The tough task of building a home

Dr V. Srinivas in his book A Tale of Two Homes spins a tale of fact and fiction in a comic way about home construction and home preservation. 

Having started his career as a urological cancer and robotic surgeon, he did not have any plans to write a book although he had been writing scientific articles before. The book came about by accident, as the writer in the family is actually his wife who is a journalist by profession. He says, “It was a total role reversal.

A Tale of Two Homes

The home that we had built in the Nilgiris serves as a bed and breakfast. We had a family of six visiting us. During our conversation we mentioned to them the experience and difficulties we went through in building the house — from the purchase of the land to construction to acquiring labour.” The daughter of this family suggested that a book be written about this experience. “The suggestion didn’t get much of a response from my wife. So in the end I took it upon myself to experiment with it and that’s how the book came about.” 

Srinivas suggests this book as a good reading material for people who are looking to build a house in other cities. “This book is all about the problems one encounters while building a house, and how to effectively deal with problems.”

Srinivas feels that young authors need to get over their inertia and get down to writing if they have an idea and the impulse. He adds, “If you have an idea, put it down. I think each one has a story to tell and with different aspects and angles.

The key is not to get discouraged. As you write, the momentum picks up gradually. Write the idea or it will get lost in procrastination.”