In Indian literature, fantasy is often inspired by
mythology. Generally, most fantasy novels are based on the rich Indian
mythology. Take Amish Tripathi and his celebrated works as an example.
Everything he has written falls under the category of fantasy and has been
inspired by mythology. Thus it won’t be wrong to say that India has its own
style of fantasy literature. Unlike dragons, witches and wizards, in Indian
literature, we find war between different gods, Lok’s, and sometimes even
different dimensions.
As grand and expansive as the Indian mythology is,
you’d think that the work Indian authors produce in the fantasy genre would be
immense. Here I am to break that notion. Besides Amish Tripathi, there is no
other author who has written fantasy novels and has received global
recognition. To some extent, I find Midnight’s Children a fantasy as well, but
this is where the quota ends. The lack of Indian fantasy
novels is felt not just in the book stores filled with
autobiographies and modern-day romance, but also in Indian cinema.
You pick up any successful TV series or movie, most of
them are based upon books. Harry Potter, Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings,
The Witcher, The Chronicles of Narnia, Birdbox, amongst many are some examples
of films and series that are based upon novels. There are two things common
here; all the names mentioned above come from the fantasy background, and all
come from the West, both literature and cinema. Most of the successful content
we consume today comes from the West.
The lack of fantasy both in literature and cinema
leaves Indian literature and cinema with a giant hole. The potential of fantasy-based content is evident in the form of Harry Potter, both book-wise and
movie-wise. It’s not that India does not have any good fantasy writers. The
second largest populated country not having talented fantasy writers is
impossible. If you search fantasy Indian books in India, you’ll find so many
books by so many unknown names. The blame can’t be laid on the lack of
substance in these books, I have read some, and they hold so much potential.
But if we get into the lack of their recognition, we’ll go well beyond the
topic of this piece.
The entire blame can’t be laid upon literature, since
cinema does not choose well. Cinema can’t be blamed either since there are
limited options. And both can’t be blamed entirely since people don’t
appreciate the richness of Indian fantasy. We often pick up autobiographies,
re-watch the same old movies, and complain about the lack of fantasy in India.
India Fantasy:
Literature and Cinema- Final Words
In recent years, with OTT platforms gaining solid
ground, fantasy seems to have found a new base. Cinema is expanding and
experimenting, good content is getting recognised and the tried and tested
formulas are no longer breaking box-office records.
About the Author- Ankit Tripathi is a writer at Binge Mad
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