Readerswrite2012 (closed)
Hi. I’m Ashok.
Ashok Banker, 2012, Bangalore
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Dear Sir(s),
Sub: proposal to sell an e book of two liner fun, sarcastic humor akin to Graffiti being published in News Papers.(Amended with few specimen of humor)
I read a brief article about Mr. Ashok Banker, owner of your web site about the portal’s huge success.
Congratulations.
I am new but enthusiastic writer / author, yet to publish an e book on subject matter.
The manuscript is ready. The idea is to first know if you would publish e book on the subject fun, humor by helping me with guidance.
My idea about the aforesaid e book in mind is to publish 50-150 jokes, sarcastic fun , humor etc. derived from news, trends, politics, bollywood, Hollywood news/ snippets to keep price to a minimum possible inclusive of sales tax , VAT and may service tax, if applicable, and sell the e book / booklet on profit sharing module and profit sharing percentage to be decided by you.
Please let me know how would you like to help me as I am in dire need to meet family expenses at the age of 52 years.
Please do let me know if copyright protection will have to be taken to avoid infringement as my jokes, comprised of two lines each, amendable if needs to be are original far away from plagiarism.
Few of said two line humor are appended for your consideration keeping in mind that all fun and humor don’t have same extent of sarcasm:
Women trying to look beautiful like a peacock,
don’t wear panties to have better grip of broom.
Women tennis players make noisier shrieks
as if faking in bed, reaching orgasm.
Girl’s email id, ABC@4all…… suggests
email id owner rears a hatchery.
Your favorable response would be highly appreciated.
Yours Cordially
Ravinder Malhotra.
Male. Age 52 years.
Gurgaon.Haryana. India.
PS: I am not able to re-open your website where few email ids are shown to contact different sections of your company for different purposes.
Please let me know the web address of your site to open aforesaid web home page of aforesaid web portal.
This message is inappropriate. I’m sorry, but I can’t help you.
Hi Ashok. I have just reached the end of ‘The Forest of Stories’. This is the 1st book of yours that I have read and would like to thank you for the excellent way in which you describe events.. true to the ’3D Surround Sound’ effect mentioned on the paperback
. I loved the book and am waiting for the 2nd installment in the MBA Series in print though 
not being a huge fan of e-readers and e-books. When will this get released?
A small critique from my side – I found the narrative slightly confusing and often got muddled up in the characters of the book.. Understandably this was because one story or character was interlinked to another across blood lines or across generations.. so i felt relief when the story bounced back to Sauti’s narration in the Ashram..
Keep writing and waiting for the 2nd installment.. All the Best!
Regards,
Kirti
Hi Kirti,
Thank you for your kind words.
I have no definite date for the release of Book 2. Please visit this page to know more: http://www.akbebooks.com/about/about-akb-ebooks/
Best wishes
Ashok
Hi Ashok
I subscribed for the complete ebook series of Mahabharata and Krishna Coriolis sometime around April last year. I received a few ebooks intially but have not seen any since MB book 2 and Krishna book 5 in my mailbox. Could you please have my subscription checked and send me the latest issues. Also, a long time back (maybe more than two years ago) i made some deposit for SoS hardcopy. I wonder, if it has been released because i still havn’t received it. Also, i recently shifted to a new address. So kindly let me know how can i contact you to update the same.
Thanks
Akshay
Hi Akshay,
I think you’ve been out of touch for at least a year or more. AKB eBOOKS shifted to a website-based subscription over a year ago. As of April 2012, it is an independently run ebookstore and epublisher, India’s first and most successful in fact!
eBooks are no longer emailed to subscribers. As you had subscribed prior to the starting of the website you are considered a First Reader and basically subscribed for Life! Please visit the links below to learn more and to start using your subscription.
As for SoS hardcopy, it was never released and as of 2010 onwards, we were offering print copies of Krishna and Mba Series books as replacements or refunds if requested. If you still wish, AKB eBOOKS will organize free print copies of either equivalent to more than the sum you paid for the SoS book. You can email AKB eBOOKS at the email address on the website home page.
Please visit AKB eBOOKS to know more: http://www.akbebooks.com
And don’t forget to visit the First Readers page to know your exclusive benefits: http://www.akbebooks.com/subscribe/first-readers/
Thanks again and keep in touch!
Ashok
Oh great !
Yes, i have been a little out of touch with your books for a while now. I just logged into the first reader section. The new site is just great. I even got the ebook for SoS. I already have a kindle, so i dont think i would be needing any replacement for SoS.
Have been reading your books since very early times and have probably read them all.
Looks like all of a sudden , again i have a lot of A.Banker books to spend time with.
Thanks Again
Akshay
Great. Then I’ll wish you Happy Reading!
Ashok
Dear Ashok ,
Hi again .
Just finished my one day reading of Lord of Mathura and I plan to finish Jarasandha (the book on his rage an leave this harder task to the more able bodied Bhima) next weekend. As with all your books I loved this one and am hungry for more. I read the parts on the division of humans (caste,race creed etc.) and now have words to describe my sentiments.
Also I read about AKB ebooks starting print editions and finally I may get a chance to finish SOS and may read your work as soon as you decide to publish it. (yes I still can not convince myself to buy a kindle).
Happy Writing
Ribhu
Hi again Ribhu,
Glad you liked the KC Series so much. It’s now easily my most popular series, even more than the RS. Although as a single book, it seems The Forest of Stories ranks at the highest in the popularity polls, so I’m guessing once more books in the Mba are released, it will outrank everything else.
The print editions will mainly be available outside India – within India, almost all my work is now contracted to local publishers and they bring out the books according to their schedules. Also: AKB eBOOKS already offers 31 of my books and that number will cross 50 before this year-end. Not even half of those titles will be print. So the only way to keep reading my work will be in ebook form. Wish it were otherwise but that’s the reality.
Ashok
PS: I personally buy anywhere from 50 to 75 books a month on average (sometimes twice that many) in print editions. So I love print books too. But as an author I can’t publish print editions the way mass market publishers can, while ebooks are within my means. It’s a practical issue, not a choice of medium.
Hello Sir,
I am one of your many Followers. I just wanted to find out if the Sons of Sita paper back released yet?(Coz I searched for it every where) If not I am desperate to know when would it be released…. I need to Complete my collection of Ramayana… Till then I am not moving to Krishna and later MBA … although I have Bought all but would want to read before Sons of Sita.
You are the BEST!! You have taught me a lot!! Love You!!
God Bless You And Your Family!!
Regards,
}
Yuvaraj Patel {Big fan of Akhurata M2 too!!
Hi Yuvaraj,
Thank you for your kind words. As of now, I don’t have a date for the release of the SoS print edition. To know more please visit my ebookstore and see this page: http://www.akbebooks.com/about/about-akb-ebooks/
Appreciate your warm wishes. Glad you liked Akhurata M2 too. He will return soon in Wardogs, the retitled sequel to Gods of War.
Ashok
Hello Mr. Banker,
I am Kunal writing to you from Lincoln, Nebraska, United States. My sincere kudos to you for bringing out Hindu mythology in such a great fashion.
In this context, could I please ask you when you are going to publish the following book:
Ten Kings: Based on the Dasrajana Battle in Rigveda
I have been trying to lay my hands on this book since a long time. An earlier book by Mr. Umesh Sharma did come out in 1984 but has since been out of print. Hence, I would really appreciate if you could shed some light on this.
Thanking you,
Sincerely,
Kunal Dash
Hello Kunal,
Nice to hear from you. Thank you for the kind words.
TEN KINGS has been released on my ebookstore http://www.akbebooks.com several months ago. I completed the book some years ago. There is no print edition available. The only way to read it is to subscribe to AKB eBOOKS – which would of course give you access to many other ebooks by me as well!
The Dasarajna battle in Rig Veda is a rare story that’s even more rarely written about or known, which is sad since it’s such a great tale and a seminal story of the founding of our great nation, Bharat. Thank you for you inquiry and your interest in my work
Ashok
Are you planning to have a print edition out at some point in time as well?
Please do let me know further.
Thank you,
Kunal Dash
Hi Kunal,
I would wish all my books to be published in print editions but there’s a long gap between an author completing a book and its print publication. Please see this page to know more: http://www.akbebooks.com/about/about-akb-ebooks/
I also appreciate your comment about film and TV adaptations of my work. Several of my books have been optioned by major Hollywood studios but as usually happens, most options lapse without the project going ahead. I am always open to selling film or TV rights to any good production house or studio that has the funding and resources to adapt an epic well and do justice to it on either the small or big screen. Indian producers and production houses sadly don’t have such budgets as their market is very limited and production values very poor, even now. To give you an example, an average big-budget ‘fantasy’ or ‘epic’ TV series abroad costs anywhere from $5 to $10 million to produce, which is INR 3 crores to 6 crores. Shows like Rome or Game of Thrones (which are comparable in terms of scale to my epics like Ramayana Series or Krishna Coriolis) cost $100 million upwards for a season (one year’s episodes). That’s over Rs 600 crores just for a year’s production. No Indian production can afford to invest that much as Indian TV and film audiences are very limited and the shows and movies don’t earn much at all.
But in any case, authors don’t decide to adapt or produce shows. Producers do. I’m always open if a producer approaches me.
Coming to your detailed questions on the Mahabharata, the best way to answer them is to read my Mahabharata Series as it’s published over the next few years. It’s not possible to summarize a series that’s over 10,000 pages in a single comment! Although I must say that many of your questions are quite basic and can also be answered by reading any other Mahabharata translation as well.
Wish you Happy Reading. All the best.
Ashok
I will love to see your answers to my questions over the course of the next few years.
It will always be good to know what important Yuyutsu had or Aswathamma’s son or the dyamics of succession of Parikshit and not others and Duryodhana’s descendants who fled west besides other things.
Hopefully you can answer them sometime.
Thank you,
Kunal Dash
All these and many thousands of other questions are answered. Many are also answered in my Krishna Coriolis Series since that is also taken from the Mahabharata’s Harivamsa sections (what we now call Shrimad Bhagvatham). Happy Reading!
Dear Mr. Banker,
Greetings!
I chanced upon your Ramayana series a few years back and have been an ardent fan since then. I then introduced my wife to your books and she absolutely loves it. We have completed Vengeance of Ravana and have been waiting eagerly for Sons of Sita. Since I could not find the book anywhere, we started the Krishna Coriolis & MBA series. We are thoroughly loving it and even bigger fans of you (if that’s possible).
Though we are completely enjoying your KC & MBA series, there is this missing element of being unable to conclude the Ramayana series. As i started looking up online, i was really saddened by Penguin’s stance. First rate idiots from the first world…
I started looking at your site and felt like kicking myself for not checking this earlier. Not only would i have not gone thru the stress of searching for SoS (believe me, it was stressful not finding it anywhere..)
I saw the previous responses to your readers and you offered a free book of SoS. Is the offer still on or did I miss the bus? I checked out the site akbebooks.com and am going to subscribe soon. Will I find the book there? Please let me know.
Warm regards
Sunder
Dear Sunder,
Thank you – and your wife – for the very kind words. I’m so pleased you enjoyed my RS, KC and Mba series so far. Yes, Penguin is quite a reader-unfriendly and author-unfriendly publisher, sad to say. Since the new owner took over last year, they have put into effect an open anti-Indian policy and are cutting out existing Indian authors from their list while avoiding signing new ones. Their entire focus now is on importing and promoting Penguin’s international bestsellers locally, a kind of dumping which most MNC publishers in India are doing including Hachette. Since their primary funding and profitability comes from the imported titles they have no motivation to build Indian authors and readership and so they’re like insulated foreign consulates or embassies, hiding behind their diplomatic immunity! Lol. It’s actually quite ridiculous because in this process, they’ve completely missed the recent boom in Indian publishing and new waves of Indian authors. As for me, I’m quite content with my excellent publishers HarperCollins and Westland who are wonderful at recognizing and supporting local talent and have done fantastic things with my Krishna and Mba Series. I intend to keep publishing with them for decades to come.
The SoS offer was for a free ebook, not printed book, as none is available. You can definitely find SoS and many other ebook editions of my work which are not in print (and some that will never be in print) on akbebooks.com. I suggest you visit akbebooks.com and read through the site information in detail for yourself.
Whatever your choice, print or ebooks, thank you again for your kind words and support and I wish both of you many many hours of Happy Reading!
Ashok
Hi Mr.Banker
How are u? Its been years since i have written to you… I am just about to begin Forest of stories. I wrote to u on Facebook last week but i got no response. I dont blame you. I was an ardent fan who wrote to u regularly and suddenly went offline for years. I wrote to u abt how I read ur 6books in a span of 3 months managing to walk into people for i could not put the books down even for a moment. If that doesnt jog your memory; i dedicated a poem to you which i penned.
Best,
Pushpa
Hi Pushpa,
Yes, I do recall you – thanks for mentioning the details to help jog my memory. I don’t remember the details of the poem but I remember that there was a poem and it wasn’t bad at all!
However, I’m not on Facebook so the page you left your message on was probably a fan-run page: last time I checked, there were 17 such ‘Ashok Banker’ pages on Facebook and several on Twitter. It’s nice to hear from you again. Forest of Stories is very different from my RS. I do hope you like it! And do check out my Krishna Coriolis Series – it’s similar to my RS in some ways, but as different as Rama is from Krishna. 
Ashok
Mr.Banker,
Glad you remember me. I am sifting through my poems written (carefully) on the back covers of the notebooks lying around. My mother keeps expressing her anxiety about this habit of mine. I have lost most of my poems and just-begun-novels this way. Hope I find the poem though. I do remember your kind words of appreciation for my humble effort. Your responses never cease to amaze me. I am tempted to read RS, time and again, but right now, I am phasing out of David Baldacci straight into the Forest…
Thanks!
Pushpa
Oh! About the FB account… I did wonder if it really was you. I remembered that you had once posted that you will be active only on your website. That’s the reason I am back on Readerswrite. Also, you ALWAYS respond
That’s not an easy standard for any bystander to maintain.
Pushpa
Pushpa,
Yes, I always reply here. It’s partly why I can’t be on FB, Twitter, etc. I’m a compulsive responder – the sheer volume of communications from non-readers there would keep me online 24/7! This way, only genuine readers take the time and effort to look me up and leave a comment here and over the years, many have come back frequently to keep in touch. Another well-known author recently said I’m the only author who does this, keeping in touch directly with readers for decades, never failing to reply. It’s my pleasure.
Hope you find your poems and lost work. But remember, you wrote them, so you can write them again–or write better ones. In any case, the first 1000 poems and first 10 novels are always our worst. It’s only when we throw those ones away and keep writing new ones that we grow as writers. I threw my first 50 novels and 2000 poems away, by the way.
Look forward to hearing from you again, anytime. Until then, Happy Reading!
Ashok
Thanks Mr.Banker!
That’s definitely reassuring… Many a time I just stop writing because I feel Im writing similar verses and then I get caught in the “writer’s block” mode. Now that you have told me how it works I Will surely keep at it. If I may say so, you are a mentor too. I am not flattering you. I am lucky to learn from the one who has been-there, done-that… Thank you
Pushpa
Helo Mr Ashok,
This is just to let you know that my 12 yrs old son is a crazy book reader and has been thoroughly enjoying your books. Thank you for those wonderful books . I really can’t imagine ” Mom, just let me finish this much….this is a really interesting part”, because i think…It is Ramayana …What is so interesting. Anyways I am no a reader…but had a great difficulty in finding books for him as he has actually finished reading almost all the authors including Dan Brown a, Ken Follet, etc. We had joined libraries but weren’t happy with the stock. However, he saw your website and can’t wait to get his hands on the rest of the book. He has been so impressed by your books that he told me ” You know Mom , Ashok Banker also lives in Mumbai ….Can we meet him?” I was surprised as this is the first time he has expressed an interest to meet a author. There have been invites from Crosswords to meet Author….He has even inspired his school friends to read. There are many readers in his class too now. Kindly advise if it is possible for you to meet Vishwam and touch his life forever.
Thank you
Sincerely
Roopali
p.s He was even more excited to see you in TOI today.
Dear Roopali,
Thank you for your kind words. I am impressed by your son’s reading. I wish more Indians (or other children anywhere) were as literate as he is! Most adults these days seem to be reading children’s books and want to stay at that reading level forever. I am based in Mumbai but due to the number of requests I constantly get from readers – including readers as young as or even younger than your son – I am unable to meet them on a one-by-one basis. At some point, if I do an event in Mumbai, you can certainly bring your son and I would be happy to talk with him then. Right now, I’m settling my son in the US for his Master’s degree and am caught up with that but perhaps in time, there will be an occasion where Vishwam can meet up with me. I do talks at schools as well, in various cities, and perhaps someday, if a Mumbai school invites me, I would be happy to attend. You can always ask Vishwam’s school if you wish.
Meanwhile, an author is best met through his books. So Vishwam can meet me anytime he wishes just by opening one of my books and reading.
Ashok
Hello Mr Ashok,
hank you for your reply. I’ll surelly see a possibility of the school children too getting the best of you…In the meantime Vishwam has been playing the librarian and telling each child what is good for them to read.I’m sure Vishwam will be thrilled to read your reply(well, he didn’t know I had written to you). When are you going to be in Mumbai next …so I can suggest the school an approximate time for your visit.
Of course, he meets you all the time through your books because that’s all he read and orders and was very happy that there are still books for him to read(i.e written by you). He throughly enjoys them. Thank you for writing such wonderful books.
Cheers
Roopali
Dear Ashoka,
Thank you for your book forest of stories, I had gone searching for books for my 15 year daughter and with the thought of finding books which would get her connected with h soul. I chanced on your book, came home and started reading myself, was transported back to my favourite world of krsna……, i want to read the actual Mahabharata and I do not know Sanskrit though I studied Sanskrit till 9th.. I bought books written by deb Roy but I want to r wad the snooks as well as the meaning…….as from Calcutta have been exposed to the stories by my father and read books on Mahabharata but my heart is on reading the actual…. How do I begin and where do I begin. I know you have mentioned there are no actual translation in English…
I felt Bhakti reading your book…. Thank you from the core of my heart. Please do not publish my name in a public domain, I would appreciate a reply to my mail add regarding my query of Mahabharata. I wish you had classes for people like me who could read Mahabharata from a authentic source.
Regards,
Gargi
Dear Gargi,
Than you for your kind words. There are several excellent translations of the Mahabharata. They may not be as complete or comprehensive as I would like, but I am sure they would be of great value to you as an earnest reader. I would highly recommend the Clay Sanskrit Library editions which have both Sanskrit and English on facing pages and is very useful if you know even a smattering of Sanskrit. If you want a less scholarly translation, try Bibek Debroy’s wonderful 10-volume translation. There are also the fine ‘transcreations’ of the late Professor Purshottam Lal (of Writer’s Workshop fame) and the much older but still very readable Kisari Mohan Ganguli translation from over a century ago. Coincidentally, or not, three of those four recommendations are by Bengali authors!
For your daughter, I would recommend my Krishna Coriolis Series which is more suited to younger readers.
Thank you again for your kind words and wish you many hours of Happy Reading!
Ashok
PS: All comments posted here are automatically approved and published, with real names. Email responses are not possible. Just for your information, I neither learned Sanskrit nor am I a Hindu by faith or upbringing, so I would have very little to teach in a class! You would certainly be better versed in Sanskrit than I am, having studied it till 9th Std. My mother tongue is English and it’s the only language I am fluent in. Wish you all the best!
Dear Ashok,
thank you so much for all the information. i will buy the krsna coriolis series for my daughter, ( i look forward to reading them myself!
) I have the Bibek debroy translation but i was looking out for sanskrit english and your suggestion of clay sanskrit library edition appeals to me……
wish you and your family all the best.
regards
Gargi
Dear Gargi,
In that case, the Clay Sanskrit Library editions are excellent. And yes, you would enjoy my KC Series as much as your daughter. It isn’t written ‘down’ to young readers, it just so happens that because the protagonist (Krishna) is young so it appeals more to them. Wish you both Happy Reading!
Ashok
Hi Ashok,
This message might be a bit too late and out of place as on date but nevertheless required. I’m reading “Vertigo” and found the story extremely touching. Why so? Your description of the protagonist Jay Mehta is eerily parallel to my own not so distant past
Jay’s experience with his Gujju girlfriend are only too real to be fictitiously conceived. This was written from experience was it? Every word Ashok, every word Tuli speaks is the exact reaction i had from my Gujju ex-girlfriend whom i was to marry.
Too many words in the mind but i just wanted to convey my thanks and praise to you for “Vertigo”. Thank you sir, its a brilliant work.
On a parallel note, if you can find the omnibus series of the Ramayan, i’m willing to compensate for the cost. I’m not able to find it anywhere in India.
Thank you,
ps
Hi Pravin,
Thank you for your kind words. It’s never too late or out of place because a book is forever. Glad to see Vertigo touched you so deeply and that you identified so closely with it!
However, I’ve never had a Gujju girlfriend nor been close to any Gujarati girl in my life before. I met my only love at age 17 (she was 18 at the time), we were happily married at 23 and remain together without an interruption even today, 31 years later. She’s definitely not Gujju – she’s from Madhya Pradesh but brought up in Kolkata. That’s why they call it fiction. Also, I never worked in Marketing, am not a Management grad and was never in an executive job.
The only characters in the book based on real life are Jay’s father and mother. Everyone else, from Tuli to Meera to the work colleagues, etc, are all fictionalized. That’s what novelists do, my friend. But amazingly, even today, more than 20 years after I wrote Vertigo, many many readers still write in to tell me how closely they identify with the characters and how real they seem.
Best wishes
Ashok
PS: The RS is now out of print in India as part of Penguin’s decision to stop publishing Indian authors and the rights are being reverted to me. They are currently only available in ebook form or if you’re lucky enough to find unsold stock in a bookstore somewhere.
Dear Mr. Banker,
I just convinced my mother for a full 1 year subsription on AKBeBOOKs, and I just can’t believe the number of great books that you have written. However, I just wanted to know when the next 6 books of the Krishna Coriolis series are going to be released.
Regards,
Your Youngest Fan,
Vishwesh Desai
Dear Vishwesh,
Thank you for the subscription and welcome to the AKB eBOOKS experience. I hope you enjoy watching your ‘epic’ library grow each month. Do say thank you to your mother too – it’s a rare parent that encourages a young voracious reader. My mother was the same and look how I turned out!
There are 23 ebooks in queue undergoing cover designing, editing, proofing, formatting, etc due to come up on the website in this year alone. The next 6 books in the KC Series are included in that number. I hope they’re uploaded very soon but I can’t comment on exact dates as there are too many factors involved. You can always email the email address on the website if you wish, but right now, they’ll probably give you the same response – they’re working to bring out as many books as fast as they possibly can!
Happy Reading!
Ashok
Dear Mr. Banker,
From the bottom of my heart thank you for writing the Ramayana Series, I cannot begin to tell you how much that series resonated for me. It opened the ramayana in a beautiful way for myself and the elegance, depth of heart and immense love that was present through all 8 books was nurturing to my soul.
Thank you.
I have always felt so distant from the Rama story, I could never understand his starkly black & white decisions nor fathom the need (in my eyes) for him to be so cruel to Sita. And that Ravana was never a purely simple evil character, he was more multi dimensional and deeply complex.
Thank you for this series that helped lift me up from my own prejudices and fall deeply in love with this story, every single facet of this story.
I cannot tell you the number of times I shed tears over the trials and tribulations of the characters in your Ramayana, nor the times I whooped for joy over their triumphs.
Thank you Mr. Banker for being such a gifted storyteller and for inspiring me to embrace this story with an open heart and to form a deeply personal meditative connection to the work.
Thank you.
Best wishes,
Amsalan
Dear Amsalan,
Your comment was forwarded from the Facebook page on which you posted it. I’m no longer on Facebook so will respond here. Thank you so much for your wonderful, kind and heartfelt words. I always say that a writer can write from the heart but unless a reader reads with an open heart and open mind, he or she will never fully appreciate the value of the work. In this case, I see that you do appreciate and understand all that I labored so hard for so long to achieve in the RS. Thank you for taking the time and effort to write to me and express yourself so honestly.
I’m sure you will enjoy my Krishna Coriolis series just as much. And if you are patient with my Mba Series, you will find it is far, far superior to everything else I’ve written to date. Also do take a moment to visit my ebookstore at http://www.akbebooks.com and see the other titles currently available.
Wish you the very best,
Ashok
Hi,
Unable to locate Sword of Dharma !!! Please provide me link to list of
all the books available from AKB ebooks.
Vijay
Hi Vijay,
Your email was sent to an incorrect email address and forwarded here. In future, please see that all queries regarding AKB eBOOKS are sent to the email addresses provided on the website at http://www.akbebooks.com.
However, I can tell you that all available ebooks are shown on the front page of the site itself, as is clearly mentioned there. The Sword of Dharma miniseries is not listed because it’s not yet released. Thanks and all best.
Ashok
Dear Mr Banker,
I am collecting responses from Indian authors and publishers to the newly launched Amazon India Content Store. Could I send you an email questionnaire seeking your views on this?
Regards,
Vinutha
Dear Vinutha,
Sure, I would be happy to respond but could you let me know what the responses are meant for?
Best
Ashok
Dear Mr Banker,
Thank you for your prompt response. This is for an article that I am writing for a webzine that covers international publishing industry news.
Vinutha
Dear Vinutha,
In that case, sure, am emailing you so you can send me the questionnaire.
Best wishes
Ashok
Thank you!
Hello Sir,
We would like to invite you to speak at the only Design and Content Conference in India, “Mark My Word”. It is an independently organised conference and is going to be held on 20th January in BITS Pilani KK Birla Goa Campus.
It is an event where some of the leading designers, content writers, developers, etc are invited to share what they are most passionate about. It is organized by the students of BITS-Pilani KK Birla Goa campus.
The travel and accommodation arrangements for this event will be taken care of by us.
Thank you for reading through this. Please do consider our invitation.
Hoping for a quick and positive reply from you.
Yours sincerely,
Sakshi Gandhi
Organizing member | Mark My Word
Ph: 9637019293
Dear Sakshi,
Thank you for your kind invitation. I’m honored to be invited. As of now, however, I am unable to confirm whether I would be able to attend on those dates. If I am able to do so, I shall email you within the next two months, before October end.
Warm regards,
Ashok
Respected Sir,
Thanks a lot for your quick response. If you wish to know about any more details, do write to us.
Hoping for a positive confirmation.
Yours sincerely,
Sakshi Gandhi
Organizing member | Mark My Word
BITS Pilani KK Birla Goa Campus
Ph: 9637019293
Dear Mr. Banker,
The C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation, Chennai, is organizing a Conference on “The Ramayana in Literature, Society and the Arts” to be held on February 1 and 2, 2013. We would like to invite you to speak at the Conference and send you some literature about it. I would be grateful if you could respond to ramayanaconference@gmail.com.
Thanks and regards,
Yours sincerely,
Dr. Nanditha Krishna
Director
The C. P. Ramaswami Aiyar Foundation
1, Eldams Road
Chennai 600 018
Tel.: 044-24341778, 24346526
Dear Dr Krishna,
Thank you for your kind invitation. I’m honored to be invited. As of now, however, I am unable to confirm whether I would be able to attend on those dates. If I am able to do so, I shall email you within the next two months, before October end.
Warm regards,
Ashok
Hi Ashok,
I am an AKB ebooks subscriber and am eagerly waiting for MBA 3 to release in Mid-Sep. I understand there were some legal issues around the MBA books earlier due to which the release schedule got delayed. Have these been now sorted and can we expect regular releases of MBA books now or is this still an issue in the process of resolution?
Thanks,
Rishabh
Hi Rishabh,
Thanks for your comment. Short answer: The legal issues were sorted out with the paperwork being received very recently so yes, the plan is to release Mba books more regularly from now on. Longer answer: AKB eBOOKS is in the process of reformatting ALL ebooks to conform to newer apps and technical specs and the Mba series books are among a long queue of new, forthcoming as well as previous titles all awaiting re-edits, re-proofing, re-formatting, etc. You can count on Book 3: The Children of Midnight being out in September for sure and at least two more Mba books before December-end this year, possibly even four more. Which would bring us back on track to the original schedule.
In any case, you can count on all the 18 Mba books being available on akbebooks.com by 2014 end for sure. And that’s over 10,000 pages in total. Also, as a website subscriber, you will get a huge discount on renewals – as much as 50% off.
Ashok
Thanks Ashok. Its great to hear that and I’m really looking forward to reading Children of Midnight and the others following it soon.
So this is almost BR Chopra-esque now. When Mahabharat (the TV serial) used to be on, the streets were deserted because everyone was watching it. Now when the next volume in AKB’s MBA is going to be released, work schedules need to be altered and calendars need to be kept free to accommodate many hours of continuous reading.
Appreciate the discount on the renewal too – thanks!
Dear Mr Banker,
It is indeed a pleasure to write to you and expect a reply from you. I love reading classic novels by Charles Dickens or Ernest Hemingway, plays by Shakespeare or Rabindranath Tagore. I usually avoid reading Indian authors specially recent ones with few exceptions as they are unable to stir me deep inside.
While buying the 1st book of the Mahabharata series: The Forest of Stories, I was quite skeptical about it as I am also a theologist and never wanted to read anything which would confuse my knowledge and understanding about my culture and history.
After reading the book I really want to Thank You for writing the book and feeding my pail of knowledge. I do not have words to explain my gratitude to you. The book helps me ride 6000 years back and be a part of that era in flesh and blood. I have just finished the book and can’t wait to read its second part. I have been hunting down the stores for the 2nd part: The seed of war and its not available anywhere. Wikipedia notifies its release in 2011, however no store has it or even track it.
Please help me locate the physical copy of the book. Also would like to meet you in person and understand these subjects in detail. I understand this is not possible for you as you keep extremely busy, still proposed you in case you would agree and allow me to draw more knowledge about the topics and allow me to contribute the least of my know how about the various mythologies (Roman/ Jew/ Christian/ Hindu/ Islam)in a channelized manner.
Sincerely Thankful,
Suchismitaa
Dear Suchismitaa,
Thank you for taking the time to write to me and for your very kind words. I am delighted that you enjoyed The Forest of Stories so much. There is usually a very long gap between my completing a book and its eventual publication. You can read more about the reasons for this here: http://www.akbebooks.com/about/about-akb-ebooks/. As of now, The Seeds of War is not published in print but Westland intends to publish the book hopefully before the end of this year. The Wikipedia entry probably refers to the ebook release on akbebooks.com last year. In fact, the third book in the Mba Series, The Children of Midnight, releases in a few weeks in ebook edition on akbebooks.com but is not expected in print for at least another year.
Thanks again for your kind words. Meeting in person would not be possible and as for understanding in detail, I’ve spent the last 48 years of my life in that process and am still nowhere near achieving complete understanding. It’s a lifelong process. Meanwhile, wish you Happy Reading!
Ashok
Thanks for your prompt reply Mr. Banker. I am unable to locate The Seeds of War’s ebook on your site. Could you please help me with the direct link of it on the site.
Thanks
Suchismitaa
Dear Suchismitaa,
AKB eBOOKS doesn’t offer individual ebooks for sale, only Subscriptions to the entire website (which includes all available ebooks during that period). You can read more details on the main page at http://www.akbebooks.com
Ashok
Respected Sir,
We the students of Faculty of Technology and Engineering (FTE), Maharaja Sayajirao University of Vadodara(MSU), INDIA organize “FOOTPRINTS” a National Level Technical Festival from 22nd to 24th February, 2013.
FTE-MSU is amongst the premier technical institutes in Gujarat,INDIA and has established itself as a centre for higher technical education.
Kindly take out some time from your extremely busy schedule sir. I wanted to talk to you regarding our event. Please send me your email id so that i can give you proper details and discuss about the purpose of contacting you.
Thanks and regards,
Shweta Rajyaguru,
Email id: shweta.rajyaguru@msu-footprints.org
Dear Shweta,
Thank you for the information regarding your technical institute and your festival though I’m not sure what it has to do with me or my books! Please feel free to explain here if you wish.
Ashok
Dear sir,
Actuallly I didn’t mention everything and asked for your email id because I thought it wouldnt be better to leave such a long comment.
Many thanks for your promt and generous reply.
Sir, we are very eager for inviting you to our event this time . Your presence as a guest lecturer will uplift the standards of our event which is already growing with leaps and bounds every year. It would be a matter of immense pride for us if we can play host to you for a guest lecture during our event, FOOTPRINTS. Please let us know your available dates .
Kindly take out some time from your extremely busy schedule sir. We hope for a positive response from your side and that with your association with our event we can make it a Grand Success!
This is the purpose of contacting you sir.Awaiting your reply.
Thanks,
Shweta Rajyaguru
Dear Shweta,
Thank you for your explanation and your kind words. It’s very kind of you to invite me to be a guest speaker during your event. However, as of now I cannot tell you whether or not I can attend in February 2013. The simple fact is that I don’t plan that far ahead! Perhaps if you wish, you could try contacting me again via this Readerswrite page closer to the date, around December this year. If that’s too late for you and you need to fix up speakers well in advance, then I’ll have to politely pass up the opportunity. In any case, thank you again for thinking of me and I wish you the very best with your festival.
All good wishes.
Ashok
Dear sir,
We are looking at booking you this early just to make proper preparations and propagation of our event. Registrations for the events and guest lectures will be starting in the December.That is why we are contacting you this early so that proper arrangements can be done for the travelling and other important things.
But we respect your decision and we will be contacting you in november or december.
Thanks and regards,
Shweta.
Dear Shweta,
I understand. However, I rarely attend any events or give lectures, even to promote my books. The rare exceptions are a few events hosted by my publishers. I would not want to disappoint you at the last minute so I suggest you confirm other guest speakers and don’t depend on me. In the unlikely event that I am able to attend, I would in any case not accept any travel or stay arrangements and would pay for the same myself. I also do not accept any gifts or honorarium in cash or kind.
Wishing you all the best with your event. Thank you again for thinking of me and I am sure you will find many good speakers to grace the occasion.
Ashok
Dear sir,
Thank you so much for your best wishes.I can contact you again in November or December.Till then,we will surely try for other speakers.
But we still wish to invite you to inspire us with your vision and knowledge.(depending upon your availability then)
I will contact you again if the travel and stay arrangements can be done with the help of our travel and hospitality partner. If that goes well, then we can manage that from our sponsorship and you won’t have to accept honorarium in cash or kind.
Thank you for taking out some time from your schedule and giving your generous replies.
Thanking you,
Shweta.
Dear Shweta,
Thank you again for your persistence and very kind words: they show me you are serious and quite determined and that’s a good thing. If I am able to make it, I would make all travel and stay arrangements myself and pay for the same myself as well – just to be clear, I would not accept any form of sponsorship for my expenses, including air travel, stay, food, local car hire, etc. Everything would be entirely at my expense. That would be an essential condition for my agreeing to come.
I have your email and will be in touch in November or December once I return from another personal trip, by which time I’ll have a better idea of my plans in Jan-Feb 2013. Thanks again and all best,
Ashok
Thank you sir.We will be waiting for your reply.
Regards,
Shweta.
Dear Mr. Banker,
It is a great honor to be given such an offer, however, I cannot take any more ebooks other than the Fortress of Dwaraka, and that too because of my inability to wait for the Krishna Coriolis series to appear in print and for Diwali when my mom has promised me the subscription to AKB ebooks so I can enjoy your entire collection of books. Thank you so much for your offer to send me the entire Krishna Coriolis, I would love to accept it, even if my mom has told me not to! However, my defenses are too weak to resist the sixth book, and I would be gratified if you would send me the sixth book, Fortress of Dwaraka.
I anxiously await Diwali, as well as the arrival of the Sixth book in my email.
Sincerely,
Your Youngest Fan,
Vishwesh Desai
Dear Vishwesh,
Sure, I do understand. The ebook of FoD is being emailed to you. I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading it as it takes the story to a significant point without leaving it on a cliff-hanger. Thereafter the KC takes an even more epic – and dark – turn as Krishna himself grows older and faces his greatest challenges. I hope you grow up reading and enjoying my books as much as you enjoy them now. Keep in touch anytime and all the very best to you!
Ashok
Dear Mr Banker,
My name is Samhita Arni and I got your email id from Deepthi Talwar at Westland. I’m writing with a request – I’ve written a book based on the Ramayana, “The Missing Queen”, which is due to be out in January, and would be over the moon if you were willing to provide a quote for it. It is a mythological thriller, and will be published by Zubaan and Penguin. Here is a short summary of the book -
The Missing Queen
It has been ten years since Ram’s return from fallen Lanka. Ayodhya is shining. Ayodhya is prosperous. But darkness lurks at the heart of the victorious regime. A pointed question piques a young journalist’s curiosity: What happened to Sita? Where is Ram’s absent wife whose abduction triggered the war with Lanka?
And so begins the journalist’s search for the missing queen. Soon her investigation attracts the notice of Ayodhya’s all-powerful secret police and it mysterious head, the Washerman. Forced to flee Ayodhya, the journalist makes her way through a war-devastated Lanka in search of answers.
I do realize that your schedule is very, very busy but it would be absolutely wonderful if you would consider doing this. Please do let me know, and if you like, I can send either email a soft copy, or courier you a hard copy, of the book.
In any case, thank you very much for considering this request.
Regards,
Samhita Arni
–
Samhita Arni
http://www.samarni.com
Dear Samhita,
It would be my pleasure to blurb your book.
This would also be the very first time I’ve ever blurbed any author’s book! You could use that or not to your advantage, as you wish. :~)
(Contact details via email.)
Ashok
Thank you so so so very much! I will courier a copy to you by tomorrow morning. Thank you again so very much!
Hi Ashok,
We have a request for your presence as a keynote speaker/panellist for the Chief Learning Officer’s Summit India on November 1st – 2nd. The CLO is one of the prestigious platforms for evangelizing and promoting Individual and Organizational Learning & Development. The summit catalyzes the creation and effective dissemination of next practices across corporates, institutions, NGOs, government bodies. http://closummitindia.com/partners/
Please do let me know if you would like me to connect you to the organizer for more details. Thank you.
Regards,
Rukun Kaul
Digital Marketing
Random House India
Hi Rukun,
Thanks for passing this on. You could politely decline on my behalf.
Best,
Ashok
Dear Mr. Banker,
I just finished Rage of Jarasandha yesterday, and I was spellbound by each and every one of the Krishna Coriolis books you sent me. I showed off my signed copies at school, and everybody was speechless when they saw that every book was signed and that two of them weren’t even out in bookstores yet! My English teacher wants to borrow my copy of Prince of Ayodhya because I had praised the entire series in great detail.
However, when I was in the middle of Lord of Mathura, I wondered why you named Krishna Coriolis as Krishna CORIOLIS.
Also, since I have become so addicted to the Krishna Coriolis series, is it possible for me to get any of the last 3 books anywhere, in print or as ebooks?
Sincerely,
Your Youngest Fan,
Vishwesh Desai
Dear Vishwesh,
Thank you again for your kind words. Your appreciation is so wonderful and so welcome.
The reason why I named the series Krishna Coriolis is because I write about the intersection between divinity and reality, and the Coriolis effect (which you probably know about already or can look up to know more about) is one of many scientific events or occurrences that could as easily be explained by pointing to Krishna, Swayam Bhagawan and hence the Creator and Manipulator of all things in the universe. A more insightful explanation comes in the 6th book Fortress of Dwarka.
At present, only the 6th book, FoD is available as an ebook. I could send it to you if you wish once you finish reading LoM, with my compliments. The KC Series will now be 12 books not 8 as original planned, due to the print books needing to be a fixed length and the story having expanded beyond the page count. The print editions follow far behind my actual writing – I completed the entire KC Series and submitted it to the publisher in 2010. You can count on me to send you the ebooks as they’re released on my website http://www.akbebooks.com – just stay in touch and keep reminding me from time to time.
Ashok
Hi Ashok,
I love reading your books. I have almost gone through the entire Ramayana series. The last one “Sons of Sita” is yet to be read but I am not able to find it in any stores or online. Have you stopped publication of the book to rewrite it or will it be available soon?
I am eagerly waiting for it.
Regards,
Jagadish
Dear Jagadish,
Thank you for your kind words. Vengeance of Ravana and Sons of Sita were both completed in 2004, with the rest of the RS. I chose not to offer it for publication until 2009 at which point, for the reasons mentioned in the Introduction to VoR, I gave it to my then-publishers Penguin India. So Penguin has had the manuscripts of both books since 2009 but due to a change in ownership locally and change of editorial management, they have decided to focus on imported books published by their US and UK principal companies.
I have since moved to new publishers and hope that you will see Sons of Sita released in print in the very near future, although I don’t have any definite date to offer just yet. This is partly the reason why I started http://www.akbebooks.com and why it’s so successful – you can read more at http://www.akbebooks.com/about/about-akb-ebooks/
Thanks again for your interest in my work and your appreciation. Stay in touch!
Ashok