You cannot write a feminist book; it depends on how the character plays out: Vikas Swarup

The former diplomat and author says he aimed to recreate the excitement of the film Slumdog Millionaire, based on his novel Q&A, in his latest book.

Former diplomat and author Vikas Swarup (left) with journalist Vir Sanghvi (right) during the book launch of The Girl with the Seven Lives at the India International Centre, New Delhi, on July 19. | Photo Credit: Vitasta Kaul

The appreciation he received for his “authentic portrayal” of women in his previous books gave him the confidence to write a female protagonist, author Vikas Swarup told Frontline at the launch of his latest book The Girl with the Seven Lives at the India International Centre in New Delhi on July 19.

Swarup, a former diplomat who attained global fame when his acclaimed debut novel Q&A (2005) was adapted into the Oscar-winning 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire, said he wrote from the perspective of a strong-willed woman who does not allow a male-dominated world to subjugate her. “She has her own agency and makes her own decisions. So, the feminist aspect comes out as a result of her choices. It’s not that I set out to write a feminist book, it becomes a feminist book. You cannot write a feminist book; a book is seen as feminist or not depending on how the character plays out,” he told Frontline.

Swarup, who was earlier in conversation with journalist Vir Sanghvi, delved into his journey as an author, the success of Q&A, and the inspiration behind his latest work. Swarup said that his posting as a career diplomat in London, the hub of English language publishing, was instrumental in his becoming a writer as he was inspired seeing many of his contemporaries writing fiction. This environment, along with the curiosity about the “crass commercialisation of knowledge” that game shows such as Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? evoked, ignited his literary career.

Early success

His first novel Q&A, in which a similar game show lies at the heart of the plot, was an unanticipated success. Though he had set out to explore the antisocial behaviour that Indians exhibited when Kaun Banega Crorepati—the Indian adaptation of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?—aired on TV, Swarup attempted to offer an antidote by introducing a classic underdog tale of a character with only street knowledge.

Vikas Swarup’s debut novel Q&A was adapted into a film titled Slumdog Millionaire, directed by Danny Boyle. Swarup said that the book’s success in so many countries and so many cultures came as a surprise to him.

“Till that time, the books about India that had done well in the West were about the palaces and maharajas, yoga, and elephants. This was a book about the dark underbelly of urban India. I wrote it as an insider for an insider. I never thought I was writing a global novel. It came as a surprise to me that this book has found success in so many countries and so many cultures,” he said.

Despite the success of Slumdog Millionaire, which did well at the box office despite its “arthouse film” tag and went on to win eight Academy Awards including Best Picture, he never considered quitting his day job as a diplomat to pursue writing full-time. “This success is very ephemeral—it’s there today, gone tomorrow. But the high that you get by representing your country, flying the flag, speaking from a podium at the Security Council that says ‘India’, that is a high that books and films can’t match,” he said.

Echoes of Q&A

While writing The Girl with the Seven Lives, Swarup was conscious of the echoes of Q&A and aimed to recreate the excitement of Slumdog Millionaire, although with a female protagonist. His new novel follows Devi, who “has seven lives not by choice but because of circumstances” that force her to reinvent herself multiple times. According to Swarup, “her resilience and reinvention are the two motifs of this novel” and through her travels across India, the book captures the essence of various towns and cities. “India is such a complex and multidimensional country, and through this narrative, I am able to capture slightly more of the Indian reality. I am trying to give the readers a little more flavour of the diversity of India.”

On the question of authenticity in writing, Swarup said that it was important considering writers today have access to abundant information and tools, allowing them to write about any place in the world. However, writing at its core requires empathy and putting oneself in the characters’ place to see the world through their eyes, according to him. “All fiction is appropriation,” he said. “You appropriate the characters for what you don’t know. In a way, the only person you know is yourself.”

When asked if he would ever write a book about his journey and life in the Indian Foreign Service, Swarup remarked that despite his fair share of thrilling experiences, his life was quite boring and normal. “At the end of the day, I feel constrained by real life, whereas in fiction there are no boundaries,” he said.