by J. Furcifer Bhairav and Rakesh Khanna
An encyclopedia of evil entities and folkloric fiends from across the country, from Ladakh to Lakshadweep, Maharashtra to Manipur, Yamalok to Tuchenkwaka.
"I was not prepared for how deeply this book captivated me... Ghosts, Monsters, and Demons of India is exemplary of what a book can be, how it can operate. It’s a bridge across space, time, and language" —Robin Sloan, NYT bestselling author of Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore
"...A welcome effort in compiling the astonishing diversity of otherworldly beings who make the Indian subcontinent their home... As you browse through the entries, it feels like traversing a colossal hypertext, the denizens of the netherworlds all interlinked, all shapeshifting. A vast and teeming multitude is revealed, abounding with grotesque imagery" —Jaideep Unudurti, OPEN
"A thrilling romp through the annals of what goes bump in the Indian night" —Helen Nde, curator of Mythological Africans
Inside this book you will find...
- Killer robots built with stolen Roman engineering technology that once guarded the relics of the Buddha
- The ghost of a twenty-one-year-old motorcyclist whose Enfield Bullet is venerated at a highway temple in Rajasthan
- A Himalayan drum-playing spirit-teacher whose wife is a fearsome Yeti
- Diabolical entities conjured into existence by the simultaneous deaths of seven tigers
- Triple-rooted night-flying Vedic necromancers
- Call-centre employees from beyond the grave
- The dreaded Ngalei Ahmaw of Maraland, whose victims’ heads detach themselves from their bodies at night and go wandering in search of blood... AND MORE
Featuring illustrations by:
- Appupen
- Shyam
- Samita Chatterjee
- Rashmi Ruth Devadasan
- Misha Michael
- Pankaj Thapa
- Vidyun Sabhaney
- Osheen Siva
- Priya Kuriyan
Poetry by:
- Joseph Furtado
- Jyoti Prasad Agarwala
With a new translation by:
- Anannya Baruah
Read a sample here!
Kollivay Pey, by Shyam
If you're outside India, pre-order the international edition from Watkins here (US) or here (UK). (We can ship you a copy, too, but it will probably work out cheaper to get the Watkins edition!)
If you're in India... support independent bookstores! Buy from these Indian stores: (Champaca Bookstore, The Dogears Bookshop) or these American ones (Powell's Books), or check out a longer list here.
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Where Are You Going, You Monkeys? - Folktales from Tamil Nadu
The Blaft Anthology of Tamil Pulp Fiction, Volume 2