Indian Crime Novel You Beneath Your Skin Set for Series

Endemol Shine India has optioned Damyanti Biswas’s best-selling crime novel You Beneath Your Skin to develop as a multipart drama series.

Set in contemporary New Delhi, the multi-strand narrative concerns an Indian-American single mother and her autistic teenage son, whose comfortable middle-class lives are turned upside down by a police investigation—a crime spree of slum women found stuffed in trash bags, faces and bodies disfigured by acid. All proceeds from this option are going toward social enterprises in the author’s native New Delhi.

The novel was published by Simon & Schuster India in September 2019 and has since gained considerable acclaim, notching up multiple Amazon number one bestseller categories.

Abhishek Rege, CEO of Endemol Shine India, said, “You Beneath Your Skin is a crime thriller, layered with issues of poverty, misogyny and corruption. Taking a leaf out of the vast legacy of phenomenal women writers in the crime thriller genre—Damyanti’s book brings a sensitivity to an otherwise violent genre. The protagonist is fascinating as she is a single mother and traversing an unorthodox life through the rather orthodox setting of Delhi. Gripping, relevant and hard-hitting, this is a story peopled with many characters, multiple fractured relationships, small intimate moments and effective backstories. This is a thriller with a family at the center of the plot. These are the stories that Endemol Shine India wants to bring to the fore.”

Biswas said, “Thanks to Ed Wilson and Sidharth Jain, You Beneath Your Skin has been optioned by a wonderful brand like Endemol Shine India. I’m pleased that Jatin and Anjali’s journey is headed for screens, highlighting voices against poverty and acid violence.”