In June, author Ashok Ferrey was pleased to find himself being courted assiduously by Indian publishers. The likes of MacMillan and Harper Collins were after the rights to Ashok’s novel ‘Serendipity’ – but it was Random House that won their man with the promise of buying his entire set of volumes, including his first book [...]

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The Sundaytimes Sri Lanka

Random House picks Ashok Ferrey

By Smriti Daniel
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In June, author Ashok Ferrey was pleased to find himself being courted assiduously by Indian publishers. The likes of MacMillan and Harper Collins were after the rights to Ashok’s novel ‘Serendipity’ – but it was Random House that won their man with the promise of buying his entire set of volumes, including his first book ‘Colpetty People’ which was shortlisted for the Gratiaen Prize in 2003.

Ashok signed a contract with the publisher last week, and told the Sunday Times that the deal included an option on his next book, the first draft of which, by happy coincidence, he also completed last week. The new book whose title is yet unconfirmed will mark a departure from the “light humour” his fans associate him with, says Ashok. “It’s a bit of a shocker,” he promises, adding that he’s wearing his heart more obviously on his sleeve in his new writing.

The interest in ‘Serendipity’, Ashok’s only novel isn’t surprising, since publishers are famously reluctant to take on short stories. The book stars Piyumi Segarajasingham, a young London barrister – half-Tamil, half-Sinhalese – who must return home to Sri Lanka to deal with a personal crisis. In addition to the two books already mentioned, Ashok has another couple to his credit – ‘The Good Little Ceylonese Girl’ and ‘Love in a Time of Tsunami’ complete the set. He’s excited about the response his books will garner in the much vaster Indian market.

Though his sales aren’t as high as he might like here, Ashok is a well known face in Sri Lanka, where he wears many hats including that of a lecturer, builder, T.V show host and occasional personal trainer. In recent months, he’s added ‘nomad’ to the list. Ashok has been doing some travelling on the literary circuit, visiting Bhutan, Leipzig and Brunei. Where his books are not on sale, he carries them himself in a suitcase, bringing the empty container back after having met with many enthusiastic readers. Ashok’s profile is also likely to rise in the wake of his scheduled appearance at key literary festivals in India, particularly the 2013 Jaipur Literary Festival to which he has just been invited.

“I don’t think it has anything to do with me,” Ashok confesses, “It’s about Sri Lanka. The eyes of the world are upon us, thanks to Carl Muller, who opened the floodgates and most recently Shehan Karunatilaka. They now know that literature is alive and well in Sri Lanka and that the home grown stuff is worth looking at.”




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