MADHAV MAHIDHAR | AUTHOR INTERVIEW

on Aug 20, 2019

Interview by bookGeeks:

When he is not writing, he thinks about the different future events that can affect our planet and hence rather than a novelist, he wants to be addressed as a futurist. He is none other than Madhav Mahidhar, the author of the compelling thriller

Blood in the Paradise

bookGeeks:

Tell us something about Madhav as a person.

Madhav:

I was born and brought up in Nellore town, AP. I studied MCA in SSN College of engineering, Chennai. I started writing from the year 2003/2004 onwards after the completion of my MCA. My first attempt was a complete failure. The story was about a four-year-old girl witnessing a murder. I wrote sixty pages but I could not proceed further. I was shocked, shaken and surprised. I went back to the basics and started practising again. A decision I took was to never ever start writing a novel without building/designing the entire story. I began writing ‘Adrusyam’ in the year 2007 and this time there was no stopping. I completed the novel comfortably in ten months. From the year 2009/2010, I began designing the stories on national/international themes. That was also the time I got hooked on to the future studies. More than a novelist, I would like to be known as a futurist. I am not elaborating anything on this because I am going to talk a lot about the possible future events in the coming years. I commenced writing ‘Blood in the paradise’ in July 2012 and completed the first draft in April 2014. ‘Blood in the Paradise’ got delayed because I had to defer the editing and the publishing processes as I switched my jobs twice in 2013 and in 2015.

bookGeeks:

When was Blood in the Paradise first conceptualised?

Madhav:

I got the idea when I was in Pune in 2012 and it took me six months to conceptualise the entire story. I wrote the first 18 chapters of the novel in Johannesburg, South Africa.

bookGeeks:

Tell us something about your experience as a Telugu writer.

Madhav:

I started writing my first novel ‘Adrusyam’in the year 2007, I completed it in 10 months and it was a one lakh word novel. It got published in the year 2008/2009 in the Telugu magazine ‘Navya’.

bookGeeks:

Do you continue to write in Telugu too?

Madhav:

No, nowadays I am not writing in Telugu.

bookGeeks:

Being a full time professional, how do you find the much needed time to write?

Madhav:

Yes, It is a very challenging task. I utilise weekends very judiciously and sensibly. I am still single, so there is no pressure of being a family man.

bookGeeks:

So, what are you working on next?

Madhav:

I am not going to write anything in the year 2017.The designing of the story is going on and I will start writing in the year 2018, it is going to be a two-part high-octane political/action thriller. So you can expect my third novel in the first half of 2019.

bookGeeks:

Who is your favourite Indian author and why?

Madhav:

My honest answer, I have not read much of the literature by Indian authors. I have read Sydney Sheldon, Michael Crichton, John Grisham and Jeffrey Archer. Actually, for the past five years, I am not reading much instead I am thinking a lot about the different possible future events that may affect our planet and prospective remedies we could implement in a peaceful manner.

bookGeeks:

A few words for your fans.

Madhav:

Frankly, I don’t think I have yet reached a stage where I could give advice to others. I have written two novels, it is just the beginning of my journey.

bookGeeks:

A few words for bookGeeks.

Madhav:

You are doing a great job. Keep up the good work. All the best to bookGeeks in all your future endeavours.