Shades of Sin: Behind the Mask
An
Anthology of 25 short stories
Review
By Ila Garg
The
anthology comprising of 25 remarkable short stories, Shades of Sin: Behind the Mask, has been published by APK
Publishers which is a new but upcoming publishing house based in Pune. Its
tagline: “By Writers. For Writers.” says it all. The mission of this Publishing
House is simple: to help first-time writers get their work published.
The
collection is penned down by six remarkable writers, Dr. Vivek Banerjee, Upneet
Grover, Saksham Agrawal, Aanandita Chawla, Vrinda Baliga, & Sreelatha
Chakravarty. Let’s have a glimpse of the profiles of these writers first:
Dr. Vivek Banerjee is a paediatrician by
choice and a writer by chance. His works are published in Chicken Soup for the Indian Doctor’s Soul and Shades of Love. Also, The
Long Road is his debut novel.
Upneet Grover is an engineer cum MBA,
with a penchant for writing. His debut novel, The Dream, has recently hit the market.
Saksham Agrawal is a professional consultant
and an amateur writer. He writes short stories and is working on a novel.
Aanandita Chawla is a journalist and
aspiring filmmaker. In her spare time she reads, writes and plans to find a
wonderful way to convert everything she writes directly into moving pictures.
Vrinda Baliga enjoys writing short
fiction. Her short stories can be read in anthologies like City of Gods, Two is Company, Urban Shots, and Crossroads.
Sreelatha Chakravarty is a poet-writer-doctor.
Her debut novel is titled, The Eternal
Romantic.
The
anthology, Shades of Sin: Behind the Mask,
is a compilation of 25 beautifully written short stories by the above six
writers. One thing that is clear from the title is that the theme is ‘Sin’.
When we say sin, it does not reflect only murders, or rapes, but anything and
everything under the sun that falls under the category of negative traits of a
human being.
It
somehow traces around all the The seven deadly sins:
- Haughty Eyes (Pride)
- Lust
- Gluttony
- Wrath
- Envy
- Greed
- Sloth
The
25 short stories are tied with a common thread binding them together which is
the darker side of human nature. Various vices like presence of evil, materialism,
and moral weakness are well placed in this anthology. The tone and subject both
are appalling and leave you in awe.
Each
story is instilled with sheer pain, vices, and brutality of human soul.
Different hues of sins are portrayed efficiently. The language is bold and
comprehensive. Details are also well written. On the whole, the collection is well
compiled and stories are engrossing and gripping.
The
cover of the anthology could have been a little better though. But all the
same, it is nice. The 25 stories are divided into three sections: Light Grey,
Dark Grey, and Black, according to the intensity of the sins that they hold
within. The stories make you connect with the theme gradually as you continue
reading them.
The
stories reflect the social evils that exist around us and are prevalent. They
are a mirror unto society. Life is short and we are making it shorter, and
uglier. These stories shake you from within.
Some
of the stories are so well written that you actually feel tad bit afraid after
reading it.
Some of the stories that I personally liked are:
- All the 7 stories written by Vivek Banerjee
- All the 8 stories written by Upneet Grover
- Dhaba – Saksham Agrawal
- Three Lives – Aanandita Chawla
Rest
of them are also beautifully penned down.
Rating: 3.5/5
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