Suchitra Krishnamoorthi gets candid with Debarati Palit Singh about her book Drama Queen, and all the hue and cry over sex and marriage

Singer, actor, painter and author Suchitra Krishnamoorthi was in town on Monday to promote her latest book Drama Queen at Crossword. This is her third title. Her earlier books include The Summer of Cool and The Good News Reporter (which she reveals, was only read by publishers and family members). Here’s getting up close with Suchitra. Excerpts:

How has been the response to Drama Queen?
I am quite delighted and surprised, in fact stunned. We got into reprint within the first week of its official launch. When you write something which is so personal and so bizarre to be true, you hope that people will laugh with you and not at you. That was the whole intention of writing this book, and I have achieved my goal.

Drama Queen does not appear to be a serious title…
That’s because I am not trying to be serious; I do not like serious things. Life should be enjoyed and one should be able to laugh at things and oneself. One should learn to enjoy the journey.
I don’t want to be taken seriously as I don’t want to carry that burden (laughs). When people tell me, ‘Oh my God, your book is brilliant’, I say, ‘Thank God, you enjoyed it!’

In the book, you mention that you want a companion and you also talk about the side-effects of being single. Are there any advantages of being single ?
Of course, there are advantages. I love being single. I do my own things. To change that status, it would take somebody special. I am in a very good phase right now.

Do you still believe in the institution of marriage?
I believe in true love and fairytale romances. I also think that two people are meant to be together.
Having said that, love cannot be forced or imposed on an individual with, say, a legal agreement like marriage. I do not believe in wedding vows.

For me, love is something magical and beyond marriage. When two people are in love, they should be completely into each other, without trying to change each other. That’s what love is. Right?
Post divorce, are you bitter with your ex, Shekhar Kapur?
I don’t believe in delving or dwelling. When you leave behind your past and reach a stage of decency and civility, you prefer to lead a life of goodness. That said, I am human and things do matter, but I don’t allow my emotions to take over me. There is no point. We have to realise that we are as flawed as good.

Is it because of your daughter that you can carry on with life stronger and better?
If I didn’t have a child, I wouldn’t have been alive. The reason I have carried on is because of my daughter Kaveri.

In the book, you say you are old-fashioned and yet you talk about lack of sex. Were you comfortable talking about it so freely?
When I say old-fashioned I use it in the context of promises and quickies in today’s culture.

I do not think I am old-fashioned in my thoughts, but the way people conduct themselves in certain aspects of life. I don’t know if that is considered conservative. People tell me, ‘Come on, don’t be a prude’, and I reply, ‘OK, I am a prude, deal with it now’.

On the surface, we act smart but there are so many contradictions within. I have tried to express my confusions in the book (laughs).

When you write about sex, it attracts attention. What’s your take on it?
There is a line in my book which mentions that ‘the middle-class is so obsessed with sex that they are in constant denial.’ Even a flower looks like a vagina to them. Since I, myself, was brought up in a middle-class (South Indian) family, I am aware of those contradictions, which is what I have written in my book.