Hello fellow readers,

Today I would like to invite a well known personality who has recently launched her novel The Secret of God’s Son. With the novel reveal you might have guessed who she is! Yes, She is our dear Usha Narayanan. Over to you ma’am!

Guest Topic: Which is the most comfortable genre for you to write and why?

I did not really agonize over a choice of genre and blithely wrote whatever took my fancy. First came a thriller (‘The Madras Mangler’), next a romcom (‘Love, Lies and Layoffs’) and two mythological tales (‘Pradyumna: Son of Krishna’ and my latest, ‘The Secret of God’s Son’). In my view, the essentials of a good book, whatever the genre may be, are always the same: an engrossing plot, vivid characters and a climax that boldly affirms the victory of good over evil. Each genre of course has its own grammar and I had to master its nuances and write accordingly. A thriller is like a giant jigsaw puzzle and becomes a huge intellectual exercise. A romcom traverses the inner landscape and focuses on the rainbow hues of love. And a myth encompasses not just the three realms of the universe, but also the physical, emotional and spiritual dimensions.

My favourite genre, not because it is easy to write, but because it is so highly challenging and rewarding, is mythology. First, the stories and the characters are magical and have endured for centuries. The possibilities to expand on them or give them new forms are endless. Second, myths are often set in distant worlds, but they are still real, relatable and exhilarating. The gods and even the demons exhibit human appetites and instincts such as greed, fear, anger and lust. Third, these tales satisfy our thirst for happy endings in an unhappy world, where villains are brought down with a satisfying flourish. Fourth, they help us reach a better understanding of abstruse concepts such as life and death, heaven and hell, suffering and bliss. They also enlighten us on secular and cultural concepts such as sovereignty, rights, responsibilities and the role of women in society.

Above all, I love myths because they celebrate the triumph of the human spirit and inspire us to evolve beyond the personal to the universal and perhaps the divine.

Thank you, Surbhi, for giving me this opportunity to feature on your blog and to interact with readers. I welcome questions and feedback from every one of you.