The Krishna Dharabasi Autograph

So as we were chatting with Sharada Sharma I saw someone who almost looked like Krishna Dharabasi, the acclaimed writer of, among others, the novel Radha that I had bought an hour or so ago in the book fair in Bhrikutimandap (on Sunday, 11 May) before coming to Narahari Acharya residence.

I wanted to take his autograph. I hadn’t seen Dharabasi live before. He occasionally writes articles for Kantipur and I remember his photo with the cap that is different than the one that I usually wear. (BTW, I have promised not to put that cap again on my head. It’s too old now. I have to buy a new one.)

Sometime ago I had read a “Pustak Barta” in Koseli in which the interviewee says that he considered Krishna Dharabasi as the less recognized and undermined Nepali writer. I thought the guy was right because Dharabasi has written so many books and good books that still people know very little about him. I am also included in that group. I haven’t read anyone of his books before and hadn’t even seen him face to face despite being a reporter covering occasionally books. That may also be because of the fact that Dharabasi lives in Jhapa, not in Kathmandu.

So I introduced myself to the author. He was happy to sign the book, my book! Not his even though he wrote it! I was also happy to get his signature in the newly bought book (that I haven’t started reading as I am reading two by Shankar Lamichhane). Wish Dor Bahadur Bista was also around so that I could get his autograph on his famous book Fatalism and Development that I bought in the book fair. (More about this in the next post.)