Saradindu Bandyopadhyay almost never cheats by bringing an unknown character from outside the main cast and declaring he / she is the culprit. In many stories, at some point we can make a list of suspects, and typically the culprit is one of them.
#BYOMKESH BAKSHI REVIEW SERIES#
However, as we read more stories, we discover that the two series diverge, because Byomkesh and his friend Ajit are quintessentially Indian and Bengali. He doesn't say, "Wake up, Ajit! The game is afoot!" though. Sometimes, Byomkesh wakes up Ajit in the middle of the night, or early in the morning, to go out on a mission. There is even a police officer similar to Lestrade who creates problems for Byomkesh. While reading the stories, it is hard not to spot similarities between Byomkesh and Sherlock Holmes – the way the character gets introduced first, the way the narrator Ajit and Byomkesh become roommates. There was a break of fifteen years between 19, when Saradindu Bandyopadhyay went to write screenplays for Bollywood, but he came back and continued from where he left off. The first Byomkesh Bakshi mystery appeared in 1932 and the last one in 1969. The last story in the second collection was written in 1967.īyomkesh Bakshi was one of the first Indian fictional detectives. The second collection had stories from the second part of his career, from 1952 onwards. The first collection mostly had stories from the first part of Saradindu Bandyopadhyay's career, from 1932 to 1937. The first book had seven stories, the second one four, and the third one three – that is fourteen stories in all. The third book was translated by Arunava Sinha, who is the current doyen of Bengali-English translators. The first two were translated by Sreejata Guha, who was probably the first to translate Byomkesh Bakshi mysteries into English twenty years back, and then continued translating other Bengali classics into English. The three books I read were 'Picture Imperfect', 'The Menagerie' and 'The Rhythm of Riddles'. I think there are only three translated collections of Byomkesh Bakshi mysteries in English. After finishing one book, I decided to read another and then another. I decided to start with a book which had a collection of Byomkesh Bakshi mysteries. The first two were translated by Sreej This is the first book I read for Diverse Detectives Month (Or rather the first three books :)) This is the first book I read for Diverse Detectives Month (Or rather the first three books :)) I decided to start with a book which had a collection of Byomkesh Bakshi mysteries. Translated into English for the first time by award-winning translator Arunava Sinha, the breathless pace and thrilling plots of these action-packed adventures will win Byomkesh a new genertion of admirers.more From a murder in a boarding house with too many suspects to a mystery with a supernatural twist, and then busting a black - marketeering ring in rural bengal, these stories take the super sleuth to different locales on his quest for truth, and bring out his ingenuity and astuteness. This collection brings together three of his classic whodunnits.
#BYOMKESH BAKSHI REVIEW TV#
From being a household name in the Calcutta of 1930s, when he first created, to a popular face on TV in the 1990s, Byomkesh along with his friend-cum-foil Ajit is perhaps the best-loved of India's literary detectives. This collection brings together three of his Saradindu Bandyopadyay's immortal detective Byomkesh Bakshi has enjoyed immense popularity for several decades. Saradindu Bandyopadyay's immortal detective Byomkesh Bakshi has enjoyed immense popularity for several decades.