The Write Circle with Nilanjana Roy



Nilanjana Roy spent most of her adult life writing about humans before realizing that animals were much more fun; The Wildings is her first novel. Her column on books and reading for the Business Standard has run for over 15 years; she also writes for the International Herald Tribune on gender. Her fiction and journalism have appeared in several journals and anthologies, including Caravan, Civil Lines 6, Guernica, the New York Times’ India blog, Outlook and Biblio. Some of her stories for children have been published in Scholastics Spooky Stories, & Science Fiction Stories and BeWitched. She is the editor of A Matter of Taste:The Penguin Book of Indian Food Writing. At one time, she used to blog as Hurree Babu at Kitabkhana, India’s first literary blog; and some of her writing is available at Akhond of Swat.

The Wildings is about a small band of cats lives in the labyrinthine alleys and ruins of Nizamuddin, an old neighbourhood in Delhi. Miao, the clan elder, a wise, grave Siamese; Katar, a cat loved by his followers and feared by his enemies; Hulo, the great warrior tom; Beraal, the beautiful queen, swift and deadly when challenged; Southpaw, the kitten whose curiosity can always be counted on to get him into trouble… Unfettered and wild, these and the other members of the tribe fear no one, go where they will, and do as they please. Until, one day, a terrified orange-coloured kitten with monsoon green eyes and remarkable powers, lands in their midst—setting off a series of extraordinary events that will change their world forever.

For more on the event & pictures, click here.