Wordsmith ahead of the times

KOCHI: After a career spanning decades with 66 novels on various subjects to his credit, K L Mohana Varma’s new novel is exploring women empowerment in the current socio-political environment. The idea came to him while writing Amavasi with Kamala Das. “Kamala commented on how the men in our society don’t consider women as humans, but as an entity to control. She was vocal against the idea of a reservation for women and reinforced that men and women are equal. That stuck with me,”Varma says.

So, ahead of his 85th birthday that falls on June 8 according to the Malayalam calendar, the former journalist started penning this thought. “If you look at Kerala’s political outline, you won’t find a successful woman leader who is at the top level of their party with a decision making position. Only K R Gouri Amma came close,” the writer comments. The new novel will focus on women in politics and business. He is not new to birthing women characters. One of his earlier novels Ohari depicted the cutthroat world of the share markets, where men and women worked hard to prove their mettle. “This novel is an ambitious project requiring vast research,” the wordsmith adds. He plans to finish the untitled novel in eight months using voice transcription. 

From Bastar, with love
The prolific writer was able to travel extensively across the country while working as a central government employee. He spent a considerable amount of time at Bastar in Chattisgarh. Even after years, Bastar and its people are still close to his heart. The place even inspired his first book From Bastar, With Love. “Recently, when I went to Madhya Pradesh, I met a journalist there who couldn’t hide his troubled face while describing the plight of the people in Bastar,” Varma recounts.

“I feel, currently, the mainstream media is busy with sensationalised political news. We lack dedicated journalists who cover the plight of the common people and the troubled minorities in our country,” he adds. Though, Varma adds, social media has given a platform for many to speak out and amplify the voice of many silenced communities.