At the 'Sahitya AajTak Lucknow' stage, three crime fiction authors gathered this Saturday. Manoj Ranjan Tripathi, author of 'Code Kakori' and 'Kasari Masari', Sanjeev Mishra, writer of 'Bawali Kanpuriya', and Piyush Pandey, author of Manoj Bajpayee’s biography and the novel 'Usne Bulaya Tha'. The discussion centered on 'Crime, Mafia, and Stories', where crime narratives intrigue every reader and viewer these days.
Why Are Crime Stories So Popular?
The authors were asked why modern times see crime stories as the most read genre. Manoj Ranjan Tripathi shared, 'Just like salt and sodium are essential for the body and mind, crime is vital for life. Crime is the new normal. Crime will emerge in the guise of many figures like Ateeq, Vikas Dubey, or even Hitler. When crime happens, justice will follow, and that’s the new normal.'
On the trend of glorifying new criminals, he said, 'There are two colors: black and white. When these mix, they create grey. Be it readers, audiences, characters, or authors, everyone has a shade of grey within. This is why a criminal gets glorified.'
'We All Have a Criminal Within'
Addressing the growing interest in reading or watching crime, Sanjeev Mishra remarked, 'Crime connects with you the most. Crime never happens by our desire. No one wants crime around, but it happens. It's like a miracle that juxtaposes routine facets like sports, news, and politics.'
Piyush Pandey added, 'Crime attracts people because we all harbor a criminal within. How and when it surfaces is a different topic. We all break traffic signals. Crime events urge you to discover who did it, why, and how.'
