This is not the first book from
Ravi Subramanian. He already has four hits in his pocket. This is his fifth in
a row that is going to add in the same series of his hits. It was quite
exhaustive and beautifully driven concept. A depth in the subject and clarity
of mind is quite visible. Author has been a core banker and hence knows ins and
outs of the processes and flaws of banking system that he has tried to explore
and expose in this book titled as BANKSTER.
Anyhow I have decided to read
all his previous and forthcoming books without fail. Thanks to Blogadda for
providing this opportunity. Perhaps the author has portrayed himself in the
character of Karan Panjabi who resolves an international mystery of serial
killings within 48 hours after he gets into it. The sequence is woven to
perfectly that no thread is seen disconnected. The mix of plot is done
fantastically that you keep roaming in Angola, Vienna, Mumbai and Devikulam
meeting various characters but stay connected with the crux and finally are
able to interconnect the deep roots of all characters met in various locations
over the globe.
The story is about an MNC bank
that has cream of employees, and pays highest of the salaries to grab best in
the market. And that is what makes it one of the most successful banks in India.
Having its India operations headquarters in Mumbai, the Greater Boston Global
Bank (GB2) is operative in all major and even remotest of cities of India.
Claiming to be having one of the best HR, operations, sales, finance and
investigations department; it had all kind of wrong and right; bad and good
elements in its staff right up to the top level and it was quite difficult to
find out the real culprits right till the end when the person who was being
targeted to be the culprit is found not guilty to that extent that he could be
the reason of series of murders of GB2 staff happening from time to time.
Let us start with the character
that joined readers when more than half of the book was over but who became center of attraction gradually. This guy is Karan Panjabi who is a banker
turned press reporter for Times of India who finally (at the end, after
resolving the whole mystery) joins the same bank that he has left due to an
internal rift and joins back after resolving the mystery of serial murders of
its key employees, as chief of operations. To some this character might not
appeal rightly presented by the author, the way Panjabi joins us without much
hype, and silently moves towards his target of pinning down the murderer within
a stipulated period of a little over two days. We have some of the excellently
carved characters who fit into their role quite well – whether right or wrong
as ultimately the character is one who is able to play its role perfectly.
This novel is all fit to be
converted into a Bollywood movie as it has all kind of masala in it – thrill,
mystery, murders, overseas locations – Angola, middle east, Germany, US &
Austria, Mumbai and then Devikulam in interiors of Kerala. As the mystery
starts getting resolved, it appears that what was appearing merely as the
serial murders of bank staff was having an international connection behind it –
the real cause being the blood diamonds, armory and money with a global mafia
which still stays unexposed. You will really like all characters, playing good
or bad role – who have been scripted excellently by Ravi Subramanian in his
latest globally acclaimed serial murder mystery and thriller – BANKSTER. The
characters – Vikram Bahl, Indrani, Tanuja & Abhishek Mathur/ Joseph
Braganza/ Mir Zawawi/ Suresh Ramamurthy, Raymond Sadanah, Krishna Menon &
Sulochana, Jayakumar, Johann Schroeder in Vienna, poor couple Harshita and Siddhartha, poor guy - cashier Pranesh and many more…