After Savio Rodrigues, founder of Goan
Chronicle, read Wendell Rodricks’ ‘Green Room’, he asked Wendell how long he
took to write the book. “He told me that it took him many years, but I wanted
to write about an important issue that is hardly spoken about, and I wanted to
write it immediately. Child abuse is a serious concern in our sophisticated and
fast-paced society. It is also a concern that is always swept under the carpet by
the people closest to us. The early trauma can break a person and the mind is
not stable,” says Savio, the author of ‘Karmic Ishq’.
Born and brought up in Dubai, Savio was
surrounded by close friends who influenced him. “I was affected by one
particular case of child abuse. We had a very cheerful and energetic friend in
our group who used to be the life of the party. Suddenly, he disappeared from
the social scene, which led us to worry about him. We later learnt that he was
picked up from the bus stand in Dubai by a Sudanese man who raped him. He was
never the same again. He’ll be around 22 now, but he somehow lost himself. He
informed his mother about the incident but she didn’t take action. Somehow,
these children grow up blaming themselves for being in those situations. I
wanted to write about how child abuse can affect a person and their present and
future relationship,” explains Savio.
The book journeys with the two protagonists
of the book, Kevin and Alisha, through the cities of Dubai, Mumbai and Goa. “In
the book, the now adult Kevin is a victim of child abuse while Alisha was raped
from the age of 7 to 12 by her father’s best friend. Their families didn’t
support them and since the focus is in the Middle East, the families didn’t
seek legal action. They are on two extremes yet fall in love, only to
eventually fall out of love. They go on to get married to different individuals
and have an extra marital affair after they meet years later.”
The writing process took Savio just four
days as he felt so passionately about the subject that he locked himself in a
hotel room and stepped out only after the book was complete. It was only the
thought of the reader’s reaction to such a sensitive and oft considered taboo
topic that brought about some hesitation regarding releasing it. “The book was
on a hold for two years as I was busy with work and on the lookout for the
right publisher. ’50 Shades of Grey’ was already out and was accepted by
readers. ‘Karmic Ishq’ is not erotic but a highly spiced up novel and while I
was unsure earlier, I now feel that Goa is ready for it. The book is for
readers above the age of 18 years. I found the right publishers in Leonard and
Quinnie Fernandes of Cinnamon Teal Publishers who asked me to tone the book
down by 20 per cent,” explains Savio.
The characters of Kevin and Alisha are
based on true characters and good friends of Savio whom he came across in his
days in Dubai. While the incidents are true, the book tells it in a fictional
manner. “I informed them about the book. Kevin is in Dubai and Alisha is in
Canada. For Kevin, it didn’t matter what was written in the book but Alisha was
a bit hesitant to talk about what happened in the public domain.”
Savio has big plans for the release of the
book. “The book will be released at the hands of my friend Wendell Rodricks on
July 31, 2015 in Goa. We will also have book launches in Mumbai, Delhi,
Bangalore and Chennai as well as Dubai, with a few friends. I have been invited
to submit my book at the Singapore Writers’ Festival too,” concludes Savio. The
book will be available online on Amazon, Flipkart and Kindle. Priced at Rs 150,
a thousand copies will be made available in the stores.
