q: Could you talk a bit about your writing process? What is your schedule like when you’re writing?
A: It’s pretty simple. Until recently, I had a full-time job and I could only write on Fridays. When writing a novel, I do what I call a sprint. I usually write twenty minutes a day four times a week so that I’m able to connect to the world I’m building and the characters. Changing jobs (in mid-August) has allowed me to write a little more.
Q: Can you share with us one of your favourite lines/scenes in your book Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens?
A: One of my favourite lines is when Ruben tells Maya “stories we tell are the temples we build.” Also, when Maya pretends to be a White woman through her recently activated Twitter account, I found myself funny.
Q: What are your future plans as an author?
A: My fifth novel titled Unfinished Business will be released in January 2025. It is a political thriller revolving around the political assassination of a journalist in Colombo. The television adaption of Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens is in the pipeline. I’m also looking for pathways to publish all of my novels in the US, UK and India. Apart from these, I’m also working on a new novel and I’m trying my best to say no to new projects.
Shankari Chandran
Shankari’s books can be purchased from any bookseller that ships internationally:
https://ultimopress.com.au/collections/shankari-chandran
https://www.amazon.com.au/s?i=stripbooks&rh=n%3A4851626051%2Cp_27%3AShankari+Chandran
