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Weaving magic

Exploring fantasy Shreekumar Varma

Shreekumar Varma is a writer, teacher and columnist. His novels, “Lament of Mohini” and “Maria’s Room”, were long listed for the Crossword prize and the inaugural Man Asian Literary prize respectively. His latest book fo r children, “The Magic Store of Nu-Cham-Vu,” is an adventure set against a magical backdrop.

“I wrote this as a short story in England. My publishers liked it and asked me to write a longer story. Thus the book was born.”

It is the story of this obnoxious creature Nu-Cham-Vu, who runs a toy store in a village. It’s a magic store and offers a wide range of magical items. Nu-Cham-Vu is rude to everyone .

“The villagers decide to throw him out of the village, much to the dismay of the children who love the store. They set out on an adventure to ensure that the creature and the toy store remain in the village. ”

On whether an anti-hero would be acceptable to children, Varma answers, “The character is a monster, but is important to the tale because of the magical store that he manages. Children would be able to associate with the character and the tale very well. I have also used illustrations to make it more children-friendly.”He adds, “Very few Indian authors have explored novels based on fantasy. The popularity of the Harry Potter series is proof of the huge reader base the genre has. I hope children who enjoyed the Harry Potter series like this book too and take up writing in due course, especially since the habit seems to be on a decline.”

Varma is now working on another novel . “It draws inferences to life in a sleepy town in Kerala.”

“The Magic Store of Nu-Cham-Vu” published by Penguin is priced at Rs.175 and is available at stores across the country.

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