Actress Bidita Bag, most recently seen in the lead in the web series ‘The Sholay Girl’, likes to read a mix of Bengali literature and science fiction as she shares bookish preferences with MANASI Y MASTAKAR
Bong connection
Mom and Dad introduced me to Bengali books when I was as young as five years old. I love reading Bengali literature. Satyajit Ray’s father and grandfather Sukumar Ray and Upendra Kishore Ray, used to write mostly for children. I also like reading Tagore, Bankim Chandra, Sarat Chandra, Jules Verne, who was a visionary with his revolutionary science fiction. My favourite books are Abol Tabol by Sukumar Ray, which is a Bengali collection of children’s poems. Rhymes of Whimsy and the Nonsense World of Sukumar Ray…it’s a world similar to Lewis Carroll, but more nonsense, modern and relatable.
Favourite genre
I love reading science fiction works of Jules Verne, detective stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, books by Satyajit Ray and folk tales from different countries.
Keeping it light
When I am shooting, I try not to read a heavy book. I mostly read non-fiction with small chapters, because the film’s narrative is already running inside my head.
Monthly quota
It ranges between zero to 10 books…
Book recommendations
My dad, Facebook, I also check the Google list of best-selling books, Amazon, airport bookshops and these days there are apps too which send notifications about new releases.
Going digital
My father has a collection of over 50,000 books, so I shifted to e-books.
Currently reading
I recently started reading spiritual books. I bought all available titles on Sadhguru and Osho. I also bought biographies of A.P.J Abdul Kalam, Indira Gandhi, Dilip Kumar, Rekha and Rishi Kapoor.
Bookish memory
I remember an incident during an earthquake when some heavy books fell from the topmost shelf just next to me. I was around five-six years old then. Dad panicked and next I know he had shifted all the heavy books to lower shelves.
Book adaptations
I have seen several book adaptations and I hated every one of them…they just ruin your imagination!
From book to screen
Soon you will see me playing a part in one of the short stories by Satyajit Ray. And I would love to make a Hindi or Bengali film based on ‘The Time Machine’ by H G Wells.
Classic tales
I tell people what I read, I don’t lie. But to name a few classic and popular books that I haven’t read, there’s Godfather, Gone with the Wind, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter series. When I was a child I had read Ramayana and Mahabharata many times…and I feel I need to read them again.
Must reads
The Art of Thinking Clearly by Rolf Dobelli. As the name suggests, it will clear all your mental blockages and biases, bring clarity and improve your logic.
