Stirring up a storm in the literary world | Nitish Raj

Every published author has a dream, a dream of publicity around the book, a dream of being able to showcase the book in front of an audience and a dream to see their story on the silver screen. Here’s a man who makes all this possible and more.

Meet Nitish Raj, Editor-in-Chief, Literary Mirror and Literia Insights. He is also the curator of Lit Digital Awards & the brain behind Story To Screen. Along with his friend & partner, Vikash Saxena, Nitish is has been stirring up a storm in the literary world.

You may recall it that Nitish recently signed a path-breaking publishing deal where he received an advance royalty for 25000 copies!  Truly, every author’s dream!

 

However, none of the above are reasons for featuring Nitish Raj in
DiaryOfAnInsaneWriter’s ‘Game Changers’ series.
Read on to know more… 

In 2018, 26-year-old, Nitish Raj quit his job as a journalist and joined hands with Vikash Saxena to start Literary Mirror, a digital literary magazine with global standards catering every aspect of literature. It provides a platform to budding & experienced writers from every genre.

He moved from Delhi to his home ground, i.e. Kendua Village in Gaya District. Till date, he and Vikash operate from their homes and mobilise dreams of writers across India.

He says he made this decision to take care of his aging parents and to remain closer to his roots. This, dear readers, is the reason DiaryOfAnInsaneWriter featured Nitish Raj in the Game Changers Series.

Here are some excerpts of the telephonic interview. Read & stay inspired!

Tell us why you consciously remained in your village and decided to grow from there? Usually it’s the other way round. People leave their home turf and go to a bigger city to fulfil their dreams.

NR (pauses for a moment, takes a deep breath & says): I agree that people head to metro cities in search of their dreams, but staying back in my village was a decision made on various aspects. Even though I had completed my graduation from New Delhi and studied my Masters in Hyderabad, I came back to my roots. After working for more than half a decade in various cities, I found out you get the real solace amongst your family members. I never understood the meaning of success with your old parents longing for your care while you are riding on the dream in some faraway land.

Tell us about a typical day in your life at home.

NR (chuckles and says): I am a late riser. I usually get up after 10 AM. After getting through the emails and calls, I dedicate the early afternoon to handling the clients queries. Post-lunch, I help my parents in the fields since my father is a farmer. After spending some quality time with my parents in the evening, I work till 3 AM which comprises planning my Public Relations and Magazine activities. I also read and write till wee hours of the morning.

Journalist to Author to Dream Merchant, how has the journey been so far?

NR (gives a full-throated laugh and replies): Being a journalist was almost a forced decision. I had lost my dream job in ICICI Headquarters, Hyderabad because of a severe kidney infection which left me bedridden for almost 4 months. Ever since I graduated, I have been writing, but my first novel got published when I was working in media.

(takes a deep breath and continues) The turning point came in my life when I met my brother-cum-friend Vikash Saxena during a Round Table Conference in New Delhi. We were both dabbling in literature and joined hands. We were lucky to conduct our first event under Literia Insights at the prestigious IIT Roorkee. From there, the journey had a smooth sailing ship which had seen its fair share of weathers.

Tell us something about Story to Screen. Readers are curious to know what and how you will help authors make their dream come true.

NR (pauses and then replies): After the grand success of The LIT Digital Awards 2020, we created the Story to Screen 2020 since it seemed like the next logical step to help authors to grow. We believe that it will fulfil the winning author’s dream of bringing their story to life. It is our endeavour to help the authors to work with some of the best people in the movie industry.

We will not just transform the story into a short movie, but will also take care of the promotional activities. Whether it be the media promotion, Screening at major platforms we are also trying our best to get it nominated at National and International Film Festivals.

A while earlier, you wrote a fiction piece on gang rape. How did you think of venturing into a forbidden territory? What was going on in your mind?

NR (His tone changes suddenly & he replies forthrightly): Yes! I was one of the first men in the country to write a fiction on gang rape! As an author, one needs to serve the society through their writing. I firmly believe that just because a topic like gang rape is a taboo in India, one cannot scribble melodramatic happy endings. Actually, I Had Also Loved Someone is a product of what I consider my duty as an author. Even today, my mind just can’t accept the fact that we love to condemn topics like gang rape and child abuse in our drawing room but hesitate from taking a strong stand on public platforms.

You recently bagged a history-defining contract. Tell us more about it.

NR (once again lets out his signature laugh and replies): It’s not like that! I would consider myself lucky & blessed that I bagged the contract for an Advance Royalty of 25,000 copies for my upcoming collection of short stories. My next book, ‘Love In Modern Times‘ is a collection of 20 short stories dealing with the relationship status of modern times. It has dealt with topics like adultery, paedophilia, May-December Relationships apart from fragile relationships owing to modernity and the obsession to fly high.

What’s next on the cards?

NR (happily replies): Continuing to dream and plan with Vikash Saxena and bring deserving authors to the forefront through our innovative Public Relations activities. We are planning to have a full-fledged Europe Tour for authors where they will not get just the global exposure but also a market to showcase their books.

The interview ended with so much hope and positivity for Indian Writers. It’s amazing to see so much zeal and passion in action. DiaryOfAnInsaneWriter wishes Nitish Raj the BEST in all his endeavours. 

Isn’t he inspiring? Leave your comments about the interview & share a message for Nitish Raj. 

Penned by:

Mayura Amarkant

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