By Julie Rajan

Previously a systems analyst with IBM and a prize-winning author of several cookbooks, including Indian Inspired and Cuisines of India, Bengali-born Bharti Kirchner has now conquered the frontier of fiction writing with the publication of her first novel, Shiva Dancing (Plume 1998) and her most recent novel, Sharmila's Book (Dutton 1999). Both books are receiving good reviews from both South Asian and Western audiences alike, perhaps for their bi-cultural themes and highly romantic plots. 

Currently, Kirchner is working on her third novel which is also set in the dual environments of the US and India. She is also contemplating work on an additional cookbook and novel. In her spare time, Kirchner enjoys gardening, traveling, cooking (of course), fitness, and writing magazine articles or book reviews in her home in Seattle, Washington, where she resides with her American husband, Tom Kirchner. 

Through a series of e-mail exchanges, Kirchner sheds light on the trials of a bi-cultural identity, her recent novels, and South Asian women... 

Julie Rajan:  Tell us about your childhood and how it influenced your decision to write. Did you read many books or write as a child?

Bharti Kirchner:  I came from a family that loved literature and encouraged reading. In the evening, we'd sit around my grandfather who would read from Tagore, Bankim Chandra, or Ashapurna Debi, and then everyone would take part in discussing the novels---like a bookstore reading today. There was a lot of respect for literature as a high form of expression of the human condition, a view I hold even today. I wrote poems in Bengali and read voraciously; in fact, my mother says that I skipped fairy tales and went straight to adult books. Not only did I read classic Bengali writing, but I also read translations of European and Russian literature. The Bengali language is rich in both original work and translations of world classics, and those helped me to broaden my horizons. 

JR: And your varied career path? What influenced your career journey from systems analyst, to cookbook author, and presently, a fiction writer? 

BK: Though my family encouraged reading, I knew it was no means to make a living. My parents were college educated and wanted me to have a career, and because I had an aptitude for mathematics, I went in the direction of science. I immigrated to the United States in the 1960s, mainly for scholastic reasons and pursued mathematics and computer science. I enrolled in a non-fiction writing program at the University of Washington while I was still employed full-time with IBM (in Seattle). I didn't study fiction quite formally; rather, I gained experience with writing through various workshops taken over the years, and from learning and reading on my own. When I enrolled myself at the University of Washington, I was not thinking of a career change. I was merely following a long time wish to write. Also, I had a Bengali cookbook idea in my mind---I used to teach cooking as a hobby on weekends while I was still with IBM. Once in the writing program, however, I found that I loved writing---it was one of those "this is what I was meant to do" sort of things. I took a leave of absence from IBM to pursue writing for a while, and, fortunately for me, I never had to return to a full-time job. The switch to writing novels was a natural progression. After I had written nonfiction articles and cooking books, I was drawn to fiction. Prior to that, for about five years, I was reading how-to's (on fiction writing) in my spare time without knowing why. Then one day, I had an image of a girl (about seven) standing by a camel in Rajasthan, which became the basis for my first novel, Shiva Dancing. 

JR: Tell us about your process of writing. 

BK: Novel writing is mostly an unconscious process. A silent, meditative space inside you prepares you for a journey. You drop your skin and dip into another universe, the universe of your characters. I didn't consciously choose many of the features of this novel (Sharmila's Book); rather, it was only after the fact, after I'd finished the novel and re-read it, that I discovered certain patterns or characteristics. After the book was published, readers and reviewers pointed things out to me that made me realize, "Ah, that was why I was writing this." I feel that too much analysis on the part of the author not only spoils the fun of creating but also does not make for good writing. I believe it's the job of a reader and a reviewer to analyze the book (they'll do that anyway), with the author correcting if necessary. As for the story plot, the story dictates how I write it. For example, I wrote Sharmila's Book in first person with a language that, I hope, is energetic. Shiva Dancing has multiple viewpoints and is more reflective. To date, I have not come to any topics that I feel overstep cultural boundaries/taboos in my novels. 

JR: In your recent novel, Sharmila's Book, you focus on the theme of arranged marriage. Why? 

BK: I didn't set out with arranged marriage, rather I set out with the character of Sharmila. I had an image of her standing at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, waiting for some one, dressed in a skirt and a jacket. I knew she was an Indo-American lady, but I wondered why she was there. Then, it became clear to me that she had traveled to India for an arranged marriage. I had it in mind not to take sides, but to show both sides of an arranged marriage. For example, Sharmila's parents are happily married (more or less) and they were married the conventional way, whereas Sharmila's pre-arranged marriage vows are not going to work out. It is also true that one has to work things out in order for a marriage to work, be it an arranged marriage or love marriage. In Mrs. Khosla's case, she had no choice, but to make it work--that was the tragedy. 

JR: This novel so strongly echoes Daphne DuMaurier's novel Rebecca (1938), except Sharmila's Book has a traditional twist. In your novel, the first (Roopa) and the soon-to-be wife (Sharmila) find kinship through their experiences as South Asian females. Sharmila eventually avenges the memory Roopa, whereas the narrator in Rebecca remains alienated from the memory of her husband's deceased first wife, Rebecca. Your thoughts?

BK: I read Rebecca many years ago as a young girl and the book certainly made an impression. Then when I was writing Sharmila's Book, a friend who read some chapters called it "the Indian Rebecca," and I realized that possibly without my being aware of it, I was influenced by it. However, I wasn't trying to make this a "Rebecca". Raj didn't kill his first wife, Roopa, and Sharmila falls out of love with Raj. I was telling Sharmila's unique story. 

JR: The title Sharmila's Book seems to be based on the sketchbook that Sharmila keeps throughout the novel. What is the significance of this? Was this title chosen to reflect the fact that SA women who do not feel free to voice their feelings publicly can do so privately?

BK: Thanks for noticing. The title has two meanings: first, it's Sharmila's story, and secondly it refers to her sketchbook. You're right about South Asian women not generally given to writing in journals. In Sharmila's Book, I wanted to show a different kind of South Asian woman, someone more expressive. I don't like to use the word "role model," but I do hope some women take up sketching after reading this book. 

JR: To continue on the subject of women and Sharmila's Book, it seems you were trying to present a range of South Asian women, from Sharmila, modern and independent, to Mrs. Khosla, bitter and scorned, to Champa, a low-class woman servant who is subjugated.

BK: Yes, I did want to show a varied range of women characters. Westerners often have a mistaken notion of all South Asian women as sweet and submissive, but I wanted to show the fire inside them. 

JR: As for the male characters, the tension in Sharmila's life between South Asian and American society appears to be mirrored in her relationships with the male characters of Raj and Mitch, respectively. Is this so? In addition, please comment on the purpose of Sharmila's relationship with Prem, the more traditional Indian male in the novel, only to have the relationship fail? 

BK: On the first questions, I wanted to show that Sharmila reacts to Raj the same way she does to Mitch, though she is not aware of it at the time. Raj and Mitch can be similar, or very different---it doesn't matter. What is important in this case is Sharmila's reaction. Our lives are fueled by many, many loves of different types. As for Prem, Sharmila feels a nostalgic attachment to Prem, a kind of traditional, quiet, pure love that probably wouldn't work in the day-to-day situations of the late 20th century. 

JR: Because of his caste and position in the relationship in this book, Prem is a very interesting character. Through Prem and Sharmila's romance, you attempt to break down issues of caste that have long plagued the Hindu community. If this the case, do you feel you have succeeded? What about the relationship between Prem's mother and Sharmila? 

BK: I believe inter-caste marriage is more acceptable in India now as boys and girls study in a co-ed environment. Also, remember, Sharmila was raised in the US, thus the caste system means little to her. Have I succeeded in shedding light on the caste issue? I hope so. I realize it's a long process of integration. (By the way, as a side note, during my readings, I very often get questions on the caste system from the audience.) In terms of the relationship between Sharmila and Prem's mother, I wanted show how women from vastly different social classes can respect and care about each other. Prem's mother is a simple, illiterate woman, but has a beautiful soul. In Raj's mother, however, Sharmila senses manipulation, and that's what turns her off. 

JR: Speaking of relationships among women in your novels, it seems rather cynical in Sharmila's Book--Sharmila cannot trust other women, from her mother, to her mother in law, to Champa, and even her own cousin. The same theme runs through Shiva Dancing----Meena is eventually sold out by her co-worker Joy and her conflict with Antoine begins because of her friend. 

BK: Actually, I think that in both books, female-female relationships are positive. Meena has a great friend in Kazuko, as does Sharmila in Liz. A number of my readers have said that they would like to have a friend like Kazuko or Liz. Also, as an adult, Meena has great respect for her Indian mother (who she doesn't know is dead). It is true, Sharmila is a bit cynical, but then she's distrustful of her father as well. That is the reality for many women. 

JR: Let's look at gender and cultural identity in the heroines of both of your novels, Meena, in Shiva Dancing and Sharmila, in Sharmila's Book. Why are the lives of your female characters centered on a bi-cultural identity? Can these women discern between what is inherently Indian and American?

BK: In both novels, I deal with identity, displacement, and collision of cultures; collision of old and the new, though I didn't consciously construct Meena that way (she came to me in a story form). I believe she is the prototype of twenty-first century heroines, in whom there will be more mixing of cultures. I have always been open to many cultures, which goes back to my growing up in Kalimpong (near Darjeeling) where many ethnic groups lived and later in Calcutta and the U.S. I have always reached out to communities beyond my own. I maintain that our identity is much deeper than what our outward appearance might dictate. Unfortunately, that's not how the world judges us. We might behave differently in different cultural situations, but when we return to our own space we return to a deeper self and more constant values without effort. If there are lines between what is Indian and what is American, these women are not consciously aware of them. 

JR: It's interesting to see the focus in both of your novels on women as lovers. Although Meena and Sharmila come across as independent South Asian women, their lives focus on men, particularly when they try to work out issues of identity (Sharmila through Mitch or Raj, and Meena through Antoine and Vishnu). 

BK: Both Meena and Sharmila are in their early thirties and stable in their careers. It's natural that meeting men and experiencing life with men would be important to them. Identity and cultural issues are magnified in a love relationship with the opposite sex far more than with one's friends. Also, there is societal pressure to marry; though advertisers glorify being single, the larger society is set up for married couples. Note that in the cases of both Meena and Sharmila, their careers are extremely important to them. I bring this out more with Meena. Since their careers are well established, they can now concentrate on samsara -- the homemaking aspect of life -- just as men would. 

JR: In your first novel, Shiva Dancing, you address concerns that are similar to those in Sharmila's Book, in terms of gender-based cultural issues. Why have you chosen to discuss stories of South Asian women immigrants? Are you resolving personal issues of identity through your female characters?

BK: I hope I am addressing a much more universal concern, not just trying to resolve my own identity issues. Also remember these are novels, not memoirs. An emphasis on self can only hinder story telling. All our thoughts and actions are colored by our perception of who we are and, in that sense, the identity issue is an important one for everyone.

JR: Pursuant to that question, Shiva Dancing resembles a bildungsroman novel, a novel of growing up. Was this your intention? I also noted that you identify Meena with a region of India that itself is far removed from mainstream South Asian society--a small unknown village in Rajasthan. Is the purpose to reveal that not only is Meena foreign in the US, but that she is also of obscure background in the land of her origin?

BK: I didn't intend the book to be a bildungsroman novel. I didn't even intend to add the chapter of Meena growing up in San Francisco, except that I later realized I'd have to in order fill in the big gap of time between her kidnapping in the desert and her life in the software jungle. I also wanted to show that such a person (coming from a remote Indian village) can be effective in American society. 

JR: Why did you choose Shiva rather than say a female deity like Kali to echo throughout your novel and to be the title? 

BK: I didn't choose Shiva, perhaps Shiva chose me! What I mean to say is this: at first I had in mind to use the dancing image of Nataraj only as the logo for a tribal political party (the Moxans). However, as I kept writing, I found the destruction/recreation theme lay under the surface of the story. Meena's life goes in turmoil only to be transformed at the end. The same goes for Vishnu and Antoine. It's God Shiva dancing! 

JR: What is the purpose behind your choice of the characters in Shiva Dancing, namely Carlos, Kazuko and the Gossets? 

BK: Carlos and Kazuko represent the global (for lack of a better word) vision of the book. Meena derives much joy in her life from these two people. I wanted to show how people of vastly different ethnic backgrounds can come together as friends, learn from each other, adopt each other's ways (Carlos calls her Meenaji) and help each other in crisis (Carlos threatens Antoine). I feel that if we join hands across the fence, then, and only then, can we hope to survive. The Gossetts represent the insular segment of the American population; kind and well meaning, but ultimately failing in their effort to protect their illusions. However, Meena does find a father in Mr. Gossett and she relates to him far better than she does to Mrs. Gossett. 

JR: Toward the end of Shiva Dancing, Meena notes that her identity with Vishnu was really a fantasy, an identity that she wanted to cling to. What is the purpose of having Meena cling to Vishnu, even when she is far removed from him in terms of time, geography, and culture? 

BK: I was pointing out the freedom Meena has in the US. Many South Asian women do not recognize this freedom, do not exercise it, and are a victim of their old programming. Vishnu and Antoine do represent the old and new of tradition. It's curious that many of my women readers have said they've fallen in love with Vishnu! One woman said she would like to beat Antoine up! However, Meena chose Antoine. Good or bad, she has undergone a transformation in America. The place where we're raised has a tremendous effect on us. It's tradition versus upbringing. 

JR: How does the novel assuage South Asian women who feel caught between traditional South Asian and modern American culture?

BK: I don't like the term "role model" particularly, but that's what I had intended Meena to be. Not a victim, not someone who constantly analyzes her immigrant experience, but one who lives life like any American would without forgetting her Indian roots. Her experience, I must point out, is atypical. An American couple raised her and had a certain set of advantages (and disadvantages, I might add) that many South Asian women will not have. You can't draw conclusions about South Asian women from this novel. By its nature a novel is a specific story of a specific person. The women in my book are strong. Meena, her mother, and Asha, are all examples of feminine strength. This is not an aggressive strength, but the quiet strength of a flower stalk.