Love stories are often made of soft, romantic moments; the chemistry, the palapability of it all. But there comes a stage in our lives when love is about to blossom, attraction is at peak, and romance is yet to ensue.
So here is one sweet little nugget from this product manager’s life weaved into a pacy story that ideally comes in the genre of love or slice-of-life fiction.
A packet of chips plays the lead role in this short story inspired from real life about a budding romance between two students of an engineering college. It all starts when the girl (Nikki) demands a pack of Lay’s from the boy (Shailendra) who’s trying his best to woo the lady of his life. Whether the two end up being together is something for which the readers will have to read the story.
Shailendra Nath Jha, the author of A Packet of Lay’s, was advised by his friends to pen down this 15-year-old incident as a short story and he went on to write one for Kindle. The sheer effort of the protagonist will make your heart melt, and if that is not enough the ending will leave you smiling.
Excerpts from the conversation with the author of A Packet of Lay’s:
Q: A Packet of Lay’s, that’s an interesting title. Tell us something about the story. What’s it about and your inspiration behind it?
A: Well, this is a real incident that happened around 15 years back and I’ve been narrating this story to my friends and colleagues. I realised that I’m good with story-telling, something I’ve inherited from my mother. Whenever I’ve narrated this story, people have really liked it and that gave me the inspiration to pen it down so that it can be shared with everyone.
The story itself is from my college days where I met my now-wife and covers the ups & downs of the first love. The entire story is of one day where everything went wrong, things kept on falling like dominoes and it seemed like the day would never end.
Q: Do you think relationships in times of smartphones and dating apps have lost their charm?
A: I believe love is a universal feeling which has been there since stone age and will be there till the doomsday. The expressions may change over time with the influence of technology and other techno-cultural changes in the society. I remember speaking on an old Nokia phone with my girlfriend, now wife- for the whole night. Now there’s snapchat and whatsapp- that keeps the youngsters awake.
Earlier we used to spend hours in an Archies Gallery to look for that perfect Valentine day card and go to the florist to buy flowers early in the morning or late night. Now all that can be done at the click of a button. So the basic emotion remains intact, the ways to express that may have changed.
However one thing is there which is not just for the youngsters but for the society at large- that is, we have become more impatient and move on quickly to newer choices and alternatives. The classic old romance of wait, patience and cajoling may have lost its charm a little.
Q: Who’s your favourite author who you look up to for inspiration?
A: I’m an avid reader and read anything that comes to me- fiction or non-fiction. As a youngster, I used to gobble up anything that came to me- from Nandan, Champak, Saras Salil, to even magazines such as Sarita, Manorama etc- of course hiding from my parents. So, I don’t necessarily have a favorite but I’ve read all of Malcom Gladwell’s books. His style of simplifying complex topics is amazing. In fiction, I’ve really enjoyed Amish Tripathi’s work and also Arvind Adiga.
Q: What is your advice for youngsters who are looking for that perfect partner to spend their lives with?
A: First of all ‘perfect partner’ or ‘perfect relationship’ is an oxymoron. Love is not about liking someone’s best self, but accepting someone’s worst self. The trick is in embracing your better half as-is with all his/her imperfections, because remember you also have imperfections. Sometimes we get swayed away by the external beauty and mannerisms of an individual and commit to a long-term relationship, but after the love hormones go down, we realise that we are in a wrong relationship. What should instead be focussed on are values in an individual and if you are compatible and comfortable with the values- then go ahead. Because when things don’t go well, what will hold you together is the commonality of your core values.
Q: In times of streaming platforms that add riveting viewing content almost everyday, what are the challenges for an aspiring writer trying to make an impact with written word?
A: Again, I don’t look at it as something which will change the basic human appetite for good stories. If you look deep, the growth of OTT platforms is because of the availability of affordable internet and smartphones. And that exact reason is pushing the popularity of books and novels. In fact I’m publishing this book as a Kindle-version only and honestly it would have been extremely difficult without the acceptance of technology and e-books. So I’m actually looking at it like an advantage.
A Packet of Lay authored by Shailendra Nath Jha is available on Amazon, Kindle-only (e-book)