I don't think people give Indian society enough credit. We may not like to talk much about things but we do, basically, want to live and let live.

I don't pick and choose subjects or settings; they pick and choose me.

I have a reputation for being hermitlike. I'm not. I'm just obsessed with my work.

I certainly think its very important that writers as citizens - not necessarily as writers, but just as ordinary citizens - should talk about things that matter to them.

Of course, the greater one's need, the greater one's propensity to be mesmerized.

It's not the gods But our own hearts We need to fear. The evil starts Against all odds Not there but here.

In general, questions are fine; you can always seize upon the parts of them that interest you and concentrate on answering those. And one has to remember when answering questions that asking questions isn't easy either, and for someone who's quite shy to stand up in an audience to speak takes some courage.