The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : Not a penny less for Lord Archer

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Tuesday, May 19, 2009
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

Not a penny less for Lord Archer

Staff Reporter

Fans in the city give the popular author a rockstar welcome

Sharing experiences: Jeffrey Archer interacting with his fans in Bangalore on Monday.

Bangalore: Jeffrey Archer is by now almost a regular in Bangalore and fans who turned up at the Landmark bookstore in Jayanagar on Monday at the launch of his latest bestseller “Paths of Glory” ensured a rockstar’s welcome for him.

Queuing up an hour in advance, scores of fans thronged the first floor of a popular mall to catch a glimpse of their favourite author, or at least hear him speak.

Fit as a man half his age and with a command in his voice, the 69-year-old bestselling author tickled his fans’ funny bone saying he wanted to be India’s Transport Minister.

Starting off with typical Brit humour, Lord Archer took frequent digs at India’s traffic, causing fans to burst into guffaws.

Clad in a blue-striped shirt, cream trousers and sports shoes, he confessed to being an R.K. Narayan fan. “It is disgraceful that there is no statue of R.K. Narayan either in Chennai or elsewhere in India,” he said.

Lord Archer was here as part of the “Landmark Jeffrey Archer Tour” spanning the cities of Chennai, Mumbai, New Delhi, Pune and Bangalore, organised by Landmark in association with Citibank.

Sharing his experience of writing “Paths of Glory”, the author, at one point asked the photographers to stop clicking as it broke his concentration. He wrapped up by answering a question by 11-year-old Tanmay that “his talent to write was a god-given gift”.

Later, the author obliged his fawning fans by autographing his books.

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