Monday, 1 July 2013

Thrills and Chills

By Lata Gwalani

The crowded cities and the dark alleys are the toast of the current Indian literature scenario. Many first time writers have made their debut in the literary circles with thriller novels, detective novels, murder mysteries, phsycological thrillers etc. The readers have in turn taken a huge liking towards such novels owing probably to the 'unputdownable' quality that they all seem to enjoy. Also, a fact that works for these debutants is that in India there are not many English authors who have experimented with thrillers and mysteries and that leaves the field open.
In the past couple years there have been many Indian authors who have come out with their first novel as a thriller. Some authors opine that writing of death, murder, crime and curiosity by focusing on the details of the incident gives an ultimate high to the author and once a debutant receives a successful feedback on his/her novel the confidence is boosted. Others are of the opinion that considering the 'thrill seeking' lives that people today lead there is a greater demand and appreciation of such novels.
Whatever be the reason, the thrillers have found a place amongst the bestselling novel by Indian authors. The books have sold like hot cakes placing these debutants on the list of best selling Indian authors. Some of the recently published debutant thriller novelists include names like Lata Gwalani who debuted with a brilliant 'Incognito', a psychological thriller about a woman named Anjali. A plain and simple girl whose life is turned around by befriending 4 individuals. She witnesses their lives' ups and downs from the periphery. But one day Anjali accidentally becomes a mute witness to their plotting of four bizarre murders. Will Anjali be able to set herself free from the grip of these 4 friends or will she remain trapped in there forever getting sucked deeper into the labyrinth . Lata being a behavioral trainer has displayed her ability to deal with the human mind's complexities in the novel.
Other than Lata Gwalani other new book launches in India in the past have been Aroon Raman who tasted success with his book 'The Shadow throne'. Upendra Namburi's '31' is also hot on the thriller circuit. Madhumita Bhattacharya and filmmaker Piyush Jha too have made their debut in this genre in the recent past. The latest author on the block to come up with a fiction thriller is Shatrujeet Nath with 'The Karachi Deception.'
It's not only the first timers who are smitten by the whodunit bug. Many famous Indian writers are too veneering towards this genre and the limitless opportunities it provides to stretch ones imagination. Anita Nair, Jaishree Misra, Kishwar Desai are some of the names who have ventured into mystery fiction writing and have been successful at it.
One thing common amongst almost all the authors is that they have been inspired from foreign authors like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Robert Ludlum and the ilk. Considering that in the Indian scenario there were no or very less authors who could weave that web of mystery in the minds of the reader as skillfully as the foreign authors. But all that seems to be changing now. With this new breed of mystery/thriller writers making way to the best sellers list let's hope that the next generation of writers don't have to look towards the west for inspiration.
As for the readers, we are not complaining. With the class of spine chilling whodunits on the racks, the season is definitely hot for them.

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