2.11: Udayan Mukherjee - Indian Lockdown Stories Across Geography And Class

From migrant workers to British expats, from the hills of Uttaranchal to the heart of Mumbai's metropolis, find out how Udayan captures India's lockdown experience in his timely short story collection.Tara and Michelle talk to Udayan Mukherjee about his short story collection, “Essential Items: Stories from a Land in Lockdown”, recently published by Bloomsbury. Udayan shares how writing during the pandemic kept him sane. He finished the book in three months and Tara had the pleasure of editing it!We chat about Udayan’s life in the hills: the people he meets and how they have influenced the stories in his collection. He talks about the importance of capturing our experiences with the lockdown while it is happening. Michelle is inspired to start writing about the pandemic herself! Why does he prefer to write fiction? How has he never owned a smartphone? And does he share writing tips with his brother, the author Neel Mukherjee? Tune in to find out!'Books and Beyond with Bound' is the podcast where Tara Khandelwal and Michelle D'costa of Bound talk to some of the best writers in India and find out what makes them tick.Udayan Mukherjee was born in Calcutta. For two decades, he was the face of the Indian financial markets, as anchor and Managing Editor of CNBC. He is the author of the novel Dark Circles and the crime novel A Death in the Himalayas. He has recently published Essential Items: Stories from a Land in Lockdown, a short story collection with Bloomsbury.Mentions: A Case of Exploding Mangoes by Muhammad Hanif, The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula LeGuin, Akhil Sharma, Raymond Carver, P G Woodhouse, John CheeverYou can get your copy of his book here: https://www.amazon.in/Essential-Items-Stories-Land-Lockdown/dp/9390252210 Tune in every Wednesday for a new episode.Follow Bound on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter: @boundindiaFollow our podcast on Instagram: @boundpodcastsYou can check out our website at https://www.boundindia.com/podcast/Applications for The Bound Publishing Course 2026 are now open.The Bound Publishing Course is a 3-month intensive course on book, magazine, and digital publishing. Through live sessions, workshops, and industry-facing projects, participants gain practical publishing skills and exposure to careers across the industry.Cohort size: 50 seatsFirst round of acceptances: 15th June 2026Applications are reviewed on a rolling bas‘Books and Beyond with Bound’ is the podcast where Tara Khandelwal and Michelle D’costa uncover how their books reflect the realities of our lives and society today. Find out what drives India’s finest authors: from personal experiences to jugaad research methods, insecurities to publishing journeys. Created by Bound, a storytelling company that helps you grow through stories. Follow us @boundindia on all social media platforms.