Looks like a book, feels like a movie

KOCHI: Akhil P Dharmajan had proved his mettle as a writer with ‘Ouija Board’ and ‘Mercury Island’. While his first novel was a horror thriller, the latter belonged to the fantasy genre. Both the books went on to become bestsellers. Now, the 27-year-old is all set to launch his third book ‘Ram c/o Anandhi’, which is slated to be published on December 7 by DC Books.

“The story is based on a real incident in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The protagonist Ram is the only Malayali,” says Akhil. Unlike his first two books, Akhil has opted for the cinematic fiction genre this time. “The story has elements of love, humour, travel and action. A reader will surely have the feel of watching a Tamil movie,” adds Akhil.

The young author explains why he tried a new genre. “I didn’t want to be stereotyped. Secondly, we don’t have a lot of novels in Kerala revolving on the cinematic fiction genre. I hope to write books in all genres,” he says. The novel is centred on a few persons he met during his time in Chennai. “I had a feeling that the city wanted to narrate a story to me when I visited the place in 2016. However, I realised that I had to spend more time in the city to complete that story. So I joined a filmmaking course and began exploring the city. Nearly 70-per cent is based on the real deal,” he says. 

Akhil wants his upcoming novel to be an inspiration for scriptwriters. “I’ve met many people who’ve chased cinema in Chennai. Scripts can be turned into cinematic fiction genre books,” he says. Though ‘Ouija Board’ topped the ‘bestseller’ list after its release in 2015, Akhil went through a lot of hardships to release the same. “Many publishers rejected my book. However, I was not ready to give up,” he says. 

“After my first book was published, I heard that many people realised they could publish books on their own. I’m happy that I could pave a way for them. With many new publications being launched, we will be able to see a lot of exciting work,” says Akhil.Pre-booking has begun and Akhil will be directly delivering the first book to a lucky reader.