the book revolves around the murder of a young lawyer investigating match fixing in cricket, meandering through the upper class cricket club, chawls, little known bars, and touching upon the complex relationship between man and money
Shreya Ved is found dead on a late Sunday night. She is part of the commission investigating match-fixing in the Mega Cricket League. The cover and concept of the book are bound to pull a lot of readers. After all, Bollywood, cricket and Mumbai’s underbelly are exciting prospects. Fact or fiction, they do awaken the curiosity.
Author Madhav Nayak spent his formative years in the bustling financial capital. He completed his schooling, engineering and MBA from Mumbai before embarking on his marketing career in Singapore. Thus, the city’s influence stands out well in the narrative. The locations, the dialect, the cuisine and the slow movement of traffic are quintessential. Anyone living in India can relate to Irani chai, vada pav, Kala Ghoda, Parsee Colony, Fort, Colaba, Marine Drive and more such references.
The narrative is clearly structured. The story moves forward smoothly, giving a glimpse of the rich and famous, their lives, manipulations, networks, and privileges. The conglomerate owner, the politician, the driver, the security guard—we have seen them all in movies and perhaps in real life as well. The portrayal of characters and their complicated relationships are well drawn.
The protagonist, Russi Batliwala, a Parsi, is a sweet old man who retired as a famous national umpire. An amateur sleuth with a sharp mind and keen observation skills, he lives a simple life, staying away from the big-wigs until that fatal Sunday night.
The plot is full of tropes. If you are a Bollywood fan, spend your time watching content on thrillers, either on social media or regional channels, then you will find many similarities in the progression of the investigation. The investigative officer, Vichare’s dialect is interspersed with Marathi words and more colloquial terms associated with street language. There is a visible slackness in approach. There is no meticulousness in the way the murder is mapped. We don’t see any of the jazz of storyboarding or mapping seen in the western counterparts.
The cause for the murder, a commission created by the government to look into match-fixing seems to have no power. They aren’t allowed to officially tap phones. There has been an indiscreet article in a famous magazine as well. The retired reputed Justice Shankar, who heads the commission, is focussed on his success alone as the deadline approaches.
The corrupt journalist with some level of conscience, loud TV presenter, unhappy husband, a drunkard hitman, a colleague who is also an ex-lover, have been fully explored in many movies and dramas. The colloquial dialogue and the incessant use of words such as sabse bade saheb, falana dhimkana, aee shapath, divert the reader’s attention from the seriousness of the crime. It seems more like a kitty party with the police more keen on vada pav and chai rather than a murder of a young woman, the loss of a young life.
The police seem to make more mistakes than providing help in nabbing the criminal. The shady goons, slack sources, corrupt law machinery, all seem to have been inspired by Bollywood’s commercial success. The only person who really wants to close the case and nab the criminals to prove his mettle is Russi Batliwala, and Inspector Vichare and Constable Lobo follow his lead.
The closing chapter is a theatrical act of sorts with all the suspects in one room, and Batliwala recounts how he deduced each one’s motive to kill Ved. And the people in uniform listen to this along with the suspects. The lawmakers are shallow in their approach, leaving little impact.
The book is written more in the form of a light web series rather a serious crime fiction novel. A pacy read, you can finish it in a couple of hours.
Book Details
Publisher: Harper Fiction India
Language: English
Paperback: 320 pages
Price: INR 399
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Queen of Treasures 
This book looks really so intriguing! Our nation thrives on cricket cricket and so does corruption! On my TBR list!
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