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Filmi Stories
The eight stories of this collection are about unforeseen terrors and adventures, surreal comedies, the apocalypses and the sublime poetry of everyday life. A disgruntled trucker sets out to kill his rival, ending up as the saviour of migrant workers trapped by a pandemic. A novice jailor breaks the law only to learn that nothing in this world is beyond pardon. A corpse dressed immaculately in a suit is discovered on a beach, the trail of the suspects stretching across continents in casinos and cruise ships. The nude paintings of a dead artist set the stage for a murder in a gallery. Hunt for a terrorist leads to a dangerous game of luring a prey out of its lair using a human bait. A man finds himself as the sole passenger of an airplane flying from one deserted airport to another. An innocent shopkeeper learns the wisdom of the Mahabharata on the verge of losing his innocence.
Written with words and marked by light and shadow, sounds and silence, these tales stalk a bunch of unruly actors performing roles that take on lives of their own.
Written with words and marked by light and shadow, sounds and silence, these tales stalk a bunch of unruly actors performing roles that take on lives of their own.
290 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 24, 2023
2 people are currently reading
19 people want to read
About the author
Kunal Basu
21 books57 followersKunal basu was born in Calcutta. Raised by unorthodox parents, both litterateurs and political activists, he developed an early love for the arts: painting, acting and writing.
Since 2001, he has published four novels, a collection of short stories, written a few screen plays and (mostly unpublished) poetry.
Since 2001, he has published four novels, a collection of short stories, written a few screen plays and (mostly unpublished) poetry.
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
December 5, 2023
Interesting would be an understatement.
What happens when the author of 'The Japanese Wife', gets bored during the pandemic and decides to embrace the flashy world of pulp and speculation? Spin the wheel of fortune, if you may? You get 'Filmi Stories', a collection borne out of COVID induced despair, that aspires to intrigue, if not outright surprise its readers.
"Every story deserves an adaptation" the maestro Vishal Bharadwaj claims through a glowing assesment adorning the cover. The stories invoke a subdued cinematic flair, reading like installments in an anthology film. Slightly open-ended, yet brimming with self-contained humour. Oozing drama and representing the darker shades of human nature. Touching a nerve or two in the process.
A story like 'Jailbirds' is rife with tension, yet ends with a note of happy wholesomeness. While, a tale like 'The Enemy', openly embraces the author's personal politics, and leaves the reader in a state of poignant gloom. There's range in here. Range and good writing. There's nothing more pleasing to find an author who understands his prose. The necessary know-how of good literature.
Like every anthology, it has its downers. But they'd be a subjective batch catering to differing readers. Like a buffet at a well endowed wedding, allowing it's guests to pick their poison with glee. All eight of these stories are starkly different, and as such, my assessment stands it's ground. But a keen eyed reader will find traces of a singular man coursing throughout. Be it the use of certain phrases, certain tropes, even similarities in characters and their general arcs.
A shared universe of hapless longing, criminal intrigue and happy accidents! Hence, the book might not give the reader, the intended feeling of watching a full length feature film, but it does let them sit down with a wordsmith and pick his brain at ease. And isn't that what one seeks out of literary fiction? Personality? Good thing, this one's filled to its brim with it. All wrapped up in a neat, shiny package.
Would recommend, if you have a day to kill.
4/5
What happens when the author of 'The Japanese Wife', gets bored during the pandemic and decides to embrace the flashy world of pulp and speculation? Spin the wheel of fortune, if you may? You get 'Filmi Stories', a collection borne out of COVID induced despair, that aspires to intrigue, if not outright surprise its readers.
"Every story deserves an adaptation" the maestro Vishal Bharadwaj claims through a glowing assesment adorning the cover. The stories invoke a subdued cinematic flair, reading like installments in an anthology film. Slightly open-ended, yet brimming with self-contained humour. Oozing drama and representing the darker shades of human nature. Touching a nerve or two in the process.
A story like 'Jailbirds' is rife with tension, yet ends with a note of happy wholesomeness. While, a tale like 'The Enemy', openly embraces the author's personal politics, and leaves the reader in a state of poignant gloom. There's range in here. Range and good writing. There's nothing more pleasing to find an author who understands his prose. The necessary know-how of good literature.
Like every anthology, it has its downers. But they'd be a subjective batch catering to differing readers. Like a buffet at a well endowed wedding, allowing it's guests to pick their poison with glee. All eight of these stories are starkly different, and as such, my assessment stands it's ground. But a keen eyed reader will find traces of a singular man coursing throughout. Be it the use of certain phrases, certain tropes, even similarities in characters and their general arcs.
A shared universe of hapless longing, criminal intrigue and happy accidents! Hence, the book might not give the reader, the intended feeling of watching a full length feature film, but it does let them sit down with a wordsmith and pick his brain at ease. And isn't that what one seeks out of literary fiction? Personality? Good thing, this one's filled to its brim with it. All wrapped up in a neat, shiny package.
Would recommend, if you have a day to kill.
4/5
Displaying 1 of 1 review