RAJASREE VARIYAR

IN THE DAUGHTERS OF MADURAI, A FASCINATING FICTIONAL NARRATIVE BASED ON REALITY, THE DEBUTANTE AUTHOR TAKES US THROUGH THE SMALL TOWN TO DELVE DEEP INTO THE WORLD OF FEMALE INFANTICIDE AND A RIGID CASTE SYSTEM THAT CAN WREAK HAVOC WITH WOMEN'S LIVES. WE DISSECT HOW SHE EXPLORES THESE SUBJECTS WITH A NEW-AGE PERSPECTIVE 

You were born in Bengaluru, grew up in Australia and now live in London. How is your understanding of Indian traditions so strong? I have my family to thank for that! My parents were determined to ensure that my younger sister and I maintained a strong connect to our culture. I was raised a practising Hindu, with all the richness of the stories of the religion. My parents spoke Malayalam at home; my mother always cooked traditional Keralite food; and we were part of Indian-Australian community organisations. My parents and I also travelled back to India at least every two years, to spend over a month with my family in Kerala, Chennai and Hyderabad.

What’s your connection with Madurai? Some of my father’s uncles moved to Madurai in the 1970s; they established an Ayurvedic hospital in the city. So I have extended family there. In parallel, my research into female infanticide led me to discover that the practice was rampant in several taluks around Madurai, including Usilampatti. Madurai itself is a beautiful, ancient city with a complex history. Those strangely serendipitous facts made it a great setting for the novel.

You’ve explored the relevant yet oft-overlooked theme of female infanticide in India. What made you focus on this subject? When I was around nine or 10 years old, I came across a segment on the murder of a baby girl in Bengaluru, while my parents were watching the evening news. Writing a novel about female infanticide gave me the opportunity to delve into the issue, to try to make sense of a practice I find incomprehensible.