Adding her own twist to the dark tales of life

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, July 3

The thrills and chills of the supernatural has always made for engaging reading, as all Ruskin Bond fans must be aware of. With time, this genre of literature, too, has undergone a modern makeover or so feels Venita Coelho.

The award-winning author on Saturday spoke about her book Dark Tales, a collection of 11 very dark, twisted stories in a session hosted by Majha House. In conversation with Preeti Gill, founder Majha House, she said: “When I thought of writing ghost stories, I did not want to go the Ruskin Bond way. I wanted the tales to be contemporary and very Indian. So, I took very modern instances such as being in a theatre, where the fire breaks out and you can’t exit. That’s a chilling situation and then just slips the ghost in to bring in more fun.”

Venita, who is a celebrated author of children literature, while speaking about her deep and unsettling interest in the supernatural, said while they were young, they had to suffer a lot of power breakdowns. “My mother would gather us round the table, light a candle and begin telling us ghostly tales in a hushed-up voice for effect. I guess it was then that my interest in the supernatural began,” she said.

In her book, she has woven the story titled ‘Devdas’ around the Mumbai bomb blasts that shook her. “This is a perfect example of what I mean when I say that I take everyday stories from our lives, stories that have become normal for us but are horrifying nonetheless. All I do is add a ghost to the proceeding, like a dressing to a salad, to increase the flavour and pleasure.”

Not sticking to conventions, she said it would be simplistic to write just a ghost story in a vacuum. “It is important to have some cultural resonance coming across the story even if it is something metaphorical. Like my story ‘Ram Lakhan’ in the book, about conjoined twins, is actually about the tragic Naxalite movement, where the police paid the villagers to turn against their own. Hence, the metaphor.”

She also mentioned recent incidents of real-life horror that send a chill down her spine. “The countless bodies floating in the Ganges, being pecked at by birds, isn’t that a horror story in itself?” she asked. Inspired by writers such as Stephen King and Clive Barker, Venita herself has not had a ‘ghostly’ experience. “But I believe that ghosts exist somewhere in the twilight zone. It just adds romance to life. Otherwise, how very dull and uninspiring it would all be,” she joked.