When I received my autographed copy of The Bankster for review, I was thrilled. It is the one and only autographed book I have and it made me feel special to hold and possess it.

If that was special, I sure have no words to express what I felt when my dear friend Pinsy told me that Indiblogeshwaris were organising this first of its kind Open BAR (Blogger Author  Rendezvous) with author Ravi Subramanian and pushed me to sign up for it. The prospect was too good to let go, and a few frantic calls and mails later (I was the last one to wiggle my way there!) I was on! 😀

The planning part itself seemed rather adventurous when Anuradha and me took and left three trains just to catch the one we’d planned to take first. The rain gods kept us company throughout, while the lesser gods, the autowalas, thankfully spared us some not-needed despair and readily took us to our destination; Chocolataria San Churro, Bandra.

Not expecting that we’d be the first ones to reach, I and Anuradha found ourselves puzzled if we were at the right place and time. A few urgent calls to Vinita for confirmation and from Pinsy for directions saved us from attacking the delicacies over there to kill time! Soon we were joined by our entire ‘By Invitation’ group and quick introductions followed. I liked this part, since there were many people I’d never met before.

The slightly segregated group became one almost as soon as Ravi Subramanian joined us. The first thing one might notice about him is his wonderful smile! I’d checked beforehand that he didn’t have any book launch coming up, and was understandably curious to know what he wanted to talk about to a bunch of bloggers he hardly knew. Soon enough, that part was clear, since he earnestly just wanted to have some chit-chat. 🙂

The words of wisdom regarding writing, editing and publishing that Ravi (yes, we can call him that!) shared with us were in one word: priceless. Every one of us has a book inside us which some people know and many don’t. For the ones who know he had a whole lot of tips and experiences to share. The number of drafts that go in making a book, the changes that take place in the story with every draft and the number of people (friends, professional editors, etc) who you must involve in your book to proof read is something that a writer needs to know and understand well.

I liked his reasoning for the transition from a banker to a writer. According to him, he wanted to do something that he’ll be remembered for long after he’s gone and chose writing for this purpose! Having a hands-on experience in the field made him choose banking as a backdrop for his books. However, any hopes of seeing him write about something else can rest for now, since our Grisham of Banking isn’t done with his stint at writing about banking and its politics just yet.

One more thing that Ravi, who’s a regular there, was right about was that the food there was awesome! The coffee, the sandwiches, the nachos with the two sauces, the churros with the two chocolate sauces and the three types of drinks there….everything was simply mouth-watering. Even more so, when we were told that our generous host, Ravi, was giving us this treat! 😀 😉

The photo session was a fun one, with everyone vying to get a picture with Ravi, who happily obliged everyone. The bloggers were all over the place; capturing Ravi in conversation mode, a mural in the background, a copy of The Bankster, the food, the paintings on the walls, and ofcourse, other fellow bloggers. With exchange of phone numbers, sharing of pictures, and a promise to repeat such an overwhelming and informative event in future, the bloggers took leave.

It was far from over though, for the two crazy girls; Pinsy and me. Knowing that a trip to Bandra isn’t a frequent one for either one of us, we went ahead and even with the rain pouring over us through our umbrellas, we went shopping on Linking Road! Having such girlish fun was a wonderful break for us and we got shoes, earrings, etc etc… Never realised before how much I miss this fun now! 🙂 🙂

After trying a little arm-twisting (which didn’t work), requesting and pleading with the autowalas, I finally reached Bandra station, on my journey back home, alone. The day’s events were too many to cherish and remember, but I didn’t mind going through them once again. I made new friends, met an author, shopped, got drenched, and enjoyed myself thoroughly, without a care in the world. Such things don’t happen often. Wow! 🙂 🙂