Shadows of September- A Collection of Short Stories

Bijay Kishore Sundar Ray was born in 1949 and belongs to Bhubaneswar. He joined the Indian Administrative Service in 1972 and held important positions in the undivided Madhya Pradesh. When the State was bifurcated in November, 2000, Mr. Ray was allocated Chhattisgarh cadre. The burdens of administration never affected his love for literature. After a chequered career, Mr. Ray retired in 2009 in the rank of Chief Secretary to the Government of Chhattisgarh. A prolific writer, Ray has so far written one novel, two short story collections and five volumes of poetry in English. He is also the author of a satirical collection in Hindi, "Rasoi Ghar Ka Rajkumar". Besides, Ray regularly writes on contemporary affairs for newspapers and magazines. "Writing short stories", says Ray, "is an exercise to understand human existence. I talk to my characters to convey my internal feelings and in the process I explore and survive!" To Ray, a short story is like a burning candle rather than a blaze that reveals the hope and despair of life. Incidentally, like the English novelist and short story writer D.H. Lawrence, he would like to draw his characters from flesh and blood. "Even a fiction has a hidden fact and it is creativity that digs out that invisible existence", says Ray. In his short story collection "Shadows of September" Ray's magic touch relating to love, loneliness and human relationships is distinctly visible. Added to his earlier short story collections "The Stranger" and "The Platform Man", the new one too exhibits his capacity for a spontaneous narration of events and characters. Mr. Ray lives in Raipur (Chhattisgarh) where he intends to pursue his literary activities.

Reflecting on the inter-personal relationships of human beings with a quest for love and existence has been the driving force behind my short story writings. I seek a fusion of facts and fictions to extend my creative canvas. Sometimes I smile and weep with my characters as though they belong to my bloodstream. This process is inescapable as human beings fascinate me wherever I go. Accordingly, my short stories relate to a hidden solidarity of existence beneath hope and despair. I must express my hearty thanks to all my friends, relatives and well-wishers for their support and encouragement to write stories linked to human existence.

**Contents and Sample Pages**