Mar-Apr 2014
short fiction
essays
Vol 4 Issue 2
76 Pages
verse
`50/-
reviews
A Round-up Of Detectives nilesh bakhle
Spycraft Then ...And Now
abhijit bhaduri, manjushree hegde
Interview: Lawrence Block
Stories
anita kainthla • anu kumar • deepa kylasam iyer • fehmida zakeer • lekha nair • madhulika liddle • mohd junaid ansari • s p lazarus • s s kuruganti • subhash chandra
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2 76 pages
short fiction essays verse reviews
Published, owned, and printed by Vaishali Khandekar, and printed at National Printing Press, 580, KR Garden, Koramangala, Bangalore-560095 Published at 177-B Classic Orchards, Bannerghatta Rd, Bangalore-560076 Editor: Vaishali Khandekar Editing Support: Arun Kumar, Manjushree Hegde Subscriptions, business enquiries, feedback: readinghour@differsense.com Ph: +91 80 26595745 Subscription Details: Print (within India only) or Electronic (PDF): Annual subscription Rs. 300/- (6 issues) 2 years subscription Rs. 600/- (12 issues) Payment via cheque / DD in favour of ‘Differsense Ventures LLP’ payable at Bangalore. Subscription form elsewhere in this issue. Online subscription: readinghour.in Submissions: editors@differsense.com Advertisers: Contact Arun Kumar at arunkumar@differsense.com / +91 98450 22991 Cover: Satish Kumar Story Illustrations: Raghupathi Sringeri Disclaimer: Matter published in Reading Hour magazine is the work of individual writers who guarantee it to be entirely their own, and original work. Contributions to Reading Hour are largely creative, while certain articles are the writer’s own experiences or observations. The publishers accept no liability for them. Opinions expressed by our contributors do not necessarily represent the policies or positions of the publisher. The publishers intend no factual miscommunication, disrespect to, or incitement of any individual, community or enterprise through this publication. Copyright ©2013-2014 Differsense Ventures LLP. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any part of this issue in any manner without prior written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
Editorial “Nothing goes so well with a hot fire and buttered crumpets as a wet day without and a good dose of comfortable horrors within. The heavier the lashing of the rain and the ghastlier the details, the better the flavour seems to be.” ~ Dorothy L Sayers, ‘Strong Poison’
Well, we hardly need justify the theme of this issue—it’s a rare reader that doesn’t enjoy the mystery genre! The secret of its popularity is simple: regardless of medium, it provides glimpses of good, evil, temptation, redemption—and resolution. In the hands of masters, mystery is compelling to the point of obsession. In 1841, Edgar Allen Poe wrote a short story titled ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue’, considered to be the first real example of detective fiction involving the ‘puzzle element’. It even used the twin ploy of the narrator and the disturbed detective! 45 years later, Arthur Conan Doyle captured public imagination with his flawed central character, using scientific technique to solve puzzles… since then there have been many memorable detectives and many unforgettable puzzles! Even though we couldn’t offer our writers the luxury of a novel’s length, they took on the challenge of the short story in this genre so spiritedly that the issue is bursting at the seams with fiction. The crimes range from murder most foul to murder that never was, from theft to kidnapping, from intrigues to other misdemeanours. We hope readers enjoy the selection. Die-hard fans will always have their favourite fictional detectives and Nilesh Bakhle lists his top ten in A Round-up Of Detectives. Abhijit Bhaduri and Manjushree Hegde take on intelligence gathering techniques in ancient times and current, in Spycraft Then …And Now. In The Truth In Fiction we chat with people involved in real-world crime and detection for the inside story. We interview noted crime writer Lawrence Block, who has published more than a 100 books and no end of short stories over the course of half a century. You might know him as the creator of memorable characters such as Bernie Rhodenbarr and Evan Tanner. We wish you an absorbing read! ~Editors Note: Our poetry selection will be back from the next issue. facebook.com/readinghour readinghour.in 1
CONTENTS ESSAYS 27
Spycraft Then …And Now
57
A Round-up Of Detectives
abhijit bhaduri, manjushree hegde
INTERVIEW 14
hatting With C Lawrence Block
nilesh bakhle
REVIEWS 43
Are you reading this?
FICTION 3
The Mystery Of Mr Johnson’s Death
mohd junaid ansari
6
Stolen Cutlery And Other Suspicious Events
18
A Simple Idea
22
Ragpicker
32
TheTruth In Fiction vaishali
s s kuruganti
subhash chandra
The Severed Hand
s p lazarus
Shopping For Bindis
46
Full Circle
51
Heartbeats At The Feet
61
What’s Yet In This, That Bears The Name Of Life?
2
70
anu kumar
38
64
LAST PAGE
fehmida zakeer
madhulika liddle
lekha nair
anita kainthla
Not Once Or Twice But…
deepa kylasam iyer
Reading Hour
FICTION The Mystery Of Mr Johnson’s Death mohd junaid ansari Junaid has studied English Literature and Journalism. He writes short stories, poems and plays.
S
ome say that Mr Johnson
with its lid open, his legs raised in
died a natural death. Sitting
the air, bent at the knees.
on a bench, under the bright full
But according to Mr Tom
moon of a wintry night, his head
Robinson,
began to sink; and lower and
inspector twenty-five years ago
lower it went, till his chin came to
when the incident occurred, the
rest on his chest.
deceased had been dead long
When people found his corpse,
the
town’s
sub-
before he came to sit in the park.
his hands were folded in his lap as if in solemn prayer. Poor Mr Johnson’s body had irremediably stiffened after lying in the cold for hours, and was as hard as rock. So that when he was buried the next day, his coffin had to be carried
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
3
FICTION Stolen Cutlery And Other Suspicious Events anu kumar Anu is a US-based Indian writer. She writes for children and older readers. Her stories have been twice awarded by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association. Her recent novels are ‘It Takes a Murder’ and ‘Inspector Angre and the Pizza Delivery Boy’ (2013).
D
G Pande’s wife was leaving
After a long search, the bag
for a seminar in Delhi, and
was discovered in the car, snugly
the house wore a disturbed look.
ensconced in the back seat, as if
His usually well-organized wife was
ready to leave, and the DG Sahib had
adding to the chaos
to drive rather recklessly to get to the station. He did so
though DG Pande
with gritted teeth
was unruffled. Mrs
Pande
couldn’t remember
and
belligerent
look,
negotiating
the
where her ticket was,
undisciplined
and when she realized
traffic on Patna’s roads,
she had left it in her
and nodding to everything his
new green Gucci bag, gifted by her daughter
wife said. “See, Sheela dai did not come. I
and disliked intensely by the DG
had to explain things to her. In my
Sahib, she couldn’t recollect where
absence, she knows you will be
she’d left her bag.
careless.”
4
Reading Hour
Chatting With Lawrence Block Author of over a 100 books, Lawrence Block was named Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America (1994), was thrice awarded the Edgar prize for best short story in the mystery genre, and is the creator of several well-loved characters such as bookstore owner and part-time thief, Bernie Rhodenbarr, conscience-stricken hitman, John Paul Keller, insomniac revolutionary, Evan Tanner and P.I., Matthew Scudder. Lawrence Block wrote a monthly column on writing for Writers Digest—a column that ran for 14 years. Later, the articles were published in a series of books, including ‘Telling Lies for Fun and Profit’, ‘Spider, Spin Me a Web: A Handbook for Fiction Writers’, ‘The Liar’s Companion: A Field Guide For Fiction Writers’. The Write For Your Life Seminar that he conducted for a year, traveling around America with his wife Lynn, was also published in book form. An early convert to the digital format, all his books are available in electronic versions, and he ventured into self-publishing as early as 1994. Here, he shares his thoughts on his characters, on writing, self-publishing, and much more in an email interview with Reading Hour.
“If you want to write fiction, the best thing you can do is take two aspirins, lie down in a dark room, and wait for the feeling to pass.” ~ Lawrence Block, ‘Writing the Novel, From Plot To Print’ 5
Reading Hour
FICTION A Simple Idea s s kuruganti SS Kuruganti has written for the Deccan Chronicle and presented her short stories on All India Radio. She writes twisted stories based on Indian mythology, reviews books for Random House India and Reader’s Cosmos. Her first book will be out soon from Indireads.
O
n the last day of his life, Mr
Well, no matter. After tonight,
Girish Niranjan sat down
he’d finally be free of Deepa and
to an early dinner.
her incompetence.
He served himself another roti,
Once done with dinner, Niranjan
and spooned all the potato curry
sat at his dining table for a few
onto his plate. Deepa had outdone
minutes
herself today. Niranjan smiled
evening news. It had long been
bitterly; of course the silly thing
his habit to watch the news when
would finally get a meal right the
he ate; not for him the hysteria of
very last time he’d eat one! And
reality shows and the insipid serials
she called herself a cook. It was
others of his age seemed to prefer.
disgraceful.
He snorted. If his wife had still
more,
watching
the
As usual, his gaze went to the
been alive, he was sure she’d have
photograph on the wall next to the
forced him to watch that terrible
television. His wife had been dead
comedy show that everybody was
these ten years, and he still missed
watching nowadays; he was sure of
her, especially at times like these.
it.
6
Reading Hour
FICTION Ragpicker subhash chandra Subhash is a retired Associate Professor of English. He has been published in India and abroad. He’s currently working on a novel.
P
rashant took his evening walk every day along the road that
stretched parallel to the boundary wall of Deshbandhu College; it was a long road that connected Kalkaji and Chittaranajan Park and was sparsely frequented. After finishing his walk, he would visit his friend, Raghav Verma, for a chat and a cup of tea. The two would sit in cane chairs on the balcony savouring
of the security agencies of the
Barista muffins, Wenger’s patties
government, and so on. Around
and cookies, and roasted cashew
this time, the old, bedraggled
nuts, and talk about the fast
woman would come to the kabadi1
vanishing
shop located opposite the house
values
from
public
life and politics, 26/11, the laxity 7
with her day’s pickings. Reading Hour
ESSAY Spycraft Then …And Now abhijit bhaduri, manjushree hegde Abhijit is an author, columnist and leading HR professional. He has authored 3 best-selling books and is the Chief Learning Officer at Wipro Ltd. Manjushree is an avid reader (though somewhat partial to authors long dead) and enjoys writing, travelling and new experiences.
I
n the annals of Indian History,
The Wisdom of Kautilya
the Mauryan Empire (c 317–185
manjushree hegde
B.C.E.) is a grand chapter, replete with drama, deceit and danger. With
and
prime
minister—composed
a population of fifty million people,
the Arthashastra, a radical treatise
the Empire, at its zenith, was larger
on polity. Written in a caustic,
than the Mughal Empire (centuries
sententious style, this exhaustive
later), and the British Empire even!
text of 6000 sutras, divided into 15
In fact, it is said that its capital,
parts and 150 chapters, is a fantastic
Pataliputra (near modern Patna),
window into the intricacies and
“was about twice as large as Rome
intelligence of statecraft.
under Emperor Marcus Aurelius”. To maintain law and order in this
large
Chandragupta
empire,
Kautilya—
Maurya’s
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
mentor 8
Time To Upgrade The Detective abhijit bhaduri
The petrol pump was located in
asked the attendant to fill up
Devanahalli just outside the city
petrol worth a hundred rupees.
of Bangalore. It was a convenient
The eight constables looked at the
spot for people to tank up as they
dusty Honda City that had just
headed out towards the airport.
driven in to the pump. They were
The eight police constables were
all tuned in to the tiny speaker
not in uniform today. They sat
that was hooked to the laptop that
on rickety steel chairs, sipping tea
was picking up the conversation
in silence. The young lady who
between the driver and petrol
was sitting with the cops seemed
pump attendant. The pattern was
uninterested in the tea. She
exactly as Ajmal had predicted.
suddenly nudged her colleague,
“How much?”
who looked up from his laptop,
“Are you deaf? I just told you.
and nodded at the driver who had
Fill up petrol for one hundred
just stopped to fill up petrol.
rupees.”
The man was in his thirties. He stopped at the petrol pump and
9
Reading Hour
FICTION The Severed Hand s p lazarus S P Lazarus holds an MBA from XLRI, Jamshedpur. He retired from corporate life in 2006 and is looking to publish a few novels. He lives in Chennai.
I
t was a severed hand for sure,
the
and a woman’s hand to boot.
still intact.
hand
were
The women of this little suburb went to fetch water from the
Closer
temple pond every day.
examination
They did this as a matter of routine well before sunrise and well before the world around them began to stir. One morning, they noticed something very familiar but totally unexpected: a severed hand lying by the side of the well. It didn’t need a forensics expert to conclude that it was a woman’s left hand. The gold bangles on 10
showed that the hand had been cleanly chopped off, apparently with a very sharp butcher’s knife. Word spread quickly about the gruesome find. In a short while, there was a small crowd of curious spectators. Keen speculation rose as to whose hand it could be, and as to the whereabouts of the rest of the body. Reading Hour
FICTION Shopping For Bindis fehmida zakeer Fehmida has been published in several journals and anthologies. Her story won the Himal South-Asian short story competition 2013. She appears in the National Library Board of Singapore’s 2013 edition of the READ! Singapore anthology.
T
risha waved goodbye to
far from hers. It was two months
her friends and got on to
now, since the incident, and the
her cycle. As she pedalled home, she looked at her watch. She had spent too much time talking with her friends. By the time she reached home, there would be at least three calls from Ma. Ever since that
police didn’t have a clue.
news about the disappearance of
There was a history test the next
the two girls had hit the papers,
day, and she would have to study
her mother had become paranoid.
for it in the evening. World War
Trisha wondered where the girls
2. The images in the lesson—
were. They had gone missing
though in black and white—were
from a neighbourhood not too
disturbing.
11
Reading Hour
REVIEWS Are you reading this?
Salvation of a Saint Keigo Higashino tr. Alexander O Smith Review: Richa Mohan
Bougainvillea House Kalpana Swaminathan Reading Hour review
The Spy Who Lost Her Head Jane De Suza Reading Hour Review
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
12
FICTION Full Circle madhulika liddle Madhulika is a novelist and short story writer, best-known as the author of the Muzaffar Jang books, a historical detective series set in 17th century Mughal India.
T
he irony about the Lake
too blurred by simmering rage,
View Hotel was that the best
for him to appreciate flowers and
view of the lake was from the staff
lakes. His nearly-ex-wife had raised
entrance. There, beyond the goods
the question of alimony; his son—
receiving bay, stretched an avenue
whom Pandit wished he could also
of jacaranda trees. Their feathery-
somehow
leaved branches framed the blue
about higher education at a foreign
waters of the lake. When summer
university.
divorce—had
talked
came, the masses of mauve flowers made for an even prettier picture. A picture no guest, looking down from a guest room several floors above ground, could really see. A picture Shailesh Pandit did not pay any attention to as he drove between the jacarandas. His mind was too cluttered, and 13
Reading Hour
FICTION Heartbeats At The Feet lekha nair Lekha is a freelance writer and author. Beginning her career with the iconic tabloid The City Tab, she later contributed to India Today, The Sunday Observer and The Week. She lives in Mysore, enjoys cycling, birding, walking, Indian classical music and is involved in empowering intellectually-challenged adults.
F
unerals can be a lot of fun. The
through cupped palms, “No, not yet.
milling crowds, the endless
At 12, I think. I’ll keep you posted,”
comings and goings and all that
and so on. But it’s a different story if
rushing about. Front gates and doors
you go round to the back. Here, at
thrown wide open like never before.
the kitchen door, plates of food are
I specially love watching the people
carelessly strewn about, the servants
standing around with long faces.
lounge on the steps, gossiping and
When their phones inevitably ring,
laughing and occasionally raise a
they scoot into corners to gabble
half-hearted hand to shoo you away.
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
14
ESSAY A Round-up Of Detectives nilesh bakhle Nilesh is a ‘techie’ based in Pune. He is a self-confessed crime fiction buff, recent cycling enthusiast, and looks forward to the day he might be a full-time writer.
W
hat could be more fun
I was, of course, pulled up short by
than a round-up of my
the proverbial catch—a word limit.
favourite fictional detectives for
The would-be fun task took on the
a crime special? I could think of
definite shades of a challenge—
a score of them off the top of my
how on earth was I to choose? With
head, from long-ago Poirot to
the deepest apologies to Inspector
present-day Wallander, each with
Wexford, Nero Wolfe, Roy Grace,
some memorable quirk, some
Inspector Lynley, and eminent
unique
others too many to name, I have
instinct,
some
mind-
boggling cases! I couldn’t wait to
limited my list to ten.
start.
Come, let us go. Let us leave this festering [Tartarus] hole. Let us think the unthinkable, let us do the undoable. Let us prepare to grapple with the ineffable itself, and see if we may not eff it after all. ~ Douglas Adams, Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
15
FICTION What’s Yet In This, That Bears The Name Of Life? anita kainthla Anita has 3 books to her credit - a volume of poetry, a biography of Baba Amte and a book on Tibet. She has written short stories and articles for several publications.
I
n a matter of half a breath,
as though trying to hide something;
my grandmother has become
a straight-backed folding wooden
the corpse lying on the queen size
chair, severe, hard, cold; a window
bed that I’m sitting on. There’s an
seat, with the potential to turn into
unfinished plate of dal and rice on
a prettily cushioned, curtained and
the bedside table. The aftertaste of
coveted sitting spot but instead
lunch stirs in my mouth at the sight
the mute bearer of a mishmash of
of the plate. An ant family has begun
religious texts and trivia, papers and
carting away what food it can with
diaries belonging to my grandfather,
a diligence resembling fury. Some
spectacles, knitting needles, an
members of the ant family have
earthen pot of drinking water, and
perished in a pool of dal the size of a
framed photographs of my dead
rain drop. It’s death day.
parents, brother and grandfather,
My unwitting gaze trails through the
garlanded like gods with marigolds
room—the bulky, almost extinct tin
and smeared with sandalwood and
trunk covered with an old blue shawl
vermilion paste;
Mar-Apr 2014 Vol 4 Issue 2
16
FICTION Not Once Or Twice But… deepa kylasam iyer Deepa studied in India and France. She has published with the British Council, Voices Israel, Sampad, and contributed to several journals. Her play Metaphor was long listed for The Hindu MetroPlus Playwright Award 2012. Her blog: thehouseofbooks.blogspot.in
M
onsieur Guillemet sipped
family and his beloved sister had
his warm ginger tea and
all tried to dissuade him when he’d
opened his morning paper. It was
decided to move. Yet he had moved.
a glorious day. About time too, he
He had got used to the hot weather,
thought. Pondicherry did not have
the loud people, and the cultural
the most agreeable weather. It was
peculiarities. He’d begun to call this
too hot for more than half the year,
place home. And he was happy, as
and when the monsoons arrived…
happy as he hoped to be.
well, how they burst about the sky like fire crackers! Such
extremes
of
weather did not suit his temperament. Yet, he did not particularly miss France; it had been twenty years, after all. His friends, his 17
Reading Hour
LAST PAGE The Truth In Fiction vaishali
W
hich reader has not been
than any other kind of book, literary
enamoured of detective
or otherwise! Years ago, I remember
fiction, at one stage or another of the
reading P D James’ An Unsuitable
reading habit? Mystery stories engage
Job for a Woman and being quite
us like none other. In pitting our
stirred, wondering if it I could have a
brains against a puzzle set by a skilful
detective agency of my own and put
writer, enjoying the peculiarities of a
into practice all that I had read over
detective’s technique, trying to work
the years. Thankfully, better sense
out for oneself whodunit and why,
or perhaps a lack of real purpose
often, the crime itself is forgotten,
prevailed. It wouldn’t have lasted a
or diminishes in comparison. The
week! But recently, I finally did do
horror of a dead body isn’t real, we’re
something I’d always wanted to do—
so taken by the locked room instead!
chat with a couple of people familiar
I must admit I am a fan myself.
with true life crime and detection.
Even today, I will race through a
The first was an an actual private
well-written, juicy mystery faster
detective. I’ll call him M.
18
Reading Hour
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