Markus Zusak On The Book Thief and Why He Chose Death to Tell a Story About Life

Markus Zusak On The Book Thief and Why He Chose Death to Tell a Story About Life

What happens when Death tells a story about life? Twenty years after the publication of The Book Thief, Markus Zusak revisits the novel that transformed his career and became one of the defining works of contemporary fiction. He reflects on language, imagination, history, and the unlikely creative decisions that gave the book its singular voice and lasting impact. A 20 year Legacy: Markus Zusak was just twenty-seven when he began writing The Book Thief–young enough to be fearless, bold enough to take creative risks. The story he wrote remains relevant and draws new audiences even today. The Tradesman: Markus Zusak does not consider himself to be a literary genius. For him, writing is less about having a great imagination, and more about solving problems. He opens up about how family memories, wartime anecdotes, and fragments of real lives were woven together to create unforgettable characters. Death, The Messenger: One of literature's most distinctive narrators was almost abandoned. Markus recounts the long journey to finding Death's voice—from a dark, cynical observer to a character haunted by human beings and their capacity for both cruelty and beauty. The Failurist: Markus explains why he proudly embraces failure as part of the creative process. He reflects on how every version of The Book Thief that didn't work ultimately paved the way for the version that did—and why success is often built on a foundation of countless mistakes. Featured Clips in this episode: The Book Thief (2013) Official Trailer [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rMVa2bMhro4] The failurist: Markus Zusak at TEDxSydney 2014 [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A-_8QIdm4hA] Credits: Host: Mallika Kapur [https://mallikakapur.com/] Mallika Kapur is an award-winning journalist and seasoned interviewer with over two decades of experience in television and live journalism. Across three countries and various impactful roles at CNN and Bloomberg, she has reported on major global events, including the London train bombings, the Indian Ocean tsunami and the Mumbai terror attacks. She also moderates news making panels at global forums, leading insightful conversations with the world’s top figures in business and culture. Reach out on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/mallika.kapur/?hl=en] and LinkedIn [https://uk.linkedin.com/in/mallika-kapur-a288b4131] This is a Maed In India [http://www.maedinindia.in] Production Creative Director: Mae Mariyam Thomas [https://www.instagram.com/maemariyam/?hl=en] Project Manager: Shaun Fanthome [http://www.instagram.com/sfanthome] Sound Designer & Mix Engineer: Kartik Kulkarni [https://www.instagram.com/kartik.kulkarni/?hl=en] Producer: Rachna Sukuru [https://www.instagram.com/rachnasukuru] Assistant Producer: Aditi Sutar Sound Engineer: Nihar Temkar [https://www.instagram.com/nihar_temkar?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw%3D%3D] Artwork: Alika Gupta [https://www.instagram.com/capefoxalix/]

Trailer Season 2

Host Mallika Kapur sits down with some of the world’s most celebrated storytellers to revisit the works that define them. They return to abandoned drafts, imagine alternate endings, and explore one enduring question: If you could do it again, what would the next edition hold? Because a story is never truly done.

Jeet Thayil: on 'Narcopolis', Bombay and the pull of 'elsewhere'

Author and poet Jeet Thayil’s work moves fluidly between fiction, poetry and memoir. He reflects on the Booker-prize shortlisted Narcopolis years after its release, the emotional intensity of writing it, and how his latest book The Elsewhereans marks a shift—from stories of addiction and survival to deeply personal explorations of family, memory and loss.    Epigraph: More than a decade after ‘Narcopolis’ first released, Jeet Thayil reflects on his relationship with the book today. He describes the process of writing the book as the opposite of catharsis, exploring how it made him reconcile with the city’s and his own traumatic past.    Poet in Prose: Jeet takes us into his creative process—how poetry shapes his sentences, why writing fiction demands a different discipline, and how he crafted one of literature’s most unforgettable long sentences.    Elegy: In The Elsewhereans, Jeet Thayil turns the conversation inward – writing about family, grief, and the passage of time. He opens up about the delicate balance of writing about loved ones, the responsibility that comes with it, and how the book has become a quiet memorial to his parents.    Epilogue: For Jeet, the role of the artist is simple yet profound: to connect. Whether through the troubled worlds of Narcopolis or the intimate reflections of The Elsewhereans, his work reaches readers in different ways — offering recognition, resonance, and a sense of shared humanity.    Credits:    Host: Mallika Kapur [https://mallikakapur.com/]   Mallika Kapur is an award-winning journalist and seasoned interviewer with over two decades of experience in television and live journalism. Across three countries and various impactful roles at CNN and Bloomberg, she has reported on major global events, including the London train bombings, the Indian Ocean tsunami and the Mumbai terror attacks. She also moderates news making panels at global forums, leading insightful conversations with the world’s top figures in business and culture.   Reach out on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/mallika.kapur/?hl=en] and LinkedIn [https://uk.linkedin.com/in/mallika-kapur-a288b4131]   This is a Maed In India [http://www.maedinindia.in] Production   Creative Director: Mae Mariyam Thomas [https://www.instagram.com/maemariyam/?hl=en] Project Manager: Shaun Fanthome [http://www.instagram.com/sfanthome] Sound Designer & Mix Engineer: Kartik Kulkarni [https://www.instagram.com/kartik.kulkarni/?hl=en] Producer: Rachna Sukuru [https://www.instagram.com/rachnasukuru] Sound Engineer: Nihar Temkar [https://www.instagram.com/nihar_temkar?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw%3D%3D] Artwork: Alika Gupta [https://www.instagram.com/capefoxalix/]

Deepa Mehta and Lisa Ray: on Water and women shaping the narrative

When Deepa Mehta began filming Water in Varanasi, India, protesters burned the sets and forced production to a halt. The film, the final chapter in her trilogy exploring fire, earth, and water as metaphors for social realities across the Indian subcontinent, was eventually made in Sri Lanka. Twenty years later, Mehta and actor Lisa Ray look back on what they built, what it cost, and why the story still matters.   Critics’ Choice Deepa Mehta and Lisa Ray reflect on what it meant to commit fully to a story about women on the margins and why the film continues to move audiences around the world. As Lisa Ray puts it, it was made with such sincerity that people could feel it — “it was the little indie film that could.”   Close-Up: Deepa described making Water without an agenda; Lisa described surrendering to the role rather than performing it. Here, they focus on the process — how the film was made, the close-knit community that formed around it, and what it felt like to work in a simpler time, when no one retreated to their trailer between takes.   The Edit This conversation moves across memory, politics, identity, and time with two of the most influential women in Indian cinema thinking aloud together.   Epilogue Twenty years on, Water is no longer met with outrage or political defence. As Deepa puts it, it feels like a truth that never dies, it’s still finding new audiences, still landing where it needs to.   Featured Clips in this episode: 79th Academy Award Nominations   Credits:    Host: Mallika Kapur [https://mallikakapur.com/]   Mallika Kapur is an award-winning journalist and seasoned interviewer with over two decades of experience in television and live journalism. Across three countries and various impactful roles at CNN and Bloomberg, she has reported on major global events, including the London train bombings, the Indian Ocean tsunami and the Mumbai terror attacks. She also moderates news making panels at global forums, leading insightful conversations with the world’s top figures in business and culture.   Reach out on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/mallika.kapur/?hl=en] and LinkedIn [https://uk.linkedin.com/in/mallika-kapur-a288b4131]   This is a Maed In India [http://www.maedinindia.in] Production   Creative Director: Mae Mariyam Thomas [https://www.instagram.com/maemariyam/?hl=en] Project Manager: Shaun Fanthome [http://www.instagram.com/sfanthome] Sound Designer & Mix Engineer: Kartik Kulkarni [https://www.instagram.com/kartik.kulkarni/?hl=en] Producer: Rachna Sukuru [https://www.instagram.com/rachnasukuru] Sound Engineer: Nihar Temkar [https://www.instagram.com/nihar_temkar?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw%3D%3D] Artwork: Alika Gupta [https://www.instagram.com/capefoxalix/]

Lara Love Hardin on Mama Love: on addiction, healing and writing her way back

Lara Love Hardin lost everything. Writing helped her find her way back. In this conversation, the author of the New York Times bestseller  and Oprah’s book club pick reflects on The Many Lives of Mama Love, a memoir of addiction, incarceration, motherhood, and recovery. She talks  about reading as her first addiction, writing as a survival tool within prison walls, and what it takes to tell the truth without softening it for the page.   Author’s Note: Lara traces her earliest attachment to books, long before prescription drugs or heroin, framing literature as both refuge and obsession.   Margins Lara reflects on what it means to carry a past without being defined by it. Addiction, prison, motherhood, and authorship are all layers that make her who she is.    The Spine Lara speaks about prison as a place where every woman had a “superpower”. Hers  was writing. By helping other inmates with their correspondence, writing got her through her darkest days.    Footnotes: The conversation goes  beyond the book. Lara speaks about re-entering the workforce after incarceration, the barriers women face, and her work today as a ghostwriter, literary agent, and co-founder of the Gemma Project. She considers what Mama Love could not yet include — a quieter chapter defined by steadiness, work, and rest.   Featured Clips in this episode: Oprah selects "The Many Lives of Mama Love" as newest book club selection [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uvsd4wc0Sps&t=1s] Message from Lara Love’s sons for Oprah [https://youtube.com/shorts/TJW-41jrTxk?si=uzOmdoA7YqG3UiIH] Credits:    Host: Mallika Kapur [https://mallikakapur.com/]   Mallika Kapur is an award-winning journalist and seasoned interviewer with over two decades of experience in television and live journalism. Across three countries and various impactful roles at CNN and Bloomberg, she has reported on major global events, including the London train bombings, the Indian Ocean tsunami and the Mumbai terror attacks. She also moderates news making panels at global forums, leading insightful conversations with the world’s top figures in business and culture.   Reach out on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/mallika.kapur/?hl=en] and LinkedIn [https://uk.linkedin.com/in/mallika-kapur-a288b4131]   This is a Maed In India [http://www.maedinindia.in] Production   Creative Director: Mae Mariyam Thomas [https://www.instagram.com/maemariyam/?hl=en] Project Manager: Shaun Fanthome [http://www.instagram.com/sfanthome] Sound Designer & Mix Engineer: Kartik Kulkarni [https://www.instagram.com/kartik.kulkarni/?hl=en] Producer: Rachna Sukuru [https://www.instagram.com/rachnasukuru] Editorial Assistance: Devanshi Chandak [https://www.instagram.com/adriannelenkerismylove25?igsh=ZzVnZ3djdmYxdXc0] Sound Engineer: Nihar Temkar [https://www.instagram.com/nihar_temkar?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw%3D%3D] Artwork: Alika Gupta [https://www.instagram.com/capefoxalix/]