Author Rajesh Talwar is a multifaceted personality. After studying Economics at Hindu College, Delhi University (DU), he enrolled at the Law Centre. He then practiced at the courts in Delhi, and taught at DU and Jamia Millia Islamia for some years. In 2000, he joined the United Nations, and has been with the international body ever since, working in the domains of law and human rights. A passionate writer since his school days, Talwar has authored several fiction and non-fiction books, on subjects ranging from social justice to law and culture. The latest from his stable, Fabulous Four Battle the Zoozoo Wizard, is a tale of adventure targeted at children.
Excerpts:
Tell us about Fabulous Four...
The Fabulous Four is an adventure fiction for kids. The characters, drawn from different parts of India, are authentically Indian. Even the way they relate to each other is Indian. The story talks about racial unity in a subtle way. A very important character in the book is that of Princess Samara who is black. She makes friends with boys from the Hotlands, the Wetlands and Snowlands. All these boys have different skin colour. For instance, Milan the boy from Snowlands is as white as any European. In today’s globalised world, such stories are likely to have much more global appeal than, say, a mono-ethnic story with only white kids.
Is the book inspired by Enid Blyton’s Famous Four?
As a child I grew up reading Enid Blyton’s adventures, especially the Famous Five and the Secret Seven. These books had English boys and girls eating muffins, scones and enjoying high tea, which was warm and exotic for an Indian child like me. But in a subtle way, it alienated us from our own culture. Fast forward to the present, the situation remains the same. We don’t have a single ‘really successful’ Indian adventure series in which Indian children get together and have adventures. It is a real shame and a kind of indictment of children’s writing and publishing in India that we don’t have a single successful adventure series featuring Indian characters that have acquired the kind of acclaim and readership that The Famous Five or The Hardy Boys have. There is no reason Indian children cannot form a group and have adventures of their own! They don’t have to look at the West for those kinds of experiences.
Of all the genres you write in, which one is your favourite?
I don’t have a favourite genre, but I can write non-fiction more easily after office hours or in the morning before office begins. Writing fiction like that is a challenge as it requires a degree of immersion in a fantasy world. I need a few days break at a stretch to feel comfortable writing fiction.
What is that special something you keep in mind when writing for kids?
That is to intelligently combine the telling of a fully entertaining story with gentle, moral lessons. The lesson part needs to be introduced in a subtle, unobtrusive fashion. No child likes to have morality tales rammed down his throat.
Are people reading less after books have become expensive?
That’s true. Online versions are often cheaper, but do you want your child to be reading on a computer or a Kindle at a young age? And not every family, especially in India, can afford an electronic medium for their
child.
What does it take to be a good storyteller?
Keep surprising the reader. Have real and relatable characters. Describe things so well that people can imagine themselves there.
Book details
Fabulous Four Battle Zoozoo The Wizard
Author: Rajesh Talwar
Pages: 241
Price: Rs 71 Kindle edition