CHENNAI:As far as legacy goes, Shreekumar Varma’s reputation definitely precedes him — as an author, playwright and poet whose literary lineage hearkens back to the royal family of Travancore. The writer and great grandson of Raja Ravi Varma will be in conversation at The Artist’s Soul, curated by Avis Vishwanathan, in the city today.
How much of an influence was your lineage in your interest in literature?
Lineage did not influence anything at home — in fact during the regency of my grandmother, former Maharani Sethu Lakshmi Bayi, every house would have her picture....but in his home in Kilimanoor, my father removed that picture and put Subhash Chandra Bose’s portrait! Of course, this was much before he became her son-in-law (laughs).
You’ve described your grandmother as a ‘captive listener’ of your first novel...
Well, she used to say, “First I had a kingdom; then I had a house, and now I have a room...” so that was the transition that she went through, after her regency concluded in 1930. I was the only person who wrote at that point of time. For my first novel, which was never published, my grandmother was the ‘victim’ whom I would subject to long readings! She wanted me to write about Raja Ravi Varma and about the history of our family. But I thought it was too big a subject for me. Fiction was easier — in fact, the only time I did so much research was for my first published book, Pazhassi Raja: The Royal Rebel (1997).
How did you go about writing Pazhassi Raja — a historical novel, but for children?
The problem with these legendary figures is that on one hand you had these disparaging ‘bandit’ anecdotes of the British records, contrasted to the very adulatory stories of our native people. A friend of mine gifted me William Logan’s Malabar Manual (a set of records of the Scottish Collector of Malabar), from where I could draw the persona of Pazhassi Raja. You would’ve imagined him as a tall, well built man — I reckon he barely came up to Mammootty’s shoulder (he played the king in the 2009 movie)!
You initially worked in Bombay as a journalist before becoming a writer. Tell us about your experience.
Oh it was wonderful! Half of it was at the Indian Express and the other half, I spent in films with the Film Industry Journal. I started this little trend of ‘review and interview’, through which I got to interview stalwarts like Adoor Gopalakrishnan (in a car, while travelling to the airport) and John Abraham (the legendary Malayalam director, not the actor-producer). It was easier to transition to the film paper because I was doing a little bit of writing about cinema.
Would you want any of your plays to be adapted for the big screen? What are you working on now?
A lot of people have talked about adapting my works, but none of them have done it! My novel Maria’s Room (2010) is more suitable for a movie script. Though set in Goa, it has a Kerala element in it, and Malayali filmmakers today can go anywhere and make any kind of film. My upcoming novel is nearly finished, called Indian Scotch.
You’ve also taught creative English to mathematics students at the Chennai Mathematical Institute. What an interesting dichotomy!
I agree, and it was one of the most interesting stints I’ve had! Previously, I’d taught English and Literature at the Madras Christian College — and I literally had to wake my students up, since they would be studying literature all year. But while teaching at the Mathematical Institute, ideas were fresh, and receptivity was high due to their science background. Though expressing themselves in English was an effort, I encouraged many students to write more; it’s something I’m extremely proud of.
Which authors are your personal favourites?
I admire Arundhati Roy. I asked her how she managed to write so beautifully and she said, “I just put the right word in the right place!”
Shreekumar Varma will be in conversation with Avis Vishwanathan today, 7 pm at
The Wandering Artist, R A Puram. For details call 98401 11425