“He supported the idea of gay rights in general but what they must endure on a daily basis had never concerned him. But now it seemed as if they were always being mentioned and the mentions were never kind or positive.”
From the very moment I knew that there was a book titled Murder in Mahim, I wanted to read it–I am always enthusiastic about mysteries set in my home city. When I knew it was by Jerry Pinto, the eagerness only grew. And when I read the description of the plot, and discovered that the murder occurs at Matunga Rd railway station, which was right opposite my college and which I had passed through so often, I was flooded with an intense nostalgia, and an impulse to return to this familiar place, even if through a gory murder mystery.
As it turned out, the book satisfied my Mumbai fix, and was just gory enough; but more importantly it was enlightening. It revealed just a hint of those things that are in plain sight, but which I do not notice, because I do not realize. It is a book that has made me extremely aware of my privilege as a straight person, and as someone who a reasonably well-off class of society.
A young man, Proxy, is found murdered in the men’s toilet of the Matunga Road railway station, gutted and with his kidney missing. The number one is scrawled in blood on the scene. It is soon discovered that the dead man is a sex worker, who had sex with other men for money. Peter Fernandes, a retired journalist, is called to the scene by Inspector Jende, his friend, to help with the investigation. When Peter’s son’s (Sunil) number is found on the dead man’s mobile phone, it becomes even more imperative for Peter to get to the truth.
On the face of it, the book is a murder mystery, yes. The murder above isn’t the only one either. But I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who is looking for a quick, light read or a typical thriller. That is not what this book is. It is not fast-paced enough (at least, it wasn’t for me) and the focus is never on the investigation as information is revealed in bits and pieces, in an almost painfully slow manner. I truly enjoyed this book only when I stopped focusing on the mystery itself.
The book uses the murders as a device to enter the lives of male sex workers in Mumbai –men who have sex with men. It is a book about the fluidity of sexual identity. It is about the intersection of class with sexual orientation. It is a peek into the gay subculture in Mumbai. And all of this is explored with immense respect and sensitivity. This is what is I love about this book.
The mystery itself stopped holding any interest for me and I read it primarily for the characters. From Peter, who considers himself liberal minded, but who struggles with accepting that his son may be gay; to Leslie, Peter’s cousin-in-law –the flamboyant “queen of the queen of the suburbs”; to Unit, a sex worker like Proxy with a complex personality, Pinto’s characters are etched with a sincerity and psychological insight, that makes the reader really care for them.
Pinto’s writing here is peppered with ‘Inglish’ – English tinged with Indianisms and used in conjunction with words in a local Indian language, in this case, Marathi and Hindi. I love it when authors use ‘Inglish’, becaus eto me it is a symbol of how India has claimed for itself the language of the colonizers and given it a vibrant new vocabulary. So that is something I really enjoyed here. The writing is also very atmospheric and places the reader very firmly within the time and space of the book. Those familiar with Mumbai, will find themselves at home taking a mental walk with Peter through places and roads they know. So there is definitely the flavour of Mumbai here.
I must mention here a content warning for violence against gay men. There are slur words (including in Hindi/Marathi). Also, another character refers to himself as a “blacky” who is not attractive enough–which prompts me to warn for a peculiarly South Asian issue -“colourism” (which values fair skin over darker skin and is a bit different from racism because it may be directed to darker skinned individuals of one’s own race). It happens only once, but I thought it worth mentioning here.
As I said before, reading this book was a thought provoking experience. It forced me to consider perspectives and ideas I would not have thought of otherwise. I love it when a book challenges me like this, and I would recommend the book wholeheartedly to others who can read a murder mystery for something more than the mystery.
Have you read this book? What did you think of it? Have you read any other books/stories set in Mumbai or other books by this author? Share your thoughts with me in the comments!
Author Bio: http://speakingtigerbooks.com/authors/jerry-pinto/
Other Reviews:
https://thehungryreader.wordpress.com/2017/02/07/murder-in-mahim-by-jerry-pinto/
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