In Conversation With Vikrant Shukla

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BFB - So we are meeting again, we are very happy and excited.

Author - Thanks a lot. I am equally excited and very happy to see you again. You guys have been a great support since day one of my writing journey.

BFB - Tell us something about your book “Lord of Darkness” first.

Author - Sure, I will rather share the synopsis of the book first.

Arpita, a studious, grade seeking student from Pune university, finds it really hard to get a replacement for her old hard disk under a thousand bucks. But, when she finally finds a second-hand disk through the help of her friend, Shipra, she couldn't help but notice that things in her life are no more as they used to be-  the horrifying death of Anwar, the one who installed the disk, the presence of a mysterious, password protected folder in that disk, named ‘Billycan hill’, and a presentation that vaguely mentions a location where one can travel through past and future. After numerous efforts, they finally locate this bizarre spot and decide to visit Moghal Empire to sell a few electronic items to these ancient people to make some money. But, Dobler, an ardent follower of Satan, bullies them to change their plans at the last moment. Finally, Arpita and her chaps end up in the Satanic era near the ‘Church of Satan’ in the pursuit  of the mighty  Ring of Beelzebub, and this is where the deadly game of lust and power begins.

This book took the final shape after I met a lot of black magic practitioners. It is not just a book; it is a life I have lived. 

BFB - Sounds interesting! If you were so influenced with the art of Black Magic, why you decided to write about Krishna?

Author - Where there is good, there must be something to compare with to complete the cycle of antonyms and that’s when we say bad also exist. If there is no darkness, no one will wait for the sunrise. Both are equally powerful components and after darkness what better than writing about Krishna?

BFB - What is the storyline of your fifth novel, “In Krishna’s courtroom: After Death?”

Author - This is your story, my story and story of any other common man.

Kama is a young man – a professional who does not believe in God, and on the contrary – he tills towards Satanic rituals and because they provide him immediate relief and satisfaction. One fine day, he is bewildered to find himself in an unusual place, it is Judgement Day for him. He is wondering if he will be sentenced to Heaven or Hell. However matters takes an unusual turn and he finds himself in the Courtroom of Lord Krishna, with whom his case rests.

The Lord is in a quandary because he does not know how to administer justice in this case.

What follows in this book is a dialogue between Lord Krishna, the sages and Kama. 

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BFB - You wrote about Krishna and you spoke about bringing light after darkness, but you are talking about death and life after death in your Krishna’s book. How can it be full of light if the baseline of the book is Death itself?

Author - Don’t be judgmental. Your blog have reviewed the book before this interview is taken. I know it was done by a different person but this is what my point is. Till the time someone will not read the book he will not understand the beauty of “Life after Death”. Here is a copy of my Krishna’s book, please go through it and we will meet again.

BFB - What is your next project about?

Author - My next project is about you and me. I mean to say, it will be a complex story of a middle class couple and their share of happiness and distress. For the first time I have tried to write about relationships and the hick ups. This book will deal with the thirst of a middle man, thirst for money and power.

BFB - Any other projects under progress...?

Author - I am working on many projects. One of them is about magical realism “Mystic Child”. One under writing is “A virtual shit called Love”. One project in Hindi will be completed soon.

BFB - Who will be the publisher for your upcoming titles?

Author - My next project is scheduled to be published by Penguin Random House. For other projects, I am still undergoing discussion with different publishers. 

BFB - Mehta Publishing House gave you the first break and they published two of your novels but we did not see any other collaborated project again. Any reason in specific?

Author - Nothing like that, I seriously want to work with them again. The only fact is that we have not finalized on any other project yet, but for sure they are one of my favorite publishers. 

BFB - We wish you all the best and hope to meet again.

Author - Thanks and wish you the same. I hope to see you again, soon!

In Lord Krishna's Court After Death by Vikrant Shukla

It doesn't happen very frequently that we get to read different genres from a single author. There are a lot of authors and almost all of them specialize in a genre - love, romance, horror, social moods etc. When we get novels from Ravinder Singh or Durjoy, we already have the idea of the story line in our mind, that the story will revolve around a boy, a girl, family, issues, infatuation and all that common mellow drama. But with this author, we get a new flavor every time we put our hands on his books.

We have read all books of this author, Call Centre – An Inside Story, The Wrong Chase, Sukoon (Hindi), Lord of Darkness and now “In Lord Krishna’s Courtroom : After Death.”

We have got a different flavor every time. All the mentioned novels are unique with concepts and the story line nowhere matches the other. This is the reason that we have never seen any reader of Vikrant Shukla speaking negative about any of his novels.

This book is an epic! I say that not only because it talks about Lord Krishna but also because for the first time someone really making an effort to create a dialogue between the God and a Human Being. 

This book should not be confused with a religious literature at all, it talks about what everyone of us goes through, this is not just about the God, the book is about the contrast between Good and Bad. 

This book talks about so many things which no one of us is clear about and opens a third eye which gives us a push to think beyond the limits.

This book, no doubt, is a masterpiece and every page gives a clear idea of how much research is done by the author to build the magical story line.

Readers should not be confused with the cover page where Lord Krishna is depicted. It is not just about Hindu religion and for Hindu readers. This is a social reveller and will make every reader think. Even after the book is kept aside, the characters, the plot and the narration will keep on boggling your mind.

This book is not just an entertainer, it is an eye opener. It gives the reader a roller-coaster ride of what exactly happens between life and death.

There is nowhere mentioned in the book that it is a work of fiction and it is also claimed by the author that the narration of the  book is based on the “Out of body experiences”, hard to believe for the minds ruled by science however the detailed description mentioned in the book can’t be just imagination. The readers are for sure going to be bowled with the detailed narrative as if someone is looking at something and narrating the scenes.

I was amazed with the way Krishna was awed by the questions one young professional puts up and also the way those questions were answered. A wonderful story to experience.

I wasn't aware of Lord Vishnu’s tenth incarnation as Lord Kalki in the coming future till I read the story in this book. The complete and detailed story of Kalki incarnation is one of the major USPs of this book.

Talking about the quality of the print and the paper. After a long time we saw a book where the feel of the book is rich. It is nowhere behind any of the finest books available in India.

A hardcover would have done wonders for this book. This is a collectible and I would like to keep a copy of this book in hardcover in my collection. I hope the publisher will give a conscious call to this feedback and request.

The only thing missed was in the section “About the Author”, it talks about author’s knowledge and interest in fields related to Satanism which was the description and the story line of his last work, “Lord of Darkness.” Though it doesn't affect the story line or anything but it could have been avoided to ensure no religious sentiments are hurt. 

Kudos to the author for managing to blow the minds of his readers with back to back entertainment with different flavors.

Have heard a lot about Vikrant’s next book “Life – A Sucking Trap”, hope to soon have hands on the first copy to review. 

A must read for all.