Books
Whiskey And Suicide
Whiskey and Suicide paints a kaleidoscope of myriad emotions of the Indian middle class families. In a very informal storytelling style, it narrates the dilemmas of the urban families in dealing with the conflicting emotions arising due to contradictory desires. It is the bonds of family and friendship that allow the protagonists to deal with these crises which are depicted by Manik Bal in a detached but empathetic narrative style reminiscent of the great “slice of life” storytellers of the east and the west.
Brothers Sen Gogh
He wanted to stay true to his art.
It would cost him his sanity and his life.
She wanted a life of dignity.
It was a recipe for poverty and strife.
Soubhik and Sourav, inspired by real heroes Vincent and Theo, try to make it in the cut throat indie music industry of Mumbai with the power of their brotherly love, and the love of their kind of music. The story honestly but delicately documents their romances, their passion, their love for the craft, yet the desire to give a sane life to their loved ones.
Will they live their dream?
Can they stay true to their principles?
Pink Lines On The Dark Sky
He is a writer.
She is an engineer.
He writes poems to her.
She teaches maths to him at lunch.
They know each other since they are eleven.
They think they have problems. They just don’t know what’s coming.
In September 2010, their world turns upside down. Will they survive the biggest crisis of their lives?
Her Revenge
With this diverse collection of short stories, Manik Bal continues to explore the bizarre in the mundane, and the mundane in the bizarre.
Exploring seemingly ordinary characters as a caretaker of a shared accommodation, a construction supervisor, and an out of job stay at home husband, every story weaves a heady cocktail of ordinary and unbelievable.