MUMBAI: Endemol Shine India has optioned Damyanti Biswas’s bestselling Indian crime novel "You Beneath Your Skin" to develop as a multipart drama series, with all proceeds from this option going towards social enterprises in the author’s native New Delhi.

Dramatic rights were acquired by Endemol Shine India from agent Ed Wilson at Johnson & Alcock Ltd, working with Sidharth Jain at Mumbai-based agency The Story Ink.

You Beneath Your Skin was published by Simon & Schuster India in September 2019 and has since gained considerable acclaim notching up multiple Amazon #1 bestseller categories. 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. Although a work of fiction, it tackles many endemic problems in India: violence against women, slum poverty, and police corruption.

Endemol Shine India CEO Abhishek Rege 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 populated with many characters, multiple fractured relationships, small intimate moments and effective back stories. 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.”

“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," said Biswas.

Biswas is a writer and activist, now based in Singapore. All proceeds from the book go towards her chosen causes: the educational charity Project WHY, and the Chhaanv foundation, which helps acid attack survivors. The charity sector in India has been hard hit by Covid2019, which has severely affected underprivileged communities.

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