Agatha Christie’s Greenway Residency: Award-Winning Author Dr Manjiri Prabhu on Mystery, Writing and Inspiration

From reading Agatha Christie as a child to staying at her former holiday home, Dr Manjiri Prabhu’s literary journey has come full circle. The award-winning Indian author of 24 books, known for her mystery and suspense fiction and often described as the ‘Desi Agatha Christie’, is one of three writers selected for the inaugural Greenway Residency from more than 49 applicants across 22 cities. The September residency, a collaboration between the National Trust and Exeter UNESCO City of Literature, celebrates Devon’s literary heritage while giving writers an opportunity to find inspiration in a place deeply connected to one of the world’s most celebrated mystery writers. September also marks Christie’s 136^th birth anniversary.

For Prabhu, the residency is both a homecoming of sorts and a chance to explore new creative possibilities while reflecting on Christie’s enduring influence, the evolution of crime fiction and her own journey as an Indian mystery writer.

Excerpts from the interview:

How did this residency come about? Your first reaction?

The inaugural Greenway Residency has been organized by the UNESCO Exeter City of Literature along with the National Trust South Deven which manages Agatha Christie’s holiday home Greenway and the Exeter Institute. It is competitive and a lot of writers across the world applied for this prestigious Residency which gives authors writing time in Agatha’s home and in the Exeter Institute. When the email arrived from the UNESCO Exeter City of Literature team confirming that I had been selected for the inaugural Greenway Residency, I was elated. Having been called the ‘Indian Agatha Christie’ by the media for so decades now, living at her summer estate will feel like a deeply personal, sacred milestone in my creative journey. Even a sort of a symbolic homecoming…

Did Agatha Christie influence your journey as a crime writer? Is there a particular Christie novel or character that influenced you?

Yes, absolutely. I grew up devouring her books, and when I first ventured into writing suspense, way back in the early 90s, the genre in Indian English literature was virtually non-existent, particularly for female writers.

I was introduced to Christie long ago, in my growing years. I saw a Hindi film called ‘Gumnam’. The story and plot fascinated me so much that I was amazed at the ingenuity of it. I discovered that the movie was based on Agatha Christie’s novel ‘And There were None’. That got me hooked to the Queen of Crime’s novels. Since I wrote from instinct and a creative and imaginative point inside of me, Agatha opened a world of technique for me. She introduced me to the craft, the deeper intricacies of mystery-writing, to the games people play, their subtle motives navigating the labyrinth of human psychology. She explained the ‘why’ behind the mystery to me. I realized that Mystery is a genre which has so much more to offer since it is an all-encompassing genre – it absorbs other genres within it and is for me motivational fiction.

Each novel of Christie is a piece of art in mystery writing, iitself. I love Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, both unique and exceptional detectives. But the novel ‘The Murder of Roger Ackroyd’ especially is a masterpiece and I treat it almost like my bible.

Why do her mysteries continue to resonate?

Christie understood that ordinary desires—envy, love, pride, greed—can push everyday people across an invisible moral threshold. Human nature hasn't changed, and I doubt ever will. And that is what makes her books relevant even a 100 years later.

When I wonder at the popularity of her novels in India, I realised that Christie’s novels offered, all that Indians love - what appeals to Indians, are the family set-ups, the romance element, emotions and values, cross-cultural backgrounds and references. So all this, along with the emotional play and layering of characters, the element of surprise that she kept intact till the last page, the double twists in the end, and of course the grand finale…we love dramatic reveals….which was Poirot’s forte – all this resonates with the readers.

I like this quote of Christie that says a lot to me: ‘I like living. I have sometimes been wildly, despairingly, acutely miserable, racked with sorrow; but through it all I still know quite certainly that just to be alive is a grand thing.’

What does it mean to represent India at this residency?

It is an immense honour to represent India and it carries a wonderful sense of purpose. India has an ancient, inexhaustible tradition of storytelling where mystery and mysticism blend naturally. Carrying that sensibility from Pune to Devon, and interacting with an audience and writers, is an opportunity to showcase how Indian mystery fiction reflects our own philosophy while addressing universally resonant human emotions.

What do you hope international readers discover about Indian crime fiction?

I would like them to experience the soul of India through our fiction. For decades, global readers perceived crime writing through an exclusively western lens. Indian crime fiction is neither an imitation nor a derivative form. It is steeped in our cultural textures, our philosophy of ‘karma’, spiritual nuances, and the intricacies of our heritage. It demonstrates that suspense can be atmospheric, intellectual, and deeply rooted in a culture's distinctive philosophy of life. That is what my Astro-Detective fiction ‘The Cosmic Clues’ and ‘Stellar Signs’ based in Pune is about, or ‘The Rampur Raza Mystery’ based in the Raza Library. But also Re Parkar, my detective from the destination thrillers that take place across Europe, brings his Indian sensibility and spirituality in his detection. I feel that this is what distinguishes Indian mystery fiction and I would love the international readers to discover this.

Challenges as an Indian woman writing in mystery?

Way back in early 90s, when I fist got published, mystery was largely dismissed by the Indian literary establishment as ‘pulp’ or an imported novelty, and the idea of an Indian woman carving out a career in suspense was viewed with considerable scepticism. It took resilience, patience, and unyielding faith in my craft to prove that mystery novels could carry depth, emotional resonance, and global appeal. Having said this, I do not wish to prove that I am a woman in a man’s world, or that I am better than another man or another woman or for that matter another writer. I write because I think like a human being, not like a woman but like a person without gender. Being labelled as ‘Indian Agatha Christie’ and then compared to Dan Brown, is proof of this state of my mind and my writing.

I write not to deliberately break any glass ceilings because I believe in none. I have tried to break moulds, opened paths to others by being the first Indian woman to write mysteries, suspense and destination thrillers in mainstream Indian fiction.

What are you hoping to discover at Greenway?

Greenway was Agatha’s holiday home—a sanctuary by the River Dart where she set aside the pressures of public life to recharge and spend time with her family. I am looking forward to living a slice of her quiet life surrounded by the natural beauty, going for long walks, writing on the slopes overlooking the River Dart and soaking in the spirit of the place. Often, such heritage spaces possess a unique creative energy; an author simply needs the quietude to perceive and receive it.

How can residencies create stronger connections?

Writing is, by necessity, a solitary pursuit. Residencies take writers out of their creative isolation and place them in an enriching and inspiring space for cross-pollination of ideas. When you interact with writers from different countries and literary traditions, you realise how fundamentally connected we all are through our craft and our desire to communicate our beliefs and imagination. It sparks dialogue, opens doors for literary translation, and builds enduring cross-border camaraderie.

If Greenway inspired one mystery, what story would you write?

Definitely a destination mystery or thriller based in Devon on the backdrop of an Agatha Christie kind of figure and atmosphere – A novel that captures the timeless enchantment of a classic, atmospheric mystery.

What is the one thing you hope to carry back?

A rekindling of creative energy. I want to bring back the sheer unadulterated joy of writing in peace and for pleasure. I also want to freshly inculcate in me the discipline that allowed Christie to produce such enduring work year after year. And for my readers, I hope to return with a story written with renewed energy.

Published on: Monday, September 28, 2026, 12:47 PM IST