E.Kiran Mohan: Rendezvous With A Blogger

That Lazy Afternoon:-

I can vividly remember that afternoon last year when Mokshada, quite a good friend of mine, entered my room hurriedly with the Times of India newspaper in her hands and said, “Ananda, look a quarter of a page has been published about him and his works in this reputed English daily of our country.”

At first I couldn’t make out anything of what she said. But before being asked a question, she readily clarified,” The blogger from our Barpali….the one about whom I mentioned to you last week….he has been published…Don’t you remember that Mr E. Kiran Mohan?”

“Oh…that Telugu blogger….nice to hear about his achievement.”, I quickly replied and ended the conversation.

Being an admirer of serious kind of mainstream literature, I had by that time developed a preconceived notion that these so called bloggers write shallow stuffs and hence are not worth paying attention. Apart from this, I came to know from Mokshada that that blogger from her Barpali is of Telugu origin and he writes about the life and culture of the small town Barpali. I wondered how deep a Telugu gentle man can understand the life and culture of a small town of our western Odisha and do justice to it through his writings. Moreover, the gentleman is a plane graduate in Commerce and has no background in English language and literature. This particular thing made me suspect even the quality of his writings through his blogs. That’s why, I always used to ignore his works whenever Mokshada insisted me to read.

Googling 'Barpali Days':-

That evening I was quite tired. Hence, I avoided hanging out with friends and returned my mess early. No sooner had I retired to bed than my roommate screamed,” Hey Ananda, here is about a blogger from our Barpali in the Times of India today. Do you know him? I hope you might be knowing him. But I was quite ignorant of this fellow and his works though my home is just a 30 minutes ride from Barpali.”

”Ok buddy, that is not your fault. I also know quite little of this man. Well would you like to give me the newspaper please? I will also like to have a look on him”, I replied and took the newspaper from him.

I read the whole quarter of the page in one go and was shocked to know about the range and outcomes of his works which I had loved to frequently ignore till then.

No no…. I must not ignore him anymore. I should go to his blog and check all his writings- I persuaded myself and I also readily followed my instructions.

I googled ‘Barpali Days’ in my smart phone and the link for www.barpalidays.blogspot.in instantly hit my way. I clicked on it and went straight into the kingdom of our indigenous blogger Mr Epari Kiran Mohan.

It will be quite honest to mention here the fact that I forgot my tiredness, skipped even my palatable dinner and good sleep to soothe the insatiable interest in me to read his magnificent works that night. I fell in great love with his words and more with the silence that followed the words. The stories like Ladoo Chor, Mango Mania, Hunt for Sugar Canes, Tiranga Fur Fur, The Art of Fart, Hoo Chook Chook, Chal bo Jhadma Buro took no time at all to bring an innocent smile on my face and rekindled my childhood memories. The post related to the Blind Meher’ family, brought tears into my eyes imagining the conditions of human sufferings in this planet and also ignited faith in my heart for humanity after the Mehers were helped by the readers of the blog. What was really beneficial for me was indeed the personality section where he had written the brief biographies of many significant persons from different domains like arts, literature, Science, Sports, Academics etc. when I read his articles and stories based on local Ikat handloom of Barpali, my head bowed down in its own to salute the stupendous work of this man. I still remember receiving goosebumps while reading the non-academic biography of noted academician and Vice Chancellor of Sambalpur University Prof. Deepak Kumar Behera from Barpali days blog. In a nutshell, the blogger appeared to me the greatest ambassador of the life and culture of Barpali till date and I found no one else parallel to him in the kind of work he was doing.

Having developed a great deal of admiration for the blogger Mr E Kiran Mohan, I searched his biodata in ‘Barpali Days’ blog and got it without much trouble. So this is the man reading whose blogs Dr Patricia Peyrat of France took the pains to visit the not-so-known village Gopaipali in order to help poor Jharna Meher with two goats and a sewing machine! This is the same man reading whom Cadence Whalen from Los Angels and Alpa Mistry from London made it their first priority to meet him in their visit to Barpali!

Moreover, this is again  the same blogger who had been felicitated as a guest in “Electra-2019” by Vikash Residential School, Bargarh; as a writer in 39th Sodhyatra conducted by SRISTI (Society for Research & Initiative for Sustainable Technologies and Institutions, Ahmedabad); as one among 50 selected change makers of Odisha in the first “Be The Change” convention by ‘Yes We Can’ civil society in 2017; as an Odia Youth Inspiration in “Odisha Living Legend Award Ceremony” by Odisha DIARY IN 2016; as a cultural youth icon in Bangalore Nuakhai festival-2016; as best writer in the foundation day of the Indus Valley Times News Paper and the list goes on.

Hello, May I Talk To Kiran Sir:-

I found myself much intoxicated in the morning by the positive vibes of works and achievements of Kiran sir. I was in such an awe of him that it became difficult for me to resist the temptation of talking to him.

So, I immediately texted Mokshada- ‘Good Morning. May I appeal to your good self to send me the contact number of Mr E Kiran Mohan?’

Mokshada immediately sent me the number with a short reply- ‘You can’t ignore him anymore. So, be careful. All the best.’

I thought for a while whether to make him a ring or not. My heart said, “Come on Ananda. You have become an overnight fan of him. Hence he deserves to be complemented by you. It will be so foolish of you not to call him after getting his number.” But my mind was a bit adamant in explaining me,” You have always been a votary of serious kind of literature. You should not entangle yourself with this blogger.”

However, I chose my heart to be listened this time and I rang to the number of the blogger as sent to me by Mokshada. After a few rings, someone responded me with a sweet ‘Hello’.

I asked, “Hello. May I talk to Kiran sir?”

He replied, “You are very much talking to Kiran sir.”

My heart beat quite faster for a while, but it regained its normal course after I introduced myself to him and also informed him how I turned an admirer of him overnight. He listened to me with patience and expressed me his gratitude for my appreciation of him.

After about a candid conversation of around 30 minutes, I said,”Kiran sir, one day I shall travel all along Barpali to exclusively meet you.”

Kiran sir gave an audible laugh and said,” Babu, you are most welcome. But I will pray God to make such an arrangement that we shall meet, but you need not have to take the trouble of travelling to Barpali.”

That day the conversation ended there. But I carried the charm of his voice with me till the next week.

My First Meeting with Kiran Sir:-

I was quite happy that day as I was travelling to the Convocation Ceremony of Sambalpur University in order to receive my gold medal for standing first class first in my final master’s examination. I arrived at the university in time and wore my robe and gown to enter into the convocation auditorium.

I received my medal from the honourable governor of Odisha. It was indeed a prized and privileged moment for me. Soon after the convocation was over, I came out of the auditorium and looked someone to take a photo of me. Unfortunately I got no one except one gentle man wearing white shirt standing a few metres away from me.

I went to him and requested,” Sir, may I ask you to help me by taking a snap of mine with my medal.”

The gentle man readily agreed and in no time took a click of mine with my smart phone. After the job was done, he came straight to me to return the phone and said,” The snap is not good enough. I am sorry babu.”

‘Babu’-This particular word drew my attention to the extraordinarily ordinary gentle man standing beside me. I looked into his face from close quarters.

I exclaimed,” Kiran sir…you?”

He became shocked and replied,” Yes, I am Epari Kiran Mohan. But how do you know me?”

I gave him my introduction and also reminded him of our past conversation over phone. He became overwhelmed to meet his sincere fan in such a surprising manner. He asked me about my medal and wished me all good luck for my bright future. I also didn’t forget to thank him for his kind gesture.

After around 10 minutes of conversation with him, I came to know about many interesting facts about him, such as Kiran sir belonged to a Telugu Kumuti family from Berhampur and he was the son of famous paediatrician of Western Odisha Dr E.R. Rao (M.D.). He passed his matriculation in Odia medium from P.R. High School, Bolangir followed by intermediate and graduation in commerce from DAV College, Titilagarh. Then he moved to New Delhi to prepare for Company Secretaryship, but couldn’t qualify any of its examinations. Being hopeless he landed into some odd jobs in different private companies with paltry salary.

Being unable to suppress the curiosity in me, I looked into his eyes and asked,” You were neither a student of English literature nor had any inclination towards writing in your college days. Then how was the writer in you shaped?”

He gave me a hearty laugh and said, “Babu, I liked your question. The story goes back to my graduation days when my maternal grandfather gifted me a copy of the Reader’s Digest magazine. That was for the first time I was seeing any English magazine in my life! That day my joy knew no bounds. I went through the magazine several times and I fell in love with reading good English.”

“And then…. “, I asked.

“I wanted to prepare for government jobs after my graduation and hence wanted to read a few more magazines along with the Competition Success Review. But that was not affordable for me as the competition Success Review magazine itself costed Rs. 10 which was a big amount for my pocket back then.” He replied.

“And how did you address the problem?”, I enquired.

He continued his smile and said, “I along with some of my like-minded friends formed a ‘READER’S FORUM’ to tackle the problem. Each one of us contributed Rs. 10 to buy one magazine and thus we were having 10-15 magazines with us to read every month. I was reading all those magazines thoroughly and I guess that shaped me later as a blog writer. But the aesthetics of good English writing is something that I learnt from someone else later.”

“Someone else…. Who?” I quickly put the question.

But he avoided answering my question by citing,” Babu it is my bus time to return to Barpali. We shall talk the rest in our next meeting.”

Dinner with Mokshada:-

Mokshada knew that I was an all-time great miser. So she was not shocked when I invited her on dinner to a small hotel instead of a restaurant.

I told her,” Mokshada, you know I am quite impressed with the blogger of your Barpali. Heartfelt thanks to you for making me to know him. It is indeed a great gift to me by you.”

Mokshada became quite happy and taunted me, “It is alright Ananda. But had I been a gold medallist, then I would have taken you for dinner at least to a restaurant.”

“Shut up you fatso Mokshada. Well I promise you if I meet the blogger again, then I will take you to a restaurant for a dinner.”, I retorted.

My Second Meeting with Kiran Sir:-

If I am not wrong, it was just the next day of my roommate’s birthday celebration that I received a call around 12.30 in the afternoon from that dear blogger of mine.

“Babu, I am in your town today in a small assignment. Can we meet if you wish so?”, he interrogated.

“Why not? It is always a blessing for me to meet you. Where shall I come to meet you?”, I asked.

“Come to the railway station within 15 minutes. I am waiting for you.”, he replied.

I asked for bike to my roommate and arrived to the railway station as early as possible though I got 5 minutes late to the allotted 15 minutes of Kiran sir. I searched him everywhere in the station, but found him nowhere. I tried to ring him, but his cell phone was switched off. I thought he had already left for his destination.

I was all about to return my mess when someone from the side bench shouted,”Babu, you forgot to search me here. This poor blogger is waiting for you here”

I breathed a sigh of relief. “That’s good.”, I said.

“Babu I am quite hungry. Let’s have lunch in the nearby hotel.” he shouted and took me there by holding my hand.

We were enjoying our lunch in the hotel. I noticed he was in an attentive gesture that day.

So I asked, “Who taught you the aesthetics of writing good English as you mentioned in our last meeting?”

He looked a bit serious. He asked,” Is that necessary to know?”

I firmly nodded, “Quite necessary.”

He reluctantly said,” A girl!”

I curiously asked,” A girl! Who was she?”

“I met her in a conference in Delhi for the first time. We interacted only a few words in the first meeting. Then she telephoned me in my office number and asked for my postal address. Just after a few days, I received a letter from her. Then I too replied her in a letter. Our bonding got a bit intimate and the letter exchange became frequent. It was only after reading her letters that I came to know how English can be written so beautifully to express oneself. Believe me those letters are still my inconspicuous guide in my decade long writing journey.”, he said.

“Then…..” I asked.

“Destiny has other plans. The Delhi climate didn’t go well with my health. I fell severely ill and became hospitalised. After recovery, I found myself unable to adjust further in Delhi. I resigned from my job and returned to Odisha to stay permanently. Distance and separation made the bonds weak and the letters a thing of past.”, he reminisced.

“Oh I am sorry Kiran sir.”, I felt guilty.

But he patted on my back and said, “Babu, it’s okay. But let me tell you the story behind the first story that I wrote.”

“Yes, go on.”, I showed him my interest.

“After coming back to Odisha, I had nothing much to do except spending my time gossiping with friends. One day while talking with friends in front of Shambhu Medical Store of our Barpali, I saw a fair skinned gentleman passing in front of us. Being curious, I stopped and questioned him about his name and purpose to visit Barpali. He introduced himself as Charlie and told me about his and his wife Jillian’s visit to Barpali to learn the weaving of local Ikat handlooms, also known as Sambalpuri Sarees. I became quite happy to know about the couple and took myself the responsibility of interacting them with the local weavers of our Barpali. One day while having a conversation with a weaver, Jillian started experiencing hiccups. Instead of offering a glass of water to the lady, I sarcastically patted on her head. The lady was shocked for a while. Her husband got quite furious on me for hitting his wife. But they became surprised and happy to know that the hiccup had gone away after my patting on her back.”, he went on speaking.

“Please continue.”, I eagerly said to him.

“I wrote my first story on that particular incident and submitted it to the Times Out column of the New Indian Express. To my utter disbelief, the story was published in that newspaper and I received a draft of Rs. 750 for the same. After that, I became motivated to write more and more genuine stories and decided to start my blog Barpali Days.”, he replied delightedly.

“That’s very interesting.”, I replied astonishingly.

Babu, it is time for good bye:-

We finished our lunch within half an hour. Kiran sir paid the money for both of our meals. It was a good relief for a miser like me.

“What do you get through blogging?“, I questioned him.

“I bring the stories to the front. I make the unheard heard and the unseen seen. That’s enough in itself, isn’t that?”, he replied confidently.

In the meanwhile, the announcement for the arriving train began and the waited train reached at the station in time. Kiran sir hurried to enter into the general compartment and secured a seat for him.

After that he came out to convey his last few words to me and said, “Babu it is time for good bye. Anyway, why don’t you also make the unheard heard and the unseen seen?”

“You mean blogging……?”, I shockingly shrugged.

“Why not?”, he replied.

“Well I have not thought about that yet. But my interest in blogs was ignited because of you. Hence you are my Guru (teacher) in this field in the truest sense. If ever I make up my mind for blogging, then I promise you that my first blog will be on you. That will be my Guru-dakshina (Offering to a teacher) to you.” I stated assertively.

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Blogger: Laxman Mishra (Ananda Shiladitya)

Hospital Chhowk, At/P.O.- Kantamal,

Dist:- Boudh, Odisha, India, Pin- 762017

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