The Indulgence called writing

September 22, 2016 06:21 pm | Updated November 01, 2016 08:13 pm IST - MADURAI:

She is like neighbour and homemaker next door, excited about setting up the golu next week. But the difference is that at 53, Preetha Rajah Kannan has not one but 54 stories sold in a book and that seems to have opened the gates for her in the literary world.

SCRIPTING A STORY: Preetha Rajah Kannan. Photo: S. James

SCRIPTING A STORY: Preetha Rajah Kannan. Photo: S. James

Her first book was published in December last year, the second is due for release in January 2017 and the third is a work in progress. And yet, Preetha Rajah Kannan does not relish playing an active part in book promotion. She is so unlike several present day writers perpetually on self-promotion drives and also so averse to modern day hype around book launches and attending lit fests that you wonder if her books sell.

But then her Mumbai-based publisher, the JAICO Publishing House, has just informed her that impressed with the sales of her maiden book, “ Shiva in the City of Nectar ”, they are now planning to translate it in Tamil. And also another interesting fact shared by the JAICO stall representative during the 11th annual book fair in Madurai last month was that most copies of her book were picked up by youths aged between 18 and 25 years.

“Both bits of information are heart warming,” says Preetha with a pleasant countenance and in unaffected manner. Even this interview would not have happened but for her doting younger son who felt his mother’s creative writing skills had long been ignored!

Ten minutes into the conversation, you realise Preetha is the quintessential homemaker first and she writes only for the sheer joy of writing. “And when people read and like what I write and send me their feedback, it is like a bonus,” she says.

But what Preetha does not hide is that she always dreamt of writing as a career when she was studying in a boarding school in Yercaud or later took up psychology major in Madras Christian College, Chennai.

“In fact,” she says, “I wanted to become a journalist but my father didn’t allow, a point I still fight with him on!” For someone who started writing beautiful English poems at the age of eight and progressed to writing short stories and many articles in various publications, received appreciation from her teachers and mentors all along, publishing the first book at the age of 53 might appear tad late in life. But she proves it is not age that matters but that she is convinced about “the right time now to do something different.” Good things happen to those who wait.

The day she decided to pick up her pen for scripting a book, she knew the story it was going to be in an instant. “When I came to Madurai as a newly-wedded bride 30 years ago, the first sight that met my eyes was a panoramic view of the western tower of the Meenakshi Temple.” Her father-in-law, M.A.Kandasamy, a prominent citizen of yesteryears (who established the Sri Mappillai Vinayagar theatre, the goli soda factory and promoted chess and yoga in a big way) lived in a house opposite to the Meenakshi Temple and for Preetha, her husband and their two sons, a daily after-dinner walk in Aadi Veedhi became a routine.

“Being an enthusiastic reader and a story teller from my young days, the temple was a treasure trove of tales to me,” recalls Preetha, who simply plunged into the delights of the Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam . “Lord Shiva’s divine play was recounted in colourful murals and sculpted in stones everywhere and the more I looked at them, the more they fascinated me,” she says.

Her search for more material did not draw much and relying on material from the temple, elderly friends and family and G.Shankaranarayanan’s “ Stories from Thiruvilaiyadal Puranam ”, Preetha decided to flesh out the different avatars of the Lord with the lavish play of an affectionate imagination.

“Writing is such a solitary profession,” she says, “but this book was quite a collaborative effort.” “I met many senior people to hear the treasured tales that are passed on orally through generations,” she adds.

Fired by both imagination and inspiration, Preetha took six months to write 54 stories that portray Shiva’s multi-faceted mystique. “The rush of ideas made me throb with excitement,” says Preetha, “and I could proceed in a sequence on a quest for revelation of a mythological journey where Shiva sweeps across the three worlds (the Heaven, the Earth and the underworld) taking on the follies of the devas, asuras, sages, beasts and men, embraces the good and the bad alike taking on the guise of beggar, merchant, hunter, warrior, fisherman, woodcutter, saint and monarch.”

Great at evoking time and place and using rich textural prose with the strokes of her pen, Preetha makes the rich characterisation in a mythological setting in her book so real. “A reader will almost believe that yes Shiva walked on these very streets of Madurai,” she says, adding, when past and present collides in your imagination, the story transcends all ages and genres. She brings a tone and skill, all too rare, in these ancient stories so much so that each story charms and entices you to the next.

While her text powered by imagination and command over language and the much relatable story for any Maduraiite gave her the confidence and hope of finishing a highly readable piece of work, the rejection from big and small publishers almost made her reject the thought of becoming a professional writer. And finally when the validation came from Jaico, the script went back and forth. “It was something of an experiment till I got a South Indian editor whose first question to me was whether the book was based on the film Thiruvilaiyadal starring Sivaji Ganesan and Savithri! After that it was all fun and we brought this book to fruition.”

Preetha’s second book is based on Kandha Puranam and the third on Periya Puranam. She has also written the “Navagraha Purana” in English based on the original in Telugu by V.S.Rao.

“Right now I am in a happy space, content with the pace of my writing and the response I am getting,” says Preetha who also feels her first book based on the Siva Puranam will not only thrill the Tamil readers but also entice the non-Tamil audience to visit Madurai. “Books have a vital place in our culture,” she says, “they are the source of ideas, of stories that engage and stretch the imagination and most importantly, inspire.”

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