After the successful launch of Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s novel Independence in the audio format, in English, the Hindi version of the bestseller joins the audiobook category in the repository of Audible India. The book chronicles the life of Deepa, Jamini and Priya with the country in the cusp of change. Excited about the Hindi version of the audiobook, Divakaruni talks about the popularity of audiobooks, her upcoming read and more.

The English version of the book, Independence, was out last year. What led to the launch of the Hindi version? Was it the demand or giving the Hindi-speaking audience an option?

I’m so excited about the Hindi version of Independence (Aazadi)! Several of my other novels, including Palace of Illusions, Forest of Enchantments, and The Last Queen have now been translated into several Indian languages. That makes me very happy as I want my books to attract readers from different backgrounds. I think the fact that the earlier books did well as translations led to the publisher creating the Hindi translation as well as the audiobook on Audible.

The narrator is different for the Hindi version. While Independence has Nimisha Sirphi, Aazadi has Richa Sayal. What did you like about both? Do you get to decide or suggest the narrator?

I always give my input to the publisher and to Audible whenever I’m asked. I’m usually given a list of several narrators as well as passages that they have read, and I tell them which one I like the best. In both these cases, I loved the narrators that were chosen. They brought the spirit of the book alive. I hope listeners will agree.

You have a lot of your books in the audio format. How has the response been for it?

I am very pleased that the audiobooks have been so popular. I think in this busy age where many people need to multitask, audiobooks are a great option and will become increasingly useful. People can listen while commuting, exercising, etc. I was also interested to learn from many of my older readers that audiobooks were a great boon as their eyes are not as sharp as before.

Are you into audiobooks or podcast? Any content that you tuned in to recently?

I like audiobooks, especially when I commute, or at the end of the day when I want to lie down and relax and listen. One podcast that I find quite fascinating is William Dalrymple and Anita Anand’s Empire.

How different are audiobooks to you, as an author and also a listener, from the physical book?

Audiobooks have a whole different feel. It is like I’m being told a story. There is a very nice sense of intimacy — being one one-on-one with the narrator/storyteller. I like the emotional tones and how they change with the different scenes. That adds a lot of drama. But I love physical books, too, although I’ve now switched completely to e-books. I love being able to go back and re-read a favourite passage.

Your last book was An Uncommon Love. What’s next?

I’ve started on my next novel and am very excited about it as it is in a completely different genre. I can’t say anything more about it right now except that it will have some powerful women characters! But that, I guess, is no surprise!