While many epic fantasy stories are rooted in European history and culture (The Lord Of The Rings, Game Of Thrones), other parts of our world have just as much to offer this genre.
Take Gourav Mohanty’s epic and grimdark fantasy series The Raag Of Rta trilogy, which is as influenced by the epic South Asian poem The Mahabharata as it is by Thrones. Maybe more so.
With the second book of the trilogy, Dance Of Shadows, now out in hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook, and the first, Sons Of Darkness, recently released in paperback (though still available in hardcover, Kindle, and audiobook as well), I spoke to Mohanty via email about what inspired and influenced both this series and this middle piece.
For people who didn’t read the first book, Sons Of Darkness, what is The Raag Of Rta trilogy about, what happened in Darkness, and what kind of a world was it set in?
Imagine Brad Pitt’s Troy but set in Ancient India. Sprinkle some cozy romantic vibes of A Game Of Thrones. Stir in the kind of comfy inter-empire relations that make World Wars I and II look like polite dinner parties. Sauté the seriousness of a P.G. Wodehouse novel. Now blend the tale with a magic system based on millennia old concepts of mandalas, chakras, and yoga. This is what you will get when you open The Raag Of Rta, a dark reimagination of a 4000+ year old South Asian epic poem: The Mahabharata.
Now, as to what happened in the Darkness, well, a pirate princess was wronged, an assassin’s apprentice came of age, a lowborn archer Jon Snowed through the caste system of this world, a swordswoman’s women squad helped hold a tiny republic against an Empire, a wedding became a weapon and a wound, and a princess was carved into five princes.
And then for people who did read Sons Of Darkness, and thus can ignore me writing SPOILER ALERT, what happens in Dance Of Shadows, and when and where does it take place in relation to Darkness?
Dance Of Shadows dances in step with the Battle Of _____ from Sons Of Darkness, but with its own share of stumbles. There is an ancient plague stirring up trouble, a Conclave of Peace that’s anything but peaceful in the Tree Cities of the East, and a band of assassins-turned-archaeologists digging 20,000 leagues under the earth to unveil a secret that was probably best left buried.
When in relation to writing Sons Of Darkness did you come up with the plot for Dance Of Shadows, and what inspired it?
Dance Of Shadows could have easily been tucked into Sons Of Darkness if debut authors could get away with publishing 1500-page tomes.
As mentioned earlier, it runs parallel to the events of Sons Of Darkness, so the foundational plot elements were always in place. However, as I started writing, invisible seeds began to sprout, intertwining with the crops I had already cultivated in the first book to make the whole idea of Dance Of Shadows something I can describe only in present continuous tense.
My inspiration comes heavily from Indian history. Its deadly Vishkanyas (venomous virgins used as assassins), its Devadasis (divine temple dancers) and even Manusmriti, ancient legal codes akin to Hammurabi’s Code, helped make the exotic world of Dance Of Shadows.
Outside Indian history, James Cameron’s Avatar lent a leafy inspiration to the Tree Cities, while a fling with Pinterest birthed the character of the Librarian Princess who was deeply unsuited to save the world from an ancient plague.
Sons Of Darkness was an epic fantasy story, and it sounds like Dance Of Shadows is as well. Though on your website you say this series is also grimdark. How do you describe this story, genre-wise?
The genre of The Raag Of Rta trilogy could best be described as grimdark epic mythological historical fantasy. I know, it’s quite the mouthful.
Why grimdark? Because the theme of the entire book could be summed up as “anti-Tolkien,” where instead of noble heroes on lofty quests, we have antiheroes making questionable choices because, frankly, the alternatives are even worse.
It’s mythological, drawing from a kaleidoscope of tales from The Mahabharata, reimagined with a cast who wouldn’t know a moral high ground if it hit them in the face.
It’s historical fantasy because it’s steeped in the heady brew of Indian history, from Devadasis and Yoginis to Vishkanyas and vacation spots rooted in history.
And why is it epic fantasy? Because anything that dares to follow in the footsteps of George R.R. Martin’s A Song Of Ice And Fire, and expects to survive the comparison, has to be epic or at least brave enough to claim the title.
Speaking of which, your website says you were inspired to write The Raag Of Rta trilogy after reading George R.R. Martin’s Game Of Thrones. “Epic and Grimdark Fantasy was an unexplored bastion of Indian literature and I wanted Sons Of Darkness to be the first to conquer it.” What then makes Sons Of Darkness and Dance Of Shadows different from epic grimdark fantasy stories by such non-Indian writers as Martin, and how do you feel they are distinctly Indian?
I think what you realize by the time you finish reading Sons Of Darkness, your heroes aren’t your typical sword-swinging knights but master archers, echoing the Indian mythos’ deep-seated reverence for the bow and arrow. We’re talking about a culture that celebrated archers like Arjuna and Karna way, way before Legolas made archery cool in the West.
Then there’s the caste system. It is a complex, layered social structure that’s far removed from the somewhat straightforward feudal system seen in typical Western histories. For it’s not just about the rich and the poor, it’s about the nuances of varna and jati, influencing everything from profession to spiritual practices. It helped me add, what I can hope, was a richer tapestry to character motivations and social tensions in the book given the caste system still persists as a social evil in many parts of India.
Even the magic system in The Raag Of Rta doesn’t rely on wands, dragons, or potions, but draws deep from the concepts of mandalas, chakras, and yoga, which are intrinsically linked to Indian philosophy. It’s a more introspective and cosmic form of magic, where power comes from inner alignment and understanding of the universe’s rhythms, rather than external sources.
And it isn’t all meditative and zen as well. For example, our witches called Yoginis are not your garden-variety cauldron stirrers but fierce practitioners of the macabre taboo arts that may be too explicit to be written on your blog. These were rooted in Tantrik traditions, respected and feared, part of an ancient heritage that viewed them as dangerous enough to be exiled but deadly enough to be revered from a distance.
Speaking culturally, the political landscape in my books also mirrors the diversity of ancient Indian governance, from mighty empires and confederacies of kingdoms to the early forms of republics recorded in our texts, offering a dynamic backdrop vastly different from the typical king-and-castle setup.
In the same vein, I hope the daily details set the scene apart. Be it the daily trouble of humidity and mosquitoes or sumptuous feasts featuring kachoris and biryanis in vibrant weddings filled with rituals and songs or a wardrobe that ranges from dhotis and saris to ornate turbans, I hope I have painted a picture that’s vividly Indian and viscerally different at least photogenically from the worlds you are used to in Martin’s world.
So, aside from George R.R. Martin, what writers do you feel have been the biggest influences on The Raag Of Rta trilogy, and are there any who influenced Dance Of Shadows but not Sons Of Darkness?
Joe Abercrombie, Steven Erikson, and Terry Pratchett have been the biggest influences on the trilogy.
However, for Dance Of Shadows, I drew particular inspiration from Scott Lynch, especially The Lies Of Locke Lamora, and N.K. Jemisin, noted for her worldbuilding in The Fifth Season. Perhaps that explains the heist scenes and the Tree Cities in Dance Of Shadows.
What about non-literary influences; was Dance Of Shadows influenced by any movies, TV shows, or games?
Oh, definitely. Dance Of Shadows is very much inspired by the video game Assassins Creed: Odyssey (love the exploration of Ancient Greece), the HBO show Succession (for the sheer twistedness of the characters), and the movies National Treasure (for the treasure hunt by assassins and a librarian princess) and Ocean’s 11 (for the thieving blueprints).
Not the TV version of Game Of Thrones?
The first five seasons: definitely. Karna is my Kit Harrington and Krishna, my Tywin Lannister.
As I mentioned earlier, Dance Of Shadows is the second book in The Raag Of Rta trilogy. The paperback version of the first book, Sons Of Darkness, came out recently. Aside from being softer, is there anything different about that version of Darkness?
Yes, the paperback version differs from the earlier version of Sons of Darkness, but the nature of changes is effectively a splash of cologne on a sweltering summer day.
Two changes: (1) “Part I,” or as I called it “Adhyaya I,” has traded places with “Adhyaya II.” I believe this change significantly improves the pacing of the book, making it easier for readers to immerse themselves, especially with the distinct names and kingdoms. A plunge into the deep end right at the start might not be the best way to ensure your readers survive until the middle of the pool. Swapping the Adhyayas allows for a gentler reading curve.
(2) I’ve also pruned some anachronistic words which, upon my nth read, were beginning to chafe. It is only natural for authors to feel this way about their earlier works and learn the art of moving on but when I got the chance to do the “Adhyaya” swap, I made hay while the sun shone.
That being said, there is absolutely no difference when it comes to the story or the chapter content
And then, do you know yet what the third book will be called or when it will be out?
Let’s just say, revealing them prematurely might just make my publisher a librarian catching me with an overdue book when the time comes.
Sons Of Darkness was nearly 700 pages long, Dance Of Shadows is 800+, which suggests that the third book will come in close to 900. Or, at the very least, be very long. That seems a bit much to read back-to-back, but some people might want to do it anyway. Do you think this will be a good way to take in The Raag Of Rta trilogy, or is there some reason why you think people should take a break between books?
I often take a breather between books myself, dabbling in different genres to keep the reading journey fresh and supple.
Similarly, while writing The Raag Of Rta series, a natural pause has woven itself between the installments, mirroring the breaths I take between writing them.
But I believe this series is more like a fine wine. Meant to be savored slowly, not guzzled down. So, take your time with it.
As for the sprawling page counts, they’re not just a result of unchecked ambition. Like the epics that captivated me — Steven Erikson’s Malazan Book Of The Fallen series and Martin’s A Song Of Ice And Fire — I aim to create a world so rich and deep that by the end, you’ll feel more familiar with its royal lineages than any historical dynasty ever covered in school just like I remember the Targaryeans better than the Mughals.
Earlier I asked if Dance Of Shadows was influenced by any movies, TV shows, or games. But to flip things around, do you think The Raag Of Rta trilogy could work as a series of movies, a TV show, or a game?
Definitely a show. When it comes to works where there are multiple antiheroes and antiheroines, I am yet to see a movie that does justice to them all. So, show it is. But I think it would take a Steven Spielberg and HBO collaboration to produce a show adapting The Raag Of Rta given the sheer VFX that would be required. But a man can hope.
And if Spielberg and HBO did make that show, who would you want them to cast as the main characters, and why them?
Radhika Apte [Sister Midnight] as Mati the Pirate Princess
Hrithik Roshan [Fighter] as Karna the Lowborn Archer
Aditi Rao Hydari [Padmaavat] as Marzana the Temple Dancer
Vicky Kaushal [Uri: The Surgical Strike] as Duryodhan the Righteous Prince
Raj Kumar Rao [Shahid] as Dantavakra the Undeserving Paladin
Sanya Malhotra [Kathal] as Vahura the Librarian Princess
Finally, if someone enjoys Dance Of Shadows, and they’ve already read Sons Of Darkness, what fantasy novel or novella of someone else’s — and not George R.R. Martin’s, either — would you suggest they check out while waiting for the third book in The Raag Of Rta trilogy?
I have already mentioned The Lies Of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch for its cunning prose and hilarious dialogues.
Robin Hobb’s Ship Of Magic deeply moved me and made me realize how much more I could level up as a writer. Her characters have such mundane profiles, but by the sheer quality of her writing, they are turned magical. The worldbuilding and the magical system of the liveships…I felt it all around me. It’s one of the best I have read.
Then, of course, there is Joe Abercrombie, whose First Law Trilogy is visceral and ravenous for the sheer grayscale it introduces into character tropes.
