CHENNAI : The air crackled with suspense at the Raintree Hotel on a seemingly ordinary Wednesday evening. As the clock struck seven, the grand hall transformed into a gathering of whispers, anticipation, and intrigue. The occasion? The launch of GV Subba Rao’s much-awaited suspense thriller, ‘The Last Witness’. The room was heavy with the promise of secrets soon to be revealed, the kind that only a storyteller like Subba Rao could unveil. As the evening unfolded, the audience was treated to a reading session by Aditi Balan, actor.
Subba Rao, who has written two other books, is no stranger to the world of fiction. However, ‘The Last Witness’ dives deep into the realms of suspense. Published by Vitasta, the novel is set against the backdrop of ISRO in Sriharikota, before taking readers on a journey to Germany. He dedicated the book to his late parents, drawing strength from their memory. “I lost my father when I started this, and my mother was ailing,” he says. He described the writing process, “You become a bystander, and the story takes its shape.”
Suhasini Maniratnam, actor and filmmaker, guest of honour, spoke about the impact of stories on our lives. “We are all storytellers. What I liked about the novel was that the writer didn’t delve too long into any one character,” she said, adding that this approach mirrored the multifaceted nature of life itself. Writer and columnist Shobhaa De praised Subba Rao for crafting a “very taut thriller” and noted the novel’s feminist undertones. The protagonists in the book are women, a choice that Subba Rao insists was not by design, but rather a natural progression of the story. “For the first time, I am reading a thriller of this genre written by a man where the protagonists are women,” she said. She also highlighted the sensitivity with which Subba Rao wrote certain characters. Emphasising that readers will find the book both logical and believable, the author said, “The characters are relatable. I assure you that the book won’t disappoint you.”
‘The Last Witness’ is available on www.vitastapublishing.com