'When it comes to Al, humans are still at the steering wheel'

Director Anand Gandhi talks about his transmedia universe MAYA, the future of Artificial Intelligence, and more

- KARTIK BHARDWAJ

THE Matrix actor Hugo Weaving ominously says in a voiceover in the trailer of MAYA, "For those who control the bard, control everything." MAYA is a transmedia narrative universe developed by director Anand Gandhi (Ship of Theseus, 2012; Tumbbad, 2018) and game designer Zain Memon (Shasn).

Earlier this year, the first asset of the universe was unveiled. A novel called MAYA: Seed Takes Root. The book revolves around a fictional planet called Neh, where a biological network of sentient trees, called Maya, acts as a "living internet." "Every citizen "tethers" daily to Maya, entering shared dreamscapes to work, learn and seek whatever flavours of impossible their hearts desire. The immortal Divyas harvest this data to see billions of possible futures. They don't rule through force. "Why issue commands when you can shape desires?" Everyone is tracked. Everyone is "nudged". Except one," reads the synopsis.

The universe seems to be an allegory to the current culture, being shaped by algorithms and artificial intelligence. "A myth for the 21st century," is how Anand Gandhi puts it. In a geeky-chat, we spoke to Anand about the first seed of the idea for MAYA, the need for expanding this universe across mediums like films, graphic novels, games and even toys, what he thinks about the future of AI, and more.

Excerpts:

Tell me about the genesis of MAYA