The All Bengali Crime Detectives II The Mysterious Death of Probhat Sanyal

When I had read the first in the series, or what would promise to be the first in a series beyond the expectation of the writer as acknowledged at the closing pages, it was a real entertainment. But as it happened this one is a bit short on the expectations of the readers. As a case is presented to the ABCD by one of the collegemates of a member of the club, of a reported eerie happening in the past and followed by unexpected death of a Kolkata based businessman, the sole witness to the creepy event, the energy of the senior citizens are boosted to solve the mystery. Soon arrests follows and the events take some unexpected turns. But here the thrill is marred by a host of side events and coincidences that does not do justice to the central plot. Compromising the suspense to some extent at the cost of the size of the novel I think the side plot of the roadside Romeo could have been itself a wonderful Barogolpo but when clubbed with a mystery loses both its fun, barring its climax after the actual mystery is solved, and tries in vain to breath relief to the already relaxed mood of the mystery. Also using the Bengali lingo to its colloquial extremity including the spelling of several characters and references to the story it does not do justice to the ‘Rasik Bangali’ culture and it makes it even more improbable for a club in Golf Garden organizing a jatra instead of a play that is too much far fetched in my view. Also after going thru the story I will comment that don’t be its judge by its cover as contrary to the expectation that most of the story might be in the backdrop of the hills and forests, it is only a minute part that references the hills. So though a wonderful mystery with a final twist quite unique it is not as gripping and compact as its predecessor which maintained the balance of the central plot with the right blend of refreshing anecdotes.

The All Bengali Crime Detectives

The author Suparna Chatterjee, in her first endeavour in writing mystery story, has excelled herself in the sense that she has brought more than mere mystery in the novel. Heightening the charm of Calcuttans, the novel is equally a story of the people of the city as it is of crime and detection. Akhil Banerjee, a Calcutta High Court retired judge of late, finds himself entangled in a puzzling mystery of a stolen gem that was reportedly stolen under his very nose. He forms a secret club comprising of himself and three other senior citizens - the adventurous at heart, delightedly forgetful yet responsible Bibhuti Bose, the avid smoker and a good friend Chandan Mukherjee, a veteran geologist and a serious teacher Debdas Guha Ray - all determined to solve the crime that undermined their prestige. As the plot evolves, so evolves the personal lives of these four in front of the reader and it is in this stage that you will fall in love with all the characters of the story.

Realistic to the very end, the story never tries anything heroic, yet the heroism in the simple actions makes the story one of the collector's edition. Chatterjee has published the book two years back and I for one want more from her pen. The ABCD or Akhil, Bibhuti, Chandan, Debdas of the All Bengali Crime Detectives not only brings back cherished memories of the intellectual detective stories, devoid of unnecessary heroics but is also a pleasant yet clear reminder of Feluda, Topshe and Jatayu. I can also draw a parallel with Alexander McCall Smith, the way he described Botswana, in the same way Chatterjee has described, no not the city, but the citizens of the mystery capital of India. As she thoroughly completes the mystery clearing all the elements of suspicion from the reader's mind, she keeps the immediate future of several characters untold. I think this is another point where she has proved modern enough. The central plot is complete but the incompleteness of the rest nowhere keeps the story open ended but provides food for thought that makes it both enjoyable and realistic.