Digi's Blog

The history of the Mughals and the Marathas has always been a subject of personal fascination for me. Right from the time our school teachers taught us about Akbar, Chhatrapati Shivaji, I knew that there would be many other less known heroes during these dynasties. And then came Sanjay Leela Bhansali who wished to make a film on Bajirao Mastani. For a decade, the idea remained just an idea, before finally being converted into a beautiful celluloid experience in 2015. The best part about “THE PESHWA” is that debutante author Ram Sivasankaran gives you an indepth glimpse into what happened before Mastani appeared. Infact, the book ends with Mastani’s appearance. I had always wondered about how Bajirao Bhat became “THE PESHWA BAJIRAO”, and Ram does a perfect job in responding to my doubts. PLOT Set in the 18 th century, the novel describes the rivalry between the powerful Mughal empire and the headstrong Maratha empire. Things are set into motion when the Nizam ...

There is something insanely enchanting about serial killers and the story surrounding them. Organized crime with a motive has always been thrilling, but when there is a lack of motive and only a DRIVE that urges one to kill, it becomes even more fascinating. Piyush Jha’s latest offering “Raakshas” is one such novel. Describing the parallel lives of a serial killer and an investigating officer, this novel is racy, thrilling and keeps you hooked till the end. PLOT His name is unknown. We know him simply as RAAKSHAS. He aspires to be India’s most dreaded and famous serial killer. But how did he reach this stage? What was meted on to him during his childhood and growing years that ultimately made him reach the heights of insanity? Was he actually insane or was he a sane, cool, composed, calculated and cold blooded murderer? The plot describes all the above questions. On the other hand, we have the ACP of Mumbai police Maithili Prasad, who is hell bent upon catching t...

I call him the John Grisham of India, and the Madhur Bhandarkar of the banking world. Like Madhur, Ravi Subramanian exposed the blatant truth of the banking world, the corruption & the bureaucracy. But there is a BIG difference between Ravi and Madhur. Madhur kept on repeating the same subject in his films, leading to all of his recent ones being disasters. On the other hand, Ravi changed genres. Not that I disliked his repetitive subjects. I mean, he could easily manage to pull off 4-5 thrillers on the banking industry due to so much of diversity. But still, he shifted genres. And THAT was a lovely idea. PLOT So we have the novel starting with an IIM alumnus who turned an author later, giving a lecture at the same place he studied. Soon we get an idea about how publishing a novel isn’t the only thing to do. That is only half the battle won. What really escalates a novel from being a mediocre one to being a BESTSELLER is the marketing and promotional a...

While he has already written many novels prior to this, Mukul Deva’s latest novel “RIP” was his first book I read. The synopsis promised a highly engaging plot and an equally engaging read. Let us see whether the novel delivers as promised or falls flat. In a present day India marred by rampant corruption and scams, we are introduced to a group called the K – TEAM. This team is headed by retired Colonel Krishna Athawale and consists of Retired Major Kevin David, Karan, Kashif, Kamlesh, Kulwant. Angered and fed up of the corrupt politicians, these vigilantes decide to put a stop by killing them. And so the team divides into groups and expertly kills three people – who were close relatives of three politicians involved in few corrupt scams. Calling themselves the “Resurgent Indian Patriots” or RIP, they take up the responsibility of the three murders and publically declare that unless the prime minister takes immediate action against the corrupt ministers, three more mu...