BOOK REVIEW - Mafia Queens Of Mumbai : Stories Of Women From The Ganglands

Mafia Queens Of Mumbai : Stories Of Women From The Ganglands

BOOK REVIEW

By

VIKRAM KARVE

The Book

Title: Mafia Queens Of Mumbai : Stories Of Women From The Ganglands

Author: S. Hussain Zaidi with Jane Borges

Publisher: TRANQUEBAR

Year: 2011

ISBN: 9789380283777

Pages: 290

Price: Rs. 250

This book proves the adage that sometimes “truth is stranger than fiction”. The authors have chronicled the life stories of women who made it big in the male bastion of the crime world of Mumbai. The well researched stories make fascinating reading, especially for those familiar with the history of Mumbai. Those days “blue-collar” crime with guns and violence held the sway – now it the “white-collar” criminals and scams which hog the headlines.

In the foreword, Vishal Bharadwaj says that crime is juicier than spirituality and that is probably why this book is so readable and interesting. The authors have written in such a captivating manner that you are spellbound from start to finish as you can see the stories unfolding before your eyes. The print is easy on the eye and the book is embellished with photographs that lend an air of authenticity to the writing.

You will enjoy reading this book. I will not tell you anything that may reduce the suspense, so I will let you discover the protagonists and their stories yourself. But let me tell you one thing – once you start reading the narration is so gripping that it will engross you totally and you will find the book unputdownable.

The stories in this book bear testimony to the saying that the female species is deadlier than the male. It is intriguing to read how vicissitudes of fate change the destinies of simple women and pitchfork them into the labyrinthine world of crime.

Get a copy of this book. You will enjoy reading it. If you are a Mumbaikar, you can even visit the places mentioned and get a authentic feel of the stories for yourself, though the stories are set in a milieu that has changed quite a bit – it  was a different Mumbai those days than it is now. This is unique book since it narrates an fascinating part of the seamier side of the history of Mumbai that has probably not been chronicled before. That is why this book is an important addition for the shelves of libraries

Book Review by Vikram Karve

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