 In 1964 , Narayan published his first mythological work , Gods , Demons and Others , a collection of rewritten and translated short stories from Hindu epics . Like many of his other works , this book was illustrated by his younger brother R. K. Laxman . The stories included were a selective list , chosen on the basis of powerful protagonists , so that the impact would be lasting , irrespective of the reader 's contextual knowledge . Once again , after the book launch , Narayan took to travelling abroad . In an earlier essay , he had written about the Americans wanting to understand spirituality from him , and during this visit , Swedish @-@ American actress Greta Garbo accosted him on the topic , despite his denial of any knowledge . 
