‘WRITERS MUST EXPERIMENT’

Author Ravi Subramanian talks about his new book, how he juggles writing and a full-time job, and why it’s important to experiment

Most authors switch to writing full-time when they finally taste success, and they’re often encouraged to do so. However, Ravi Subramanian is a financial expert by day and a writer of bestselling thrillers, well, when he finds the time. He rose to fame during the 2007-08 global financial crisis, with his book If God Was a Banker, and has regularly churned out award-winning books while balancing a full-time job. Excerpts from an interview: Do you talk about terror, wars and intolerance inspired by religion in your latest book, In The Name of God? In The Name Of God is inspired by the mysterious Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple in Thiruvananthapuram. This temple is the world’s richest temple — some say even richer than the Vatican. And it is under a private trust controlled by the Royal Family of Travancore. A few years ago, there was a case in the Supreme Court that argued in favour of the state taking over the control of the temple and its wealth. That led to a huge debate, and the court formed a committee to look into the temple’s affairs. In The Name Of God is a thriller set in the above backdrop. Murders, heists, conflict of religious ideologies, and the tussle between the local law and the CBI are an integral part of the story. It isn’t a religious commentary nor is it based on the current intolerance rant. It is an entertainer. Initially, you wrote stories about banks and financial frauds, but later you covered other international issues. What made you do that? I am a firm believer in the fact that any writer who boxes himself in one genre is not doing justice to his craft. Writers must experiment. That’s how you improve. My move away from banking thrillers was an effort towards this end. In The Name Of God is my biggest move away from my comfort zone. It’s a thriller based in an unfamiliar backdrop, and needed a lot of research and effort. And when my editor told me that this was my best book yet, I knew that it was worth the effort. Initial reviews from readers have also been heartwarming. But this in no way indicates that I will never write a financial thriller again. Unlike other bestselling authors, you still have a regular job and write part-time. Do you plan to make writing your full-time job anytime soon? I will never give up my day job for writing. Both are joined at the hip. It is my day job that makes writing interesting. I don’t depend on writing for money as my day job more than provides for it. The day I give up my day job, writing will become my job. I will be forced to write under deadlines and under pressure. That will kill the fun. I will keep both writing and my day job intact as much as possible. Killing one, I worry, will kill the other too. You once said that you aspire to become the John Grisham of banking. How important is it for a writer to create a niche of their own in order to succeed? I was misquoted. I never said that I want to become the Grisham of banking. That tag stuck somewhere along the way. It’s an interesting tag to have, it is also a bit of a baggage; one that prevents you from experimenting. In today’s world, more than a lakh of new books come out every year. If you want to stand out and be read, it is important to create a niche for yourself. I wrote banking thrillers. I’m not sure if I would have reached this stage in my writing career had my first book not been a banking

thriller. If God Was a Banker set me on a wonderful journey only because it was a book that was different from the books in those days. That created a niche for me. Creating a niche is not bad, but just be careful that the niche does not start dominating your creativity. What do you think the Indian publishing industry lacks? I think all the talk about the publishing industry growing and book sales picking up is rubbish. Look at the way the reading population is growing and see if book sales are in line with that growth. You will be disappointed. Books

are grossly undervalued in our country. We will spend `500 on a Tubelight, but will hesitate to spend `500 on a good book. Why? A book lasts long and also stays with you longer. A book today is cheaper than a cup of coffee at Starbucks. We need a network of street corner bookstores that are protected from e-commerce dominance and price wars. We need both e-commerce and bookstores to co-exist if we want to emerge as a well-cultured and wellread nation. We are far from it now.

I am a firm believer in the fact that any writer who boxes himself in one genre is not doing justice to his craft. RAVI SUBRAMANIAN, AUTHOR