Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Author Ashok Rajamani, whose acclaimed memoir ‘The Day My Brain Exploded: A True Story’ is set to be adapted into a movie by the producers of ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ and ‘Life of Pi,’ will be releasing the digitally remastered, tenth anniversary edition of the audiobook for ‘Imagine Carnivalesque,’ his pioneering book of literary criticism.
While ‘Exploded’ chronicles Rajamani’s extraordinary survival from a massive brain hemorrhage at age 25 — tackling themes of disability, race, and cultural taboos – Carnivalesque’ uncovers the sexual mores and the unconscious impulses of South Asian Literature, discussing the works of authors like Salman Rushdie.
The audiobook is narrated by Audie-Award-winning actress Deepti Gupta, who has narrated for multiple bestselling authors internationally, including Jhumpa Lahiri and Geethanjali Shree. She has appeared opposite Jack Black in DreamWorks Animation’s Kung Fu Panda: Dragon Knight and was the voice of Goddess Ganga in Academy Award nominee Sanjay Patel’s animation series Ghee Happy. She can currently be seen in her Recurring Guest role on HBO Max’s critically acclaimed & Emmy-winning drama, ‘The Pitt,’ alongside Noah Wyle.
“Celebrating the ten-year anniversary of ‘Imagine Carnivalesque’ means a lot to me,” Rajamani said. ”I wrote this book to uncover themes of gender and sexual representation in South Asian literature, which are rarely discussed. In doing so, I sought to reveal the importance of such visibility in subcontinental literature overall, and ultimately, in society itself. Given today’s political climate, in which rights of the marginalized are constantly under attack, the book matters more than ever.”
Added Gupta, “As an immigrant who belongs here and also nowhere, I resonated with the book, especially in how Ashok challenges social hierarchies and norms that abound in the South Asian diaspora. And now, on its tenth anniversary, I have personal reasons to rejoice in the book’s success: my teenager has gender non-conforming and queer peers, and I want these kids to become adults in a world that welcomes them with open arms. I’m grateful for the incredible work of Ashok, and know that ‘Imagine Carnivalesque’ will continue to do its work in furthering this important conversation.”
Rajamani’s Spiral Mirror Entertainment will be releasing the audiobook. The entertainment company’s other productions include the flash audio monologue ‘If These Saris Could Talk’ starring ‘Bombay Dreams’ actress Zehra Naqvi, British voice artist Nano Nagle’s performance of the poetry collection ‘Tea Unbrewed,’ and the digitally remastered audiobook of ‘Exploded,’ recorded live at New York’s Edge Studio.