PVPF 2024

Interview with Varsha Seshan, Author of “Uncontrollable & Dhara's Revolution”

Exclusive interview with Varsha Seshan, author of 'Uncontrollable & Dhara's Revolution' on Frontlist.
on Nov 06, 2023

Varsha Seshan is a children’s book writer based in Pune, India with over a dozen books to her name. Her books have been shortlisted for the Neev Book Award 2021, the Singapore Book Award 2019, and the Scholastic Asian Book Award 2018 and 2016. Her picture book How I Feel made it to the Parag Honour List 2022. She conducts online book clubs and writing programmes for ages seven to 14.

Frontlist: You've been writing since the age of seven. Can you share your earliest memory of writing and what sparked your passion for it at such a young age?

Varsha Seshan: My earliest memory of writing is in a five-line notebook in the summer after class one or two! I remember being told by my teacher to do some handwriting practice during the vacation. Not surprisingly, I was not thrilled. Who spends the summer practicing handwriting? But my mother suggested I do that by writing stories. Children, unlike adults, don't think of writing stories (or even books!) as complex, so I wrote ten stories that summer. My father saw that writing seemed to be something I enjoyed, and he subscribed to various children's newspapers. I took part in competitions, sent stories and poems all the time, and soon, I had my first taste of being a published writer in every sense—from seeing my name in print to receiving rejections and being ghosted! Of course, we get a specific high when we see our name in print, and that was probably what kept me going.

Frontlist: Writing in verse for your book "Uncontrollable" is a unique approach. Can you describe the challenges of crafting a narrative in verse, particularly for young readers?

Varsha: I am not a writer who plans. When I first wrote Uncontrollable, I had no idea I would write it in verse. I wrote the whole thing in prose to start off with, but it simply was not pacy enough. I then began to think about the kind of content we consume. We read memes, comics, and social media posts. We love seeing things in little nuggets, pithily crafted and hard-hitting. At the same time, I was also reading many verse novels. If at all this form exists in India for middle-grade readers, I haven't come across it, but there are several books for this age group and for young adults in the West. I mulled over it for a while and then dived right in. It was tough because I wondered whether the way I played with form would work at all. Would children wonder why there were spaces and line breaks, or would they let intuition guide them? I had no answers, but I trusted myself. The more we read, the easier it is to write, so I immersed myself in verse novels as I wrote my own.

Additionally, I interact quite a bit with my target age group when I teach creative writing. Everything we do together made me feel that a verse novel could, perhaps, work despite the challenges. And that's how Uncontrollable came into being.

Frontlist: "Uncontrollable" introduces young readers to science fiction and fantasy elements. How do you think these genres expand children's imaginations and engage their sense of wonder and curiosity?

Varsha: Fantasy is an excellent way for children to explore their sense of imagination and wonder. They immerse themselves in a world that does not exist. The number of children writing fanfiction clearly indicates how much genres like fantasy and science fiction spark art and creativity!

Frontlist: In "Dhara's Revolution," Dhara is a young protagonist who takes on the challenge of organizing an election to choose a student representative. Do you believe that young readers can be agents of positive change, and how can literature like "Dhara's Revolution" inspire them to make a difference?

Varsha: Yes! Children are changemakers. They often sense injustice more keenly than adults because unfairness is not something they have (yet) accepted as part of life. Books inspire them to make a difference. This may sound idealistic or even facile, but it is true. For instance, how many of us as children set up clubs to solve mysteries? Where did that inspiration come from?

In the same way, books like Dhara's Revolution and so many others that we see on the Indian kid lit scene today push them to make a difference. The world seems like a place where children have very little agency, but stories make them realize that this is not necessarily true. They just need to find a way in which they can be re-vuh-looshinary!

Frontlist: How do you think the illustrations enhance the storytelling experience and complement Dhara's journey in "Dhara's Revolution?"

Varsha: I love Tanvi Bhat's illustrations! From scenes in which Carol and Dhara are lounging on the tire swings to the awkwardness that seeps in when Dhara and Carol realize they are rivals … the pictures make the story come alive. Each character emerges with their unique personality, both in the story and the illustration, making it all the more engaging for a young reader.

Frontlist: Are there any upcoming projects or themes you plan to explore in your future works, especially in children's literature?

Varsha: I'm always writing, and I especially love playing with form. Justice and friendship are recurring themes in my stories, and they will probably find their way into everything I write. My upcoming projects include an epistolary novel for early middle-graders and another novel in verse. Both are still in the making!