From NGO Work to Award-Winning Author and Podcaster: An Exclusive Interview with Sumit Sharma Sameer
By Debamitra Mishra
“Sumit Sharma Sameer (sumitsharmasameer.com) is an author and a podcaster from Kathmandu, Nepal. He has over two decades of experience working with a range of national and international non-government organizations. He obtained his double master’s degree from two esteemed institutions: the London School of Economics, UK, and Queen’s University, Canada. He is a distinguished Kassel School fellow and was honoured with the Star of Loyola upon completing his undergraduate studies at Loyola College, Chennai, India. His first work of fiction, ‘Wake Up Ali…Wake Up Now’ was honoured with a KLF Book award in 2022 in the debut fiction category in India. Currently, he resides with his family in Kathmandu, Nepal.
Q. When did you start writing? What led you to become an author?
Ans: I remember I began writing during my school days. I always used to participate in either the essay writing/ speech/ drawing/ Quiz competition, in school. My parents always emphasized that I should be engaged in extra-curricular activities. So, it is our homely environment that pushed me to write. Our family has always been engaged in the fields of literature, politics, and social work. My grandfather and his younger brother were both at the forefront of fighting to establish democracy in Nepal. My father spent eight years in prison fighting for democracy. My father’s elder brothers have both contributed to Nepali literature in their capacity. So, I think writing came more as a legacy to me which I have and will thoroughly enjoy.
Q. How do you choose what to write about, and what inspires your work?
Ans: I try to look into the issues of the larger historical process and observe the ongoing trends. Look into the rationale behind those trends and try to narrate those trends through the story. I have just written my first fiction and am working on my second. So, the undercurrent historical processes motivate me to write something. I think most of the events that we see unfolding in our present are not borne just today but are rather the product of larger historical processes.
Q. Tell us something about your debut fiction, ‘Wake Up Ali…Wake Up Now’ won the Kalinga Literary Festival (KLF) Book Award in the debut fiction category in 2022.
Ans: Wake Up Ali…Wake Up Now is a South Asian Diasporic story with a theme of migration. Some of the important characters of the novel come from India, Pakistan, and Nepal. I think the new political economy has injected some issues that are common to South Asia and migration is one such issue. I had always thought of writing on a common south asian issue. It’s a very simple and relatable story to most of South Asian societies where people are forced to migrate for better lives, but there is always a longing for their homes. But, this is a bit different from other migration stories. In this, the protagonists also probe into his spiritual journey. Hence, it is both an external and internal quagmire of the present time that has been reflected through the characters of the novella.
Q. How difficult was it to base the plot of your novella outside of Nepal?
Ans: It was indeed difficult. I did a lot of research on it. But, I consciously choose not to deal with the complexities of the societies that the characters of the novella come from. But, my focus was more on the commonality of our South Asian societies.
Q. What are you writing next?
Ans: I am again looking into the historical process, but have not yet made up my mind on whether I should elevate that at the South Asian level or focus on that within the Nepali society. It’s going to be fiction and once again in novella form, perhaps.
Q. What does it mean to be a writer in a present context?
Ans: We’re living in an extremely complicated time. Multiple New World orders are emerging at the same time. The old institutions are in constant flux and we don’t yet know what kind of world might emerge from these transitions. What kind of ‘human’ will emerge from these processes? What is right and wrong; moral/immoral to them? Writing becomes extremely difficult when it becomes difficult to define anything for that matter, I think. Everything is in such flux that today’s definition may not hold for tomorrow. Hence, perhaps this is a time to observe these transitions in depth and try to make sense of these larger processes.
Q. You are also a podcaster. Why podcast now?
Ans: I wanted to start a global Dialogue Series platform namely ‘Ink & Insights’ to bridge the Gap Between Nepal and Global Thought Leaders from around the world. The platform is in a hybrid module. It will explore the worlds of business, literature, science, culture, technology, media, and cinema. Mostly, it has covered young Nepali entrepreneurs thus far but will soon interview celebrated writers like Koral Dasgupta, Namita Gokhale, Rashmi Bansal, etc..And, shortly the program will cover thought leaders from around the globe.