If you reach for the crime section before you work out Sudoku or unscramble word puzzles and thrive on crime shows on television, don't worry you are not a sociopath.
While until recently, the Nordic countries were ranked the happiest and most peaceful on the Global Peace Index, one cannot ignore that more people are killed in the crime fiction that comes out of their country than in the region itself. Scandinavian crime fiction writers, Stieg Larsson or Anne Holt could not have better scripted a criminal like Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian mass murderer.
Bangalore based, Swedish, crime fiction writer, Zac O' Yeah says, “By and large I think that apart from the fact that a detective novel will give many cheap intellectual thrills and help you fend off boredom, I also suspect there is a psychological need that is fulfilled by crime fiction, in the sense that it addresses certain larger social issues that disturb people. And readers have a natural tendency to gravitate towards books that address issues that bother them.”
He continues to validate his statement by saying, “In India, I've noticed that there's one subgenre of crime fiction that's doing better than others — namely the terrorist thriller. We are, of course, constantly reminded of this threat walking through metal detectors at railway stations, shopping malls and cinemas, or facing elaborate identity and address proof checks in order to acquire a prepaid SIM card.”
On screen, big and small
The story that was in the limelight early last month was the Neeraj Grover murder, when Maria Susairaj walked free after serving a three year sentence. This story has now become the premise of RGV's current box-office failure “Not Another Love Story”. When it comes to highly sensationalised crime, the media gives the world a smorgasbord of conspiracy theories and convoluted explanations that include sex, lies and videotape. And the audience will lap it all up like it is spring water in the Sahara.
Lately the phenomenon on television has been “Dexter”, which makes crime a moral debate. Dexter is a blood spatter analyst who works with the Miami Police Department, and moonlights as a serial killer. Except his crimes weed out the evil in society, and his victims are rapists, murderers and child molesters.
Another huge hit is “Castle” where a crime fiction writer joins forces with the NYPD as they collectively solve crimes and bring the bad guys to task.
Dr. V.R. Madhukar, Senior Consultant Psychiatrist, St. Marthas Hospital puts any fears we might have about the fixation for this murky world, to rest, “For starters people have become numb to the whole idea of crime, and so the idea of watching crime shows do not frighten them. Also anything that arouses, be it sex, crime or sensationalism will always have an audience, and ensures ratings. It is a natural curiosity and everyone is interested in the plot, planning and exhibition of the incident. There is something about these shows and films which are gripping and also the element of suspense, and curiosity about how criminal minds work. This does not mean that everyone takes to crime; it is only people who are already vulnerable and have an inclination to crime already who might succumb.”
“My obsession with crime stories began with the small half-baked crime stories that used to be reported in the papers and then moved over to find Agatha Christie and Mary Higgins Clark,” says Sankar, 32 year old software professional. “But now we have a full-action packed episode with a premise, detectives, lab experts, and a solved crime all in the span of an hour. It is such a thrilling experience. I watch crime shows to be a part of the excitement of solving a mystery.”
Explaining this idea further is Saurabh Yagnik, General Manager and Senior VP, English Channels, Star India Private Limited, “Yes, there is considerable appetite as crime is one of the most popular entertainment genres, the world over. Just consider the statistics, Agatha Christie is by far the most widely read fiction with over 4 billion copies sold, 25 percent of all fiction read in the world is crime fiction, closer home, seven of the top 10 fiction currently being read is in the crime and investigation space, etc. Human beings tend to have a basic instinct to try and understand, analyze and solve the mystery behind the unknown before it is solved for us. ”
There is definitely something engaging about all things criminal. Be it in the newspapers, in novels on television or the movies – it does not matter if a body is found in the nets of a fishing trawler somewhere on the high seas, or trashed away in a dirty alley, as long as there is a dead man in the story, real or fictitious, you have the coffin nailed.
