The Myth Makers

Publishers acknowledge that the names to watch out for in the genre are Ashwin Sanghi (The Krishna Key),Anand Neelakantan (Asura: Tale of the Vanquished) and Krishna Udayasankar (Govinda: The Aryavarta Chronicles). The list also includes Devdutt Pattanaik who has written books centered around myth and management; former editor and journalist Sandipan Deb whose recent release The Last War is a modern day version of the Mahabharata set in Mumbai and Sangeeta Bahadur’s Jaal,a complete work of mytho-fantasy not based on a deity but set against the backdrop of the epic age. Anuj Bahri of Bahri Sons,a popular Delhi bookstore,who is also Tripathi’s agent,says,“Fantastic writing has become extremely popular over the past few years. Harry Potter is probably the highest selling book in fantastic writing globally. In India,fantastic writing starts from mythology where you are largely re-looking at the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Mythology has over the past few years made it to the forefront of publishing. It is for this reason that we have added a new section which is all fantasy. ” VK Karthika,chief editor at Harper Collins,adds,“Quite a few books in the myth and fantasy genre have been extremely successful,as a result,many authors are giving a different but rather vibrant spin to old myths and this is popularising this writing.” Tripathi’s Shiva trilogy is an easy read and holds one’s attention throughout. It has an intriguing plot with an interesting storyline which is a mix of mythology and fantasy. Tripathi says his work began as a pure philosophical thesis on what is evil. “This led me to Lord Shiva as the destroyer of that evil. The story emerged from these contemplations on evil and it became a thriller much later.” The author adds,“Not much research went into these books. I already knew about them. The knowledge came from my childhood,I come from an extremely religious family and my grandfather,who was a pandit from Banaras,was deeply knowledgeable about our mythology.”

Anand Neelakantan’s Asura is another major success in this genre and has already sold 50,000 copies. Says Neelakantan,“Our mythology is full of wars between asuras and devas and I wanted to explore the element of history in the myths. I grew up in a conservative family where mythology was and is a part of everyday life. Asuras looked to be a more modern clan and [their story deserved to be told.” He adds that his next book is ready and is based on yet another negative character from mythology,Duryodhana from the Mahabharata. It is scheduled to be released later this year. Another book that is selling well is Govinda by Krishna Udayasankar,part of a series of four books. Udayasankar says,“I prefer to call The Aryavarta Chronicles a work of mytho-history rather than pure myth or fantasy. I want to explore the epics as tales of humanity,not divinity,as something that could have been history and not some improbable fantasy that defied all logic and science. My idea was to portray the central characters as human and stress this human element over all aspects of magic and fantasy. ” Her four books are set in the epic age of Aryavarta and a central character in the book is Govinda,cowherd-turned-prince and commander of the armies of Dwarka. This book is a re-telling of the Mahabharata but written without any magic and poetry.

The current stars of this genre come from backgrounds and careers with little connection to fiction writing but were all brought up on tales of Indian mythology. Tripathi shifted to Mumbai after realising that his royalties exceeded his salary as a banker. He worked for 14 years in the financial services sector and his last job was with the IDBI group. He did his MBA at the Indian Institute of Management (Calcutta) after spending his earlier years in Orissa where his father,an engineer,worked with Larsen and Toubro. Says Tripathi,“I am a voracious reader and also a devotee of Lord Shiva.” Neelakatan is based in Belgaum,Karnataka and works with the Indian Oil Corporation as a manager. He is an engineer by training and did his BTech from the government engineering college at Trissur,in Kerala. He has settled in Belgaum with his wife and their two children. He comes from what he calls “a curious little village” called Tripunithura,on the outskirts of Cochin. However,the village is more famous for its hundred-odd temples,the many artists it produced and a music school. “Ironically,I was drawn to the anti-hero of the epic,Ravana,and to his people the asuras. I wondered about their magical years,but my fascination remained dormant for many years. But the asura emperor would not leave me alone,” he says.

Krishna Udayasankar has also had a varied life,travelling to many places before she moved to Singapore where she now teaches international business at the Nanyang Business School. Her father,an Indian railways employee,and her mother,an artist from Mysore,instilled in her a love for books. They were a very conservative family but Udayasankar had an eclectic life,graduating from the National Law School of India University (NLSIU),Bangalore,she went on to work for an NGO for a while then completed her PhD in strategic management from the Nanyang Business School.

One reason for the immense success of these books is that Indian mythology is in every Indian’s DNA,and occupies a permanent place in the collective consciousness. From childhood onwards,a majority of children are brought up on mythological epics with the infinite gods and goddesses,and the good versus evil theme.

Tripathi’s books have been translated into Hindi,Marathi,Gujarati,Telugu and Assamese. Jo Fletcher Books bought the English language rights outside of the Indian sub-continent and published the first book,The Immortals of Meluha,in the UK in January 2013. The book will be released in the US in 2014 and soon after in Indonesia. Clearly,Indian mythology offers a very rich source of stories and characters,and its now making a lot of authors very rich,as well.

Charu Singh is a freelance writer