Set against the backdrop of the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid conflict, business journalist S. Anuradha’s debut novel, The Friendless God, was launched in Hyderabad on Sunday. The book, however, was first published last year.
The fiction tracks the lives of a religious son (Kodanda) and his atheist mother (Vaaidehi) through the worlds of Carnatic music, kalamkari painting and gardening. The novel reaches its denouement on the day millions converged in Ayodhya to claim the land they consider to be the birthplace of Rama.
The crowd had a great time witnessing the dialogue between Anuradha and Sriram Karri, a columnist and author on stage. While addressing the audience, Anuradha, who also happens to be a historian, stated why she wrote the book. “I seek absolute truth in Advaita Vedanta and write about subjective truth through fiction. I believe Lord Rama is someone whom people see as duty-bound; and such people are always friendless; so that’s why I have titled the book thus.”
She added that returning to Hyderabad, where she stayed for a few years, was delightful. “It’s great, more so because a lot of incidents (like Ganesh visarjan at Tank Bund) in the novel are based in Hyderabad. So talking about the book to an audience who can relate to the incidents of the city is a great opportunity,” she shared.
She took four years to complete the book. One of the audience members asked Anuradha about the changes in her perception of Lord Rama over the course of writing the book. “All duty-bound men don’t show off! They always want to do the right things without being violent. This trait in Rama appealed to me the most and I still can’t stop raving about it,” she retorted.
