Failed Lives

It is not often that life presents somebody with an opportunity a chance that mere mortals will not get. It is not often that one becomes an editor of a far reaching mag( it was quite influential in its day ) like Illustrated Weekly. The one who got such an opportunity is no less a man himself the one and only Kushwanth Singh.

Recently I came across a book edited by him and published by Harpercollins called the New Indian Fiction carrying short stories of a varied set of Indian authors. I have no editorial experience but anyone can say it was a bad purchase - the man has not learnt even in this age to add value and to stand up for the right things, I felt cheated and stupid for having bought that book.

My views about Mr Kushwanth Singh are not going to be changed anymore( I frankly thought they will - time has a way). Mr Kushwanth Singh's is a life wasted in vanity and self obsession. He lost a great opportunity( mentioned above ) as editor of Illustrated Weekly during emergency to speak up for for the people - contrast him with Mr Ramnath Goenka of Indian Expess. Mr Singh instead embraced sycophancy in its ugliest form; for his own selfish ends, imagine the impact Mr Singh could have made had he stood up for the right things.

History shall judge him for that decision rather than his literary work if any.