Interview with Khyrunnisa : Creator of Butterfingers

 Khyrunnisa A is the author of five books in the Butterfingers series. Published by Penguin, the book series has been a great hit with children and adults alike. Kahani Takbak spoke to Khyrunnisa to  know more about  her latest book, Run,It's Butterfingers again.

                               

1. The goofiness of Butterfingers never seems to end.   How challenging is it to keep the goofiness of Butterfingers as a character of five books?

Since the character is very firmly etched in my mind and I’m very comfortable writing about him, it’s not difficult to maintain the goofiness. It comes naturally.

2.      Even though there are no school going kids at home, you have managed to capture the pulse of a school that today’s children can relate to.  How do you research for your stories? Are you dipping into your observations made by interacting with kids among the extended family, friends and neighbourhood?

I don’t do any active ‘research’ as you call it. I always love to listen and observe. I get any number of inputs about children and life at different schools. I do interact with children quite a bit. Besides, my experience as a teacher in a school first and college later (college students are very often only over-grown children J ) comes in handy. And I remember my son and his friends when they were in school. Other kids in the extended family also provide much fun and their antics give me many ideas. But most of all, I rely on my imagination. You could say it’s a combination of imagination, memory and observation.

3.       Can the readers expect more Butterfinger stories, one per year till he finishes high school? Your readers are growing with Butterfingers.   Is there any chance Butterfingers may end up as a character for an adults book in future?

Readers can expect more Butterfingers books, but if you have noticed, I have kept thirteen-year-old Amar in class VIII in all the novels and stories. He is perennially thirteen and I have no intention of making him grow with every passing year, even though his readers keep growing. There’s absolutely no chance of his becoming the hero of an adult novel. His charm lies in his innocence, and I wish to keep that intact.

4.      Abhijeet Kini, illustrator of Butterfingers has been the illustrator for Butterfingers right from the beginning.   Have any of his Butterfingers illustrations ever triggered a short story in your books?

Abhijeet Kini (www.abhijeetkini.com)

  That isn’t possible. Illustration actually comes last in the process of getting the comics/books ready. Let me explain. In the Butterfingers stories for Tinkle, I wrote the story first, then the script writer prepared the script based on the story and handed it to Abhijeet for the illustrations. The illustrations thus came last.  In the cover illustrations for the Butterfingers books published by Penguin India (Puffin), Abhijeet was given the specific scenes from the books to illustrate and it was the same with the sketches for the short stories. Every story has one picture, with the long first story, a novella, in both ‘The Misadventures of Butterfingers’ and ‘Run! It’s Butterfingers Again!’  having two.

5.      How happy are you with the illustrations?

I love the illustrations of Abhijeet; they are perfect - Amar is just as I had imagined him to be. They have made the comics come alive and added so much to the books too.

6.      Are the characters in the Butterfingers books based on real-life characters?

I have named them after real life characters – my son’s name is Amar and the names of Butterfingers’ friends are the names of my son’s friends. But I have borrowed only the names, not the characters of my son and his friends, though of course, all of them are full of fun!

7.      Do they mind being characters in the books?

Not at all! In fact, they are thrilled to be in them and though they are all full-fledged engineers now and working in various parts of India and the US, they try to attend the launches, love the books and often tell me they want longer roles in the books! They are all children at heart.

8.        Butterfingers has taken a lot of your time and attention resulting in five books.  Has the fatigue set in? Do you ever think of moving on to new books with new characters? 

No, of course not! I enjoy writing Butterfingers stories and books; the character is very close to my heart and lives in my head. I do think of writing other books; let’s wait and see.

9.      There is no preachy mode in the Butterfingers books.  Is that a conscious attempt to steer clear of preaching to children and stick to pure entertainment?

I don’t like being preachy or talking down to children. I want the books to be humorous, fun stories that children will enjoy reading, but indirectly children can learn a lot from the books – about friendship, camaraderie, regard for their school and teachers, the workings and charms of the natural world, the desire to lend a helping hand, even if it lands them in trouble J.

10.  So what can we expect next? A Butterfingers novel or a short story collection?

I believe that now it’s time for another novel, but I’m thinking of another collection of short stories too. 

 To buy a copy of  the latest Butterfingers book click here.

 To read a review of the latest Butterfingers book click here.

 To read about author and  Butterfingers' fan, Shashi Tharoor's views on Khyrunissa's  books, click here.

 Visit http: www.khyrunnisa.com