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Journalism of Courage
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This is an archive article published on December 7, 2008
A Case of Exploding Talent
8220;Shakti always wanted to put up a prize for a deserving first book,8221; said Jeet Thayil, poet and the late Shakti Bhatt8217;s husband.
8220;Shakti always wanted to put up a prize for a deserving first book,8221; said Jeet Thayil, poet and the late Shakti Bhatt8217;s husband. In Delhi, he stood alongside Bhatt8217;s mother Sheela and shook hands with those who8217;d gathered to cheer for the winner of the first Shakti Bhatt First Book prize. Mohammad Hanif, author of the A Case of Exploding Mangoes Random House, Rs 395, won the award which entails a cheque of Rs 1 lakh.
On August 17, 1988, Pak One, the airplane carrying Pakistani dictator General Zia-ul-Haq and several top generals crashed, killing all on board. Despite continued investigation, a smoking gun, mechanical or conspiratorial, has yet to be found.
Hanif8217;s debut novel tracks at least two and as many as a half-dozen assassination vectors to their convergence in the plane crash, incorporating elements as diverse as venom-tipped sabers, the curses of a scorned First Lady, and a crow impaired by an over-indulgence of ripe mangoes.
The prize was announced by eminent journalist and writer
M J Akbar who recounted his own memories of knowing the Pakistani dictator and congratulated Hanif on capturing the times of the General8217;s rule with such humour.
Hanif also read out a passage from the book. 8220;I8217;m thankful for the award and in the light of terrorism that plagues us all, it would be fitting to remember that even those who don8217;t live by terrorism, die by it,8221; said Hanif.
Hanif beat Kari by Amruta Patil, The Music Room by Namita Devidayal, and The White Tiger by Aravind Adiga among others.
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