Tag Archives: book launch
Following the launch at the SIBF 2018, this interview appeared in one of the region's leading English dailies, the Khaleej Times.
The fiction title is a fast-paced thriller deal with the issue of idol theft and is a heady mix of crime, mystery, romance and the paranormal.
For debutant Indian novelist Divya Kumar, the protagonist in her maiden book The Shrine of Death had to be a woman. "It was a no-brainer," she explained to Khaleej Times, after launching her book at the Sharjah International Book Fair late last week.
The Dubai-based author and former journalist's first book was published by Bloomsbury India in April 2018. The fiction title is a fast-paced thriller deal with the issue of idol theft and is a heady mix of crime, mystery, romance and the paranormal.
"The book is a fictionalised account of actual events that occurred in Tamil Nadu in 2009 when a set of ancient Chola idols disappeared from an abandoned temple and were later discovered to have been smuggled out of the country," said Kumar.
"This was the watershed case that eventually leads to the high-profile arrest of Manhattan-based art dealer and smuggler Subhash Kapoor."
The book's central character – Prabha Sinhan – is an IT professional who gets pulled into the murky world of idol theft and goes in search of her missing friend Sneha Pillai.
"Mainstream Indian media often portrays a certain stereotype of women in mass media. Like a manic pixie dream girl, or a virtuous, pious woman, or an oversexed glam doll, or even a confused, flaky millennial," she added.
Kumar's character had to be a relatable, regular young woman who was not epitomised in any manner. "I also wanted my character to be strong, stubborn, and fiercely loyal," she said.
A former journalist of The Hindu newspaper in India, Kumar moved to Dubai in 2016. "I finished a big chunk of the editing and re-writing process in the UAE," she added.
Though the book had its first release in India, Kumar said she is extremely proud of being part of the Sharjah book fair.
"I wanted to write fiction for pretty much my whole life. From childhood, I've had a set of unfinished books and manuscripts. I worked at The Hindu from 2006 – 2011, but I stopped working full-time after my daughter was born," she said.
She began seriously working on the novel, and it took shape after details of the Chola idols case unearthed.
"I was still with The Hindu when the bust of the idol smuggling ring was in the news. From a local case in Tamil Nadu, the case went international as it was linked to an international crime ring. It was covered extensively in the India media and I followed it with a lot of interest."
For Kumar, the theme was a perfect fit for her book as she got increasingly fascinated with the subject. "The plot evolved out the details of the case," she added.
As she began writing the book, Kumar imagined it to be part of a trilogy. "I am definitely working on a sequel," she added.
dhanusha@khaleejtimes.com
The original article appeared here in the Khaleej Times.
Filed under Fiction, Interviews, Media coverage, The Shrine of Death, Uncategorized
Tagged as Bloomsbury, book fair, book launch, chennai, crime fiction, dubai, idol theft, sharjah, SIBF2018, thriller
My debut novel, 'The Shrine of Death' was recently launched at the prestigious Sharjah International Book Fair 2018 — the third largest book fair in the world, and the largest in the region!
Look what's on the shelf at the SIBF 2018!
Here's a glowing report of the launch in the Gulf Today!
SHARJAH: Debutant Indian novelist Divya Kumar received overwhelming response as she introduced "The Shrine of Death" to booklovers at the ongoing Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF).
Published by Bloomsbury India, the novel was released in India in April 2018 to glowing reviews by the press and readers alike. Since then its arrival was awaited by the UAE book aficionados.
It is a fast-paced thriller dealing with the hot-button issue of idol theft, and has a heady mix of crime, mystery, romance and the paranormal.
During a conversation at the SIBF with the acclaimed poet and author Anuradha Vijayakrishnan, Kumar said that the book is a heavily fictionalised account of actual events that occurred in Tamil Nadu, India, in 2009, when a set of ancient Chola idols disappeared from an abandoned temple, and were later discovered to have been smuggled out of the country. This was the watershed case that eventually led to the high-profile arrest of Manhattan-based art dealer and smuggler Subhash Kapoor.
"The Shrine of Death" tells the story of Prabha Sinha, an IT professional in the south Indian city of Chennai, who is plunged into a murky world of idol theft, murder, and betrayal after she gets a mysterious phone call one night from her old friend Sneha Pillai. As she races to find answers before the people she loves get hurt, she seeks the help of Jai Vadehra, a troubled young man with a tragic past, and police officer Gerard Ratnaraj of the Idol Wing, CID, whom she can't help but be drawn to. Their search takes them from Chennai's newsrooms and universities to the abandoned sepulchral shrine of a Chola queen in the heartland of Tamil Nadu. And here there is a twist in the tale.
Divya Kumar is a journalist, writer and blogger, currently based in Dubai. She spent her early 20s studying and working in the US, dabbling in web-design and media studies, before settling down to a career in journalism. After returning to India, she joined The Hindu newspaper in Chennai, writing for The Hindu Metroplus, covering mainly the book and art beat.
"I started writing this book when I took a break for the birth of my first child. Naturally, it took me three years to complete the book. Fortunately, I didn't have to run after dozens of publishers. The only difficulty I faced was to convince famous literary agent Kanishka Gupta to have a look at my work. Once he agreed to, it was quite smooth as the editor, Himanjali Sankar, also had confidence in my work," she added. Encouraged by the tremendous response, she has already started working on its sequel.
Currently available at Jashanmal Books stand at the SIBF, the title will shortly be available at leading bookstores in the UAE.
Also featured in the SIBF 2018 newsletter! 🙂
Filed under Fiction, Media coverage, The Shrine of Death, Uncategorized
Tagged as book fair, book launch, chennai, crime fiction, idol theft, sharjah, SIBF2018, stolen idols, thriller
Article: Tamil Nadu idol thefts give author creative spark
Photo credit: Deccan Chronicle
The journalist and author Divya Kumar has come out with a thriller 'The Shrine of Death'. The book had a vibrant launch on Friday in the city.
The protagonist is a young woman, Prabha Sinha who is an IT professional in Chennai who is plunged into the netherworld of idol theft, murder and betrayal. Things start happening after she receives a mysterious phone call one night from her old friend Sneha Pillai. She seeks the help of Jai Vadehra, a troubled young man with a tragic past. She also seeks the help of the gorgeous DSP Gerard Ratnaraj of the Idol Wing, CID to whom she is irretrievably drawn towards. As the story unravels, she keeps on finding answers. Their search takes them from Chennai's newsrooms and universities to the abandoned sepulchral shrine of a Chola queen in the heartland of Tamil Nadu.
The author took almost three and half years to finish the story. And since idol thefts had become common, especially after the robbery of 2008 by an international ring of idol thieves, she finds a cool focus point for the book.
"The story is purely an out and out entertainer with some romance, some paranormal elements", said the author while explaining the subject matter of the book on the occasion of its launch. She hopes that people would enjoy the book picking it up on the airport or reading on a journey or while curling up by the poolside in the summer. A sequel to 'The Shrine of Death' is already in the process, according to the debut author.
The original article appeared here in the Deccan Chronicle.
Tagged as bloomsbury india, book launch, chennai, idol theft, shrineofdeath, thriller
Article: Of Chennai, idol theft and a crime-thriller
A journalist becomes a debutante author with the launch of the novel The Shrine of Death
My book and I… at the launch 🙂 Photo credit: Shuchi Kapoor @girlinthegalli
A few years ago, reportage of the Chennai police department exposing a series of idol thefts planted an idea in the mind of journalist Divya Kumar. That transformed her into a debutante author with The Shrine of Death, a racy crime-thriller novel on the idol theft theme, set in Chennai.
At the launch of her book on Friday, Ms. Kumar, spoke of how much she enjoyed writing about places like Kamarajar Salai and T. Nagar.
"I grew up in the Middle East and went on to study in the U.S. But during my stint as a journalist with The Hindu for six years, I got to know the city well. Chennai is not getting featured enough [in mainstream popular fiction]. There is too much of Mumbai and Delhi; we need more of Chennai," she said.
Best laboratory
In conversation with novelist and playwright Shreekumar Varma, she reminisced about her time with The Hindu and said the job was a fascinating one indeed, giving her opportunities to meet different people and taking her several places.
"It was like learning from the best laboratory. It helped me go from I-want-to-be-a-writer to being a writer," she added.
Mukund Padmanabhan, Editor, The Hindu, who launched the book, said, Ms. Kumar lent a certain positivity when she had worked in the paper.
The original article appeared here in The Hindu.
Tagged as bloomsbury india, book launch, chennai, idol theft, shrineofdeath, the hindu, thriller