Interviews

Between the Lines with Alka Joshi

In conversation with HarperBroadcast, Alka Joshi, author of the bestselling Jaipur trilogy talks about her final book in the series, The Perfumist of Paris, the power of memory and its interconnections with smell.

Read the conversation below and also read an excerpt from the book below:

Q. This book centers around the sensation of smell, brought to life with your words. As a reader, the little snippets before the beginning of a chapter are particularly interesting. How do you think scents weave together things as intangible as emotions, ideas, and memories? 

Alka Joshi: Emotions, memories, and scent are processed in the same part of the brain. If you think back to your childhood memories, chances are you’ll also remember the scent associated with it. My earliest memory of Diwali is accompanied by the scent of oil diyas, cardamom-laced sweets and my mother’s chameli hair oil. I remember the thrill of seeing thousands of lamps on every house, every stairstep, every window. And I remember the anticipation of all the burfi, katli, and rasmalai I would be able to enjoy after the meal. It makes my mouth water just thinking of it! Try remembering your memories of your first day at school or your first love, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised at being able to recall the scents and emotions surrounding it too.

Q. Do you think the perfume someone uses speaks to their character and personality, or contours it in any way?

AJ: People choose fragrances for many different reasons. The scent could be aspirational; perhaps a woman wears Chanel No.5 because she wants to exude sophistication and old-world elegance. Or she selects a fragrance that reflects her true personality: bold or soft or earthy or romantic. Or she chooses a perfume to remind her of someone. I know women who use the same scent as their mothers or their grandmothers because the association is a warm and loving one. In each of these cases, I believe the fragrance does become the wearer over time.

Q. You have said before that oftentimes characters come to life right in front of their creator, i.e. the author. This happened with you too when it came to Malik, the protagonist of the second book in the Jaipur trilogy. How did your understanding of the characters evolve as you were writing the book? Were there any unexpected character developments?

AJ: Recently, a reader commented that in The Henna Artist, the character of Radha drove her crazy, largely because Lakshmi, the first-person narrator, was exasperated with her. After reading The Perfumist of Paris, the same reader commented that she had a lot more sympathy for Radha now that the story was told from Radha’s first-person point of view. I was astounded. The character of Radha had evolved right under my nose and it took a reader to point it out to me! (Readers often give me unexpected and prescient insights.) The depth of Radha’s sorrow after giving up her baby for adoption in the first book hadn’t hit me until I wrote The Perfumist of Paris. I was just as surprised when Radha saw through her mother-in-law’s aggression as loneliness—the turning point in their relationship. And the client who commissioned the Olympia fragrance project? I didn’t know who she was until she showed up in the scene! So, yes, there are always many unexpected and delightful developments in every story. I’m as surprised by them when they show up as readers are when they read the novel.

Q. This story is a voyage across space. From Jaipur, Agra, and Shimla in India to the country of France, the reader embarks on a journey through richly detailed narratives. What do you think ‘home’ means to the characters within the books? And how has the idea of ‘home’ developed or evolved for them and for you, during the process of writing these books?

AJ: I’ve lived in many different cities and countries. At some point, I lost track of where home was. First, it was India. Then it was America. Then Italy. Then France. Finally, I realized that I carry home with me wherever I go. It shows up in the Indian food I crave; in my admiration of French paintings like Olympia; in my appreciation of Vivaldi and Bach. For Lakshmi, home is wherever she can heal people. For Malik, home is family: his wife Nimmi, her children and his Auntie-boss Lakshmi. For Radha, home is where the ingredients of her craft live and thrive. In writing The Perfumist of Paris, I was paying tribute to the millions of Indians like Radha, who have lived in and contributed to other places of the world, while carrying pieces of India with them. 

Q. Why did you choose Paris as the setting for the book? 

AJ: During the ten years it took to write The Henna Artist I’d also written the futures of Lakshmi, Malik and Radha. I saw the impetuous Radha being swept off her feet by a young Parisian who had come to Chandigarh to work on Nehru’s model city in 1960. (My family lived in Chandigarh 1962-63). Radha had always shown a natural talent for chemistry—creating paint for old man Munchi from her village, blending Lakshmi’s henna so fine it glided on the skin of Jaipur’s elite. Once in France, considered the perfume capital of the world, it was only natural for Radha to begin blending fragrance. Setting the book in Paris, however, led to an interesting discovery in my research. Many of the most important ingredients used in fragrance development were discovered in and brought from the Indian subcontinent. And it continues to be the case. Which left me wondering—and I hope will make the reader curious as well—why does India not share the title of perfume capital of the world?

Q. In continuation to the last question, how did you balance the historical accuracy of the time period with the narrative requirements of your story, such as the intricate art of perfume-making?

AJ: With each novel, I research a wide range of topics to ground my readers in the story. The Perfumist of Paris prompted me to study the women’s movement in 1970s France and the life of the model Victorine in Manet’s painting Olympia (1863). It led me to interview perfumers on site in New York City, Paris, Lisbon and Grasse, and consult adoptees, birth mothers and adoption experts. However, once I start writing, my focus is the development of my characters. How will they be transformed from the beginning of the book to the end? And what will lead to that change? As I write scene after scene, I refer to my research and incorporate just enough history to make the reader feel as if she is standing next to my protagonist, seeing what she’s seeing, doing what she’s doing, feeling what she’s feeling. I always aim for historical accuracy but keep in mind that I am writing fiction, which is about drama, tension, and pacing.

Q. Who would you consider to be your literary inspirations and why?

AJ: I read Tagore’s stories because I find his female heroines to be bold and sympathetic. I watch Satyajit Ray movies for the same reason. Nectar In a Sieve, Inside the Haveli, Malgudi Days, A Fine Balance, The Death of Vishnu, Amrita, The Householder are just some of the books I read to enlighten me about the time periods I write about. As a little girl, I loved the stories of A Thousand and One Arabian Nights. Growing up in America, I was introduced to the Bronte sisters, Dickens, Du Maurier, Austen and George Sand. There is no end to literary inspirations and stories well told.

Q. Can you give us a little insight into your writing process? Do you have any suggestions for young writers?

AJ: Every writer has their unique process. Mine is very visual because of my art background. In my mind’s eye, I see highly detailed scenes filled with people, scents, furniture, flowers, lights, animals—everything. As I walk, swim or cycle, I move the people around in my imagination and play with the dialogue. When I feel a scene is almost there, I type it on my laptop. I repeat the process until I get to the end of the story. Then I go to the beginning and edit. And repeat the process. Over and over and over and over. 

To young writers: Write what you’re passionate about, not the latest thing everyone else is writing about. If you’re passionate about your subject, you’ll stay with it. You’ll need that perseverance for the multiple revisions you’re going to write (The Henna Artist required 30 drafts). And you’ll need patience with yourself, taking time away from writing to regroup, refresh and return anew to the page. Take classes and writing workshops. Find good writing mentors, preferably those who have published, to help you and then, listen to their advice.

Q. What are you working on next?

AJ: Tentatively titled The Painter, the next book is set in 1937, between the two world wars and ten years before Indian independence. A young Anglo-Indian nurse embarks on a journey from her home in Bombay, India, through Europe, to uncover a mystery and prove her innocence after the untimely death of her patient, a famous painter modeled after Amrita Sher-Gil, India’s Frida Kahlo.

In conversation with Jayati Tripathi for HarperBroadcast

Read an excerpt from the book below:

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