Rohit iZO Singhania explains the numbers game as designers Dev and Nil look on. (Bhubaneswarananda Halder)

The three richest people on earth are all born on 28. Carlos Slim, Mexican business magnate, January 28, Bill ‘Microsoft’ Gates, October 28 and Amancio Ortega, the Spanish chairman of Inditex who started the brand Zara, March 28.

Surely that can’t be just coincidence?! Numerology strongly believes in the play of numbers in making the fortune for these men, as much as it did with number 4 breaking the lives of Muammar Gaddafi and Michael Jackson.

Rohit iZO Singhania, a 31-year-old numerologist came armed with such facts and an audio-visual presentation on the game numbers play at the launch of his first book, Mr iZO Sayz [Self-published, Rs 330].

The launch was held at Crossword Bookstore, Elgin Road, recently and was attended by designer duo Dev and Nil.

“Going through various books on numerology I realised that none of them were clear about the theories. In order to make the study more accessible, I chose to write Mr. iZO Sayz, which explains numerology in the simplest of terms. The book also has certain characteristics based on the combination of numerology and zodiac signs, which derives from my own research,” said iZO.

An insight into the basics of numerology right from how to calculate the destiny number, psychic number and name number, to the possible implications of those numbers, the book is an easy guide for those interested in pursuing numerology or just curious about their own numbers. Mr. iZO Sayz also packs in corporate numerology, baby numerology, movie numerology and even some secrets of numerology.

“I started a website (www.izodiaque.in) in 2008. The name iZO came from there, because I wanted to create an identity separate from my profession as financial analyst. The name number for iZO is six, which works really well for me,” smiled Rohit-turned-iZO.

From left: Barun Chanda, Suman Mukherjee and Arunodaya Chaudhuri at the launch of Eleven New Plays. (Sayantan Ghosh)

“I have never followed numerology but while going through the book I realised that my numbers and the characteristics mentioned are uncannily similar to me. Like colours or days with which I have previously held some subconscious attachment,” said Dev, though he insisted that he would rather depend on hard work than number luck.

“iZO is a friend. He had once asked us to use the name ‘Dev Nil’ rather than ‘Dev R Nil’. Though we still go by the ‘R’ name, our website is www.devnil.com and surprisingly there has been a huge response,” said Nil.

Raman Bharadwaj, the director of AN John, also had a personal anecdote to share. “I have been consulting Rohit about AN John but never had the courage to ask about myself, since this guy seems to know everything! He did tell me that my owning AN John was a very good combination in terms of numbers,” smiled Bharadwaj.

Lucky number eleven

It was not just a book launch but also a celebration of friendship. Advertising professional Arunodaya Chaudhuri’s latest work of fiction — Eleven New Plays — is dedicated to two of his departed friends (Dipankar Dutt Gupta and Raban Sengupta), it was introduced by one of his college mates, professor Suman Mukherjee, and the event was attended by several of the author’s buddies. The other guest at the launch at Oxford Bookstore on June 27 was actor Barun Chanda.

TWO FISH AND FIVE LOAVES: It’s not a cookbook, though the title might suggest otherwise. But Anita Lazarus’s Chopped, Sprinkled and Ready to Serve packs in much food for thought. The book is an account of the author’s spiritual quest and was released at the Baptist Missionary Society Hall on June 28, accompanied by hymns. Lazarus, a former teacher and wife of an IAF officer, has worked with underprivileged children and this book speaks of the value of her spiritual experience. “This is my two fish and five loaves offering to God,” she said. Picture by Anindya Shankar Ray

Published by Footloose, it’s a collection of 11 plays on social, cultural and political themes. Some are based on mythology and history too.

Mukherjee, the principal of Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Institute of Management Science, introduced every play in the book. “Reading the book was almost like looking at a kaleidoscope,” he said.

Mukherjee added that he found a lot of Bengal in the plays and compared the 11 plays to 11 heeras (diamonds).

Chanda preferred to call Chaudhuri a crusader and his plays an 11-course feast. “Each one caters to an entirely different taste,” he said, adding that the book was rich in parody, caricature, farce and burlesque.

Chaudhuri claimed his love for plays developed in college through the jatras that used to be staged in Park Circus during the festive season. “The jatras ingrained in me a feel for the stage. I realised that even with minimal sets actors can create wonders. I discovered a parallel between our jatras and English morality plays,” he said. About his latest compilation, he said they were simple plays that could be staged even on a small budget.