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| Edited By: Deepali Singh |Source: DNA |Updated: Feb 09, 2019, 06:35 AM IST
Till a few years ago, it was the trusted Mills & Boons the Indian reader turned to for his/her share of romance. But something changed. It’s the real Indian romance that has found an eager audience. Nikita Singh, bestselling author of 11 novels including Every Time It Rains and Letters To My Ex, who is ready with her latest romantic book, The Reason Is You, gives us her take on the high-on-love trend...
The book starts with a date between Siddhant and Akriti, who are both surgical residents in a hospital in Delhi. Before the date ends, Akriti receives a phone call that changes their future unexpectedly. The Reason Is You explores central themes of loss, mental health and constrains of traditional relationships. It is connected to Like a Love Song and Every Time It Rains, borrowing characters from those books and taking their stories forward by giving them a second chance.
There’s no one reason, or a formula that I can share with you. My best guess is that the young audience in India is looking for homemade content to consume, that they can not only be entertained by but also relate to and imagine vividly. The characters in my stories feel real, making the readers invest in them and root for them — I think that’s what works.
I personally like to read about strong characters that thrive in the face of adversity, people who are willing and able to fight their situations. I’m not interested in reading about characters who see themselves as victims, dwell on their suffering and engage in self-pity. That is not to say that all of us don’t occasionally face situations where we feel sorry for ourselves, but it’s our attitude towards it, and what we do to overcome it is what I’m interested in reading about — that’s what I find most moving.
I don’t really have a type. I read from all different shelves bookstores categorise books in. Lately, I’ve been reading thrillers by Liane Moriarty. The most recent books I read are A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki, a meta-fiction story of two Japanese immigrants; and The Elephant Vanishes, a collection of stories by Haruki Murakami. I’m currently reading Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman.
The romance between Laila and JD in Every Time It Rains. The themes of finding love when you least expect it and opening yourself up to the possibility of happiness draw me to their love story.
Three books which define romance for you
Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami
An American Marriage by Tayari Jones
Call Me By Your Name by André Aciman
Your most favourite romantic films
Brooklyn, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi
On a romantic date, you would like to go...
The place doesn’t matter. I’d like conversation without interruption by cellphones.
What is the colour of love?
Yellow. It’s such a happy, hopeful colour!
Which author would you want to take out on a date?
Michelle Obama, I recently read Becoming.
