.
This is my first read of 2022 and penned by an Indian Author,
Saradindu Bandyopadhyay. The original work has been in Bengali and the English
Version is a translation by Sreejata Guha. Infact, one of the stories has been
made into a movie featuring the late Sushant Singh Rajput.
Our protagonist is Bymokesh Bakshi who prefers to call
himself the “The Inquistor” meaning seeker of truth rather than a detective. The
Book has 7 short stories and each one of them revolves around a crime and how
Byomkesh cleverly seeks out the truth.
The positive is that there are very good plots set against the early 1900s in Calcutta, Bengal. The crime is old but the modus operanda of each crime is succinctly intriguing and different. There are lot of similarities to the likes of Sherlock Holmes and Hercule Poirot but honestly it is difficult not to be inspired. Fortunately, the characters have their own unique characteristics and hence although there is familiarity, it does not breed contempt. Also, Byomkesh Bakshi has a writer friend, Ajit Babu, who publishes Byomkesh’s Exploits in the newspapers. So you see, the author clearly has been inspired!.
The drawback is probably the language and the way the book is written. The flow of words does not sync in harmony and it seems to stop and start. Possibly, this is because it is a translation from a different language.
This is not an absolute must read .However, if you are keen
to explore and taste the labyrinth of crime stories set against the Indian
tapestry, it is definitely worth a go.
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