Only a few people may have asked Shatrughan Sinha to be quiet. But then, Lord Jeffrey Archer isn't just anyone.
The actor-turned-politician has made a career playing the tough guy, with one of his most popular dialogues being “khamosh (quiet)”. So, when Jeffrey Archer told him exactly that—“oh shush” being the author's favourite phrase—Sinha was visibly taken aback.
The incident happened at a private cocktail party held in honour of Archer recently. After his flight was delayed, Archer found himself stuck in traffic and, moreover, was overtaken by an elephant. When he arrived at the venue and was led to the front of the room, Archer, being a storyteller, was in the mood to spin tales.
“Shush,” he said to the man who ushered him reverentially to the front of the hall. The organisers, Prabha Khaitan Foundation, managed to salvage the situation quickly, by introducing Sinha as a patron of arts. Nonetheless, it was an experience that Sinha is unlikely to forget.
Archer, however, remained unruffled. His new book Heads You Win is out and, as expected, has made it to the bestsellers list.
On his annual pilgrimage to India, where his books have a huge market, Archer had added Jaipur to his list. “I only look at the itinerary of today,” he says. “Never look at the next day. This is what Margaret Thatcher taught me.”
“People ask, 'do you mind all these people wanting you to sign books?'” and I said, “The other side of it is that nobody asks you, nobody reads you. No, thank you. I'll stick with this.”
Archer, who does one book a year, is already on his next book.
His advice for young writers? “Write what you know. If your mother is a hair dresser. Write about that.”
