What I’d like to see more of in Indian books.

Okay, so I’m from India, but majority of the books I read are not Indian. It’s not that I don’t like Indian books, it’s just that somehow, I don’t tend to gravitate towards those. I’ve had mixed experiences with them, and here are three things I’d like to see more of in Indian books.

1. Fantasy and Sci-Fi that is not based on Indian mythology or history. Don’t get me wrong. There are many books based on those which I like. However, I feel that the theme has been overdone  and Indian authors should explore other themes as well.

2. Strong female characters who are not burdened by family or societal expectations.Okay, now there are many Indian families which are conservative, and impose a lot of restrictions. However, not everyone is like that. My family has always been supportive of what I do, and it kind of bothers me that almost every female protagonist in Indian contemporary books (Which I’ve read ) are described as struggling to balance their wishes with family expectations etc.

3.Darker contemporaries not based on romance. I believe these do exist, it’s just that I have personally not come across many of these yet.However, I’d like to see books that deal with issues like loss, illness, depression, sexism, racism etc that do not revolve around romance.

 

Again, I repeat that I haven’t read that many Indian books, so it’s perfectly possible that these kind of books exist, and I just haven’t heard of yet. If you have any recommendations, do let me know.

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