BENGALURU: Samhita Arni started writing and illustrating her first book The Mahabharatha - A Child’s View at the age of eight. The book then went on to be translated in seven languages and sold 50,000 copies worldwide. Her second book – Sita’s Ramayana – was on the New York Times Bestseller list for Graphic Novels for two weeks in 2011. Besides being a writer, she has also done multiple stints such as assistant director on a documentary film, TV reporter, editor and head scriptwriter. Her latest book is titled The Prince and focuses on the tale of the writer of Silappatikaram. Excerpts from an interview:
What was your trigger for writing the book The Prince?
The rape of Nirbhaya. I, like many other women, started to feel angry. I realised that anger was something I had denied myself—I think we are are cultured to believe that anger is wrong, unfeminine, and that grief is feminine, not masculine. And that’s when I started thinking of the Silappatikaram, of the rage of Kannagi, and how that is prompted by injustice. Initially this book was to focus on Kannaki, but then it transformed into something else—into the tale of the writer of Silappatikaram. Why did a man—that too one born to a royal family— renounce his claim to the throne, become an ascetic and write an epic with a woman as a central character, a woman who deals death to kings? What inspired him? I became fascinated by that choice.
Have any of your books been inspired by vernacular books?
Yes! In particular Sita’s Ramayana is inspired by oral, vernacular traditions of retelling the Ramayana. The Missing Queen is a response to the numerous versions, including vernacular versions, of the Ramayana. The Prince is inspired by the Silappatikaram.
Do you go back to your old writings, like Sita’s Ramayana? How does it feel to re-read what you had written years back?
Yes, I have to when I talk about or present my work. And I always cringe. I hate re-reading my own work. But I guess many writers feel that way.
Have you always seen yourself as a writer? What has been your inspiration as a writer?
I wanted to be anything but a writer when I was younger. Being a writer is often lonely, a struggle—not just emotionally, but a real financial struggle. It takes persistence and confidence to keep at this—both are quantities that I have found myself lacking at times. My inspiration as a writer — it keeps changing. While writing The Prince, I often thought of the renaissance era artist Artemisia Gentileschi, who poured out her frustration at the miscarriage of justice (she was raped at 17, and then went on trial and was tortured in order to prove her innocence). He was given a brief sentence at the end, which was later annulled, I think. She poured out her rage in her famous painting ‘Judith Murdering Holofernes’, were her rapist is condemned, as Holofernes, for all time. She was also one of the few women artists at the time. Her story gave me the belief that art and writing do have the power to rectify real-life miscarriages of justice—and that’s also the impulse behind the Silappatikaram, I believe.
What is the process you undergo while writing?
I struggle with anxiety. I keep asking myself—is this good enough? All of my books/ writing could be better. Lots of writer’s block—and no surefire ways of dealing with that. Meditation and a schedule helps.
How difficult or easy is it to get published?
Have you had to modify or change the content of any of your books for it to get published?It is difficult. I’ve been very lucky getting published. All the changes my editors have recommended have only improved or strengthened my books.
Who’s your first reader?
And who are your biggest critics?
My editor and my parents are my first readers. My biggest critic (in life, not in writing) — my brother. He keeps me grounded.
Do you think marketing has played an integral role in the success of your books?
Yes. It’s very important—and a good marketing department and publicist can make or break a book. There’s always a team, or a larger family behind each book. But it is also serendipity. Sita’s Ramayana made it to the New York Times Bestseller List and that has really helped push my career. But it was also the work of a very smart publicist, Meghan, who really went all out to promote the book. Both those things happening: that’s luck. And I am very grateful for it.