Subhash Jaireth

and this literary language, which was Hindi and English.

Oh, yes.

For example, my first reading was of Hindi literature, mostly Bangla literature, that is Bengali, translated into Hindi, like Tagore, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Shishir Hussain, and the Hindi writer like Prem Chand.

and modern Hindi writing and poetry.

That was what I was brought upon and I was sort of learned my literature through that.

But when I started going to school and I had my education in so-called English medium school, I was exposed to English literature.

Yes, and because my father was an officer in the Indian Army, so we were, because we were getting posted every three years from one city to another, for people like this, there were special schools which had a standard curriculum India-wise, and most of the teaching was done in English.

Though we had to study Hindi and Hindi literature as well.

Normal classics.

For instance, Shakespeare was the one thing and I was very...

lucky that I learned Shakespeare then.

But in addition to Shakespeare, Dickens, Austen and Hardy.

Hardy was my favorite.

In fact, the first book which I won as a prize in the school was Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure.

Oh, yes, yes.

Thomas Hardy, I love and I read Thomas Hardy constantly, especially the poetry.

Oh, Dickens.

Oh, Dickens.

Dickens I love quite a lot.

And Dickens was also very popular in Russia.