FICTION

,,v,rr.rld

rrken
hurrr
knees,

ETERNAL DON
Has Inspector Sartaj

r:

"\\'
crsvi"
ll()\vc
tl

'

Singh-the silky

Sikh nnd

Munbai\

fnesi-mZt
BY

his match'at last?

Sor
the cul-

VIKRAM CHANDRA
said so, you said, and the srubborn saw reason, and all roads .'vere smoothed, and there lvas peace. But he had been on the run for many months, on the Indonesian coast in a yacht, it was rumored, far but onlv a phone call arval'. Which meant that he might as lveli have been next door, or

in Artl in Bonr

it,
l)L'RE never going to get in here," tire voice of Gaitonde said over rhe speaker after thel'had been rkir.rg on the door for three hours. They .1 tried e cold chisel on the lock first, but .lt b.r.i iooked like brorvn rvood from a l tlci arvay was in fact some kind of ,rr:ed metal, and although it rumedwhite .lcr the bhc{e and rang l-ike a sharp tem, bcil. the door dicln't give. Then thry had ,r'cd to thc lintels with tools borrorved lut ;1 r(i'Jd cretv, but even rvhen the road r.r took ovcr, wieiding the sledgeham,rs rvith long, expert nrings and huffing .' rtl-rs, rhe c()ncrete bounced their blows blithcti,, and tl-re Sony speaker next to : door iaughed at them. "You're behind ,' tinres," Gaitonde crackled. "If I'm not getting in, you're not getrg

safe

Looking Bachelors." His assistant,

Katekar, on the other hand, had a large paunch that sat on toP of his belt like a iuitcase, and a perfectly square face and very thick hands. Katekar was a senior constable, and an old colleague, and norv he came around the corner of the building and stood wide-legged, with his hands in his pockets. He shook his head. 'Where are vou going, Srrdarji?" Gaitonde said.
'Just some things I have to take care ot," Sartaj said. He and Katekar rvdked to the comer together, and norv Sartaj could see the ladder thev had going up to the ventilator. "That's not a ventilator," Katekar said' "It onlv looks like one. There's just concrete behind it. \\'hat the heli is this place, sir?"

trades r constni think r,

Slltrl.

.r.i-

is r,'en
designe "Ne..
signe d qLrestior

turned out, amazingly enough, in dusry Kailashpada. The tipoff had come
as

it

from an anonrmous mirle','oice on Sanaj's

direct line rt the station, bringir-rg them to Kailashpada in a h'.rsn'cirrtvan bristling

going

t,

"\vl
c()lllc (l l krt oi'out h,:r
rr

*'ith

"I

don't knorv," Sartaj said. It

rvas

rifles. "I don't knorv," Sartej said. "But norv that he's here, he's ours." "He's a prize, r'es, sir," Katekar srid. He had that denseh'snobbish look he alrvars assumed rvhen he thought Sirnaj lvas being naive. "But you're sure you tvvant to make him yours?"
"He's already mine, only he doesn't knorv it," Sartaj said, tuming to rvalkback toward

hert.l.i

'I"hc;

fillccl rv: inc of ti

I

out," Sartaj said.

'lVhat? I cen't hear you."

Su'taj stepped up to the door. The build'i lvas a precise cube, lvhite rvith green ,rdolvs, on a square plot of land in Kai;hpada, which was on the sdll-develop{ northem edge of Zone 13. Here, among

somehorv deeplr'satisfi'ing that even Katekar, Ilumbai native and practitioner of a ven' superior Bhuleshwar-bred cy'nicism, rvas startleci by an impregnable white cube suddenlv grown in Kailashpada, w'ith a black srvivel-mounted Sony

\\'cre gai of th':1:r

c:r.

the door. "All right. Cut offhis porver."

'\
"

\ ''.

"Hey, Sardarji," Gaitorrde boomed

over ihe speaker. 'You lvere the one rvho
I urkaa
e

I'nr

me bv

d IVlahinder Mathu's
a

c heary machinerl'groping at swamp, iging Bombay out talther and wider, In'ector S-artaj Singh had come to arrest c gre'lt Genesh Gaitonde, gangster, don _r*lg{gry,and rvilv and eiernal survi?oi "How long are you going to stav in rere, Gaitonde?" Sartaj said, craning his :ck up. The deep, round video eye of the rmera above the door srvivelled from side r side and then setded on him. 'You're that fucking Sardar inspector," ]aitonde said. 'That 1 am," Sadqi said. There were vo Sikh commissioners on the force, but S_!ttt_i$g9ctor in the e rvasjh_e -o_nty 'hole citl ina ao was -niea to being lentified by his turban and beard. He was no.,vn also fbr the cut of his pants, which

video camera above the door. "I don't know. And he sounds very strange' you knc'rv. Isn't he supposed to be;ery polite?" 'Yes, like a congicssman who wants a \,'ote from vou," Katekar said. &iitglike
an g_il ma,ssage'el'en with constables." "I've never met him. You?"

There rvas

strange rolling richness about his voice, even over the tinny speaker. "I did," Sartaj said. "Friend of yours?" "Not exacdy," Gaitonde said. "Butwhy the hell did you have to shoot him five times? In the face?"

i*q_L_"
{

"I

rl
th
c

'-.'^fiiends

evenrvh,

l
I
I

to z even tlt 3 that l'ori

<lsntlt:i

"No, but that's what eve{yone says.

Never heard of him being rude to poLice." 'Today he must not want an1'thing,"
Sartaj said.

"He was trying to bowl me out also' Gaitonde. And it rvas four times, and only
twice in the head."

j cr than vor,.
S one.
fi m..

-.t "Dn. ' darjii I

!. Here, I'i-

"But what's he doing here, in Kailashpada ofall places?" Sartaj nodded. The Gaitonde they had

"Mathu should have goften you. But he thought too long," Gaitonde said. "Mahinder N{athu always-" And his
voice stopped short, as if cut by a knife. Sartaj turned from the door. Now it was a matter of lvaiting, and an hour or two under a hot June sun would turn the unventilated, unpowered building into a furnace that even Gaitonde, who was a graduate of Arthur RoadJail many times and many years over, would find as hard to bear as the corridors of Hell. And Gaitonde had been lately very successfirl and thus a litde softened, so perhaps it

Ilu,

f, that, bar
5 ing in ,i am doin:
o

"'R.,

Ltalt,

< aITl a Frve

read about in police reports and in the

newspapers lolled in the stands during Sharjah cricket matches with bejewelled starlets, he bankrolled politicians and bought them and sold them, his dailY skim from Bombays various dau.k dhandaswas said to be greater than annual corporate incomes, and his name was used to

\\
I

B.Com.,

*l-marks.

film-starrybou^tavery ique in Bandra, and also for his pro61e,

e

had tailored

H aDout no
!,1

u cncket tr or

! th.b.rt.

hich had once been featured by Modern Ilomttn magazine in "The Ciqv's Best-

frighten the recalcitrant. Gaitonde Bhai

Y eryone ln ** he goes o

t3t

;uld

But Sartaj had ken only two steps when he felt a deep rm rising through his toes and into his
be doser to an hour. iees, and Gaitonde lvas back.

to you. I have for long follorved I'our darne'rvspapers, rvhich print verv often these stories of1'our great

ing exploits in our

Gaitonde laughed long and very hard, and became ar,uncular, affectionate. 'Yes,
I'es, of course you do. Hot out there." "Fory'ou also? AThums Up?"

'TVhat, you thought

it u'ould

be

so

porver and porverfirl politics, rvhich make 1.ou the first man in Xlumbai. N{any times

.sy?" Gaitonde said, chortling. 'Just a )\4rer cut? \\trat, I'ou think i'm a fooli" So there was a generator someu'here in e cube. Gaitonde had been the first man Anhur RoadJail, perhaps the first rran Bombal', to o\l'n a cellular phone. \\rith safe in his ceil, he had run the essentia-i
.rdes

rvhen my friends get together, v'e talk about your famous adventures. Like how lou finished Dhanraj Kalia's game, in
spite of his police guards. And of course I hope you are not offended if I mention vour great love aft-air rvith our ou'n X1iss India, Iliss Nandita Kumar. Please, Shri Gaitonde, I respectfi.r1lr'submit ro vou m\/

"I've a fridge in here, cbikniya.Justbefair and so herolike goodlooking doesn't mean you're exra smart. You get 1'our drinli" "I will. I'll be back."
cause 1,ou're so

'What

else would you do, Sardarji?

Go, go." Sartaj walked down the street, and

Katekar fell in beside hirn. The cracked

of drugs, ma//:a, prostitution, rnd ,nstruction. "No, I don't ink vou're a fool," Sanaj
id. "This, this building
verv irnpressile.

black tarmac seemed to sr.l'im and shimmer in the

heat. The street had emp-

\\'ho

tied, the spectators bored

'signcd it for voui"

"Never mind u'ho de-

;ned it, Sardarji. The restion is, hou' lre lou

,ing to get ir.ri"

bi' the lack of explosions and bullets and hungrv

for lunch. Benveen Bhags'an Tailors rnd Trinrirrti

"\Vhy don't . ou jusr nre outi It'll s,n'e us dl

ot of tinre. It's rcallv hot :t here, and I'r-n qcning 'readache."

11usic, ther found the

straightfonvardiv nancd

Besr Cirf6, u'hich had

tables scattered r.urdcr
a

neem tree ar.rd rattling

Thcre u'as a silence, lcd u'ith the mr.rrnrur'; of the spectrrt()rs \\'ho
rre girtherinq .rt tlrc cnd

black floor frns. Sartaj pulled desperatell' lt rr

Coke, and Katekar sipped

at liesh lin.re and sodr, onlv slightli' s\\'cet. Hc

u'as tn'ing to lose rveigl.rt. From u.herc thev sat thcy could sce Grr,itondc's rvhire

thc lrrne

"]

crtn't conrc ()Lrt. '\\Ihv not?"

I nl alone. I nr (,nl\'
c

bunker.

"I-thought

bv rnvsclf."

"Let's blorv it up,"

vor.r hrrd Katekar said,

cnds evenrvhcrc, Gaitonde. Evcn'one rnl'here is a fricnd of Gliton.lc Bhrri's.

vita, and sorre srnall clippings about me.

r't

,:n in the policc forcei Hou' is ir thcn .lt vou are a]onci" "Do vou krorv ] get applications, Srrrrjii I probabh' get rnore applicrrtions iln vou police lircks. Don't believc nrcl' cre, I'11 read vou one . Hold on. Ilcrc's
e.

iti In the government, in thc |ress,

I uill do u'hatcver *'ork r-ou irsk I am very poor, Sirri Gaitonde. I'fuI1i'believe that
vou u'ill give me a chrrnce to rnake a life. Yours frrithfirllri Amit Shirraj Patil.' "I{ear that, Sardarji?" Giritonde called out. "Yes, Gaitor.rde," Sartaj said. "I do. He sounds like a fine recmit."

'With rvhat?" Sartaj said. "And that'll

kili him for sure."
Katekar grinned. 'Yes, sir. So u'hat, sir?"

"And wl.rat would the intelligence bols

say?"

"Sahib, excuse me, but the intelligence boys can suck my lauda.Why didn't they know he was building this thing?"

This one's fiom \Vardha. Hcrc it is." "Gaitonde!"

"'Respected Shri Gaitonde.' Flcrrr .rt, Sardarji?'Rcspected.' So thcn . . ,'l l a f\\'enn.-nvo-\'ear-old vounq nrlrr lir'1 in \\/ardha, l\ Iuh:rrashtra. Currcrtlr' I
J,,i11g
11,'r'

"He sounds like a prick, Sardarji," Gdtonde said. "I u'ouldn't hire him as a
bhangi to clean m),toilets. But he'd probablv do u'ell as a policeman."

"Norv, that would have been very, very intelligent, rvouldn't it?" Sartaj said. He leaned back in his chair and stretched. "You think we can find *
bulldozer?"

"l'rn qcttirrq tircd ,'f rhis, Gaitonde."

\l.(',r1n.,

L'onr. eram u'ith scvcnfi-onc-ircr'-.! rt .r'ks. I lrnr :tlso knou'rr in rlt it,ilcge .,.

lrr6'irrq l,.r:'r,.1

r'r11

lie.t .rtlrlctt, .ir,'u I .rrrr t:r1ri.1111 ,,1 i1 . '.kct tcun.' l'lre n tlrerc's li lot oi'crrLir
,ut ho\v bold anJ strorrg hc is, hol'cr one in tou.r.r's scarecl olhir.n. O.K., thcn qoes on, 'l arr surc that I can [.c of u.c

Gaitonde lauehed. "Are vour feclings sadb? Should I be nrore respectfirl? Should I tell you about the u'onderful and rrstonishing Jcrrts oi thc police , our de lirrticrs rriiti givc tlrcir livcs in scrlice n'ithtiut a thought ftrr thcir ou'n profit?"

hun,

Q.rnra; lud a nretal cheir brought to the fiont of the bunker, lrrJ he .at on it pattine his face 'rvith a cold, u'et

t)

tou'ei. I{e vyas sleepy. The vidco camerr uil) ur)rr0\'ing arrJ silcrrt.
"A1i Gaitondel" Sartaj said.'You there?" Tl.re camera made its very sn.r'all buzzing machine noise, nosed about blindli', and then found Sartaj. 'Yes, I'm here. I

"Critonde)"

"\Vhati"

"l'll

be back.

need a cold drink."

32
.vils searching this bastard place. S:udarji, ..rn vou beLieve iti There's nothing to eat
:-.

FI.

hcrc.

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL JVEET THINC

I
live rvherc
and

hir fw
sor

"\othing?"
brand-new' nvo-lakh liidge big rn1)uqh to rvalk into, and not a s[ce of
r:e .iJ in it.

"-\

hrrve

i,iiots u'orking tbr me."

S::tii Crou:r: :uJ,Jeniv th;t Gaitonde

:.ra, lef,:iec th.rl biZ r-oice from the mor::.. tio:r Pd'.:rrxrj Kr-toor in a smoking

the rvorld's most exceLlent fruits and m.rst respectable people are build their ncsts. birds most berrr,rtiful rvhere the
Vulgar people live here, too, in filthy ditches brilliant waterlilies bloom. The smell ol children's pee-soaked blankets and

'S, ils

cr(
br, tal gr(
agl ne:

the sen'ants. .:-:,:.<:: co::.9hi:.in3 about -C.,: *'e selJ vou somethingi" Sartaj -S:-j:::pi Cirickenl' . -' :. -\.r. r'c.l can't. end stoP tning to be
---r--imlf

surrounds the Place,

live here, too, as

excess.

-\'eruli s:rr:hungq'?" Sanaj rvas trying :- ;:-J.r:e dre chrnces of staning Gai:::.ie out. But he remembered that G:r,1riii hrd lested for rveeks on water ::.: ::i.je. The bulldozer would arrive in iour-an hour and a half, at most.

Kl
am the citizen of an ertremelv oveqpopulated country:
lVi.I

everything

in it

drorvns

at

times

thi
moon.
Bu tal
Pc,

in the flood tide of the new

Sometimes the slvan's neck emerges from the lava stream

": '1're

*-'rlr:e hungl' than you could imagine."

been hungn'before," Gaitonde said.

"Lisien, it's too bloody hot out here," S..:::j s,rid. "Come out and back at the
.:,,:i--.n vou cm tell me all about how hunj-, ou \l'ere.'

glistening in the sun. The dream pitcher doesn't rvait here for the touch but simplv floats au'a.rWith such coundess disgraces, unbeanble w'ounds and pain, under the merciless gaze of the developed rvorld I live on in this country like this.
Because

br,
cr'i cr(' d/i

' ' tI " a"n't come out."

"I'iI

the w'orld's most amazing thrits

have grotvn here,

K.
hir

.-': all sorts of people trying to

t,riie care of you, Gaitonde. There ki1l you, I

.,::rrv. But no danger, I promise. This is :.,.: ;oing to fttrn into an encounter. You
: -out norv and we'il be back at the sta=e ::-: in slx minutes. You'll be absolutely :,::. From there you can call your friends. ,r:--. eAitnt safe. You have my promise."

the most respectable people, the most beautiFrl birds, I survive through the year, through rein and shineI survive with the indomitable longing for the harv'est's golden grains in this place, like this.

\,\
sai

do

hi'
/a:

hi
..tl

But Gaitonde wasn't interested in :::=':ses. "Back when I was a kid, I left '-:.: counm'tbr the fust time. It was on a : :::. \'ou knou'. Those days that was the .r'i.es-, get on a boat, go to Dubai, go :: 3i:rain, come backwith gold biscuits. , ',.':.-,. ercited, because I had never left the : j:]5'betbre. Not even to Nepal, you :r::rstand. O.K., Sardarji, establishing
::.:,:: r,ilere was the small boat, five of us ::- i:. sea, sun, all that kind of crap. Salim l{:-+ rvas the leader, a six-foot Pathan '.,. l::: a long beard, good man with a .'.,.'rri. Then there was lMathu, narrow

\Translated, fom the Bengalt, by Carolyne ll/right, Syed fulanzocrul Islam, and the authar,)

-Srru,urt

Azlo

stl sh cu

and

were his boys, behind him all the

time. Got it?" Katekar rolled his eyes. Sartaj said, 'Yes, Salim Kaka was the leader, you and N'Iathu the thin guy were the guns, and Gaston and Pascal sailed the boat. Got it." Katekar propped himself against the wall next to the door and spilled paan masala into his palm. The speaker gleamed
a

Bombay from Surat. They caught the nngadia as he got offthe bus, tossed him

in the back of

an Ambassador, and went

roaring away to an empty chemical godown in the industrial estates at Vikhroli. In the godown they stripped him
of his shirt, his banian, his pants, everything, and found sewn inside the pants,
over the thighs, four lakhs in five-hundred-

tu: Kl, afi aIl sti

wi

.:i

thin evenrvhere, always picking his

:.:s3. supposed to be a tough Buy. Me, :-.:e:een and didn't know a damn thing. -\:.i fiere *'as Gaston, the owner of the ::::. and Pascal, his assistant, two small :::i -:1-r\s from somewhere in the South. -: '.',:-. Salim Kaka's deal, his contacts ----=::. a:i.j his monet'that hired the boat,

hard metallic silver. Sartaj shut his eyes. Gaitonde went on. "I had never seen such a huge sky before. Pulple and gold and pqple. Mathu was combing his hair again and again into a Dev Anand puff. Salim Kaka sat on the deck with us. He

rupee notes. Aiso a money belt with slx' teen thousand in it. He was standing there

Ir
clt
te

e\'

baby-naked, his big paunch shaking, holding his hands over his shrunken
Iauda, as they left. Clear?" Sartaj opened his eyes. "A courier, they got him, they made some moneY. So
I

ni
se

an

p(

-:
:

: :::ri

i:rs anpeience, when to go out, when ':rcii er-enthing was his. Mathu

had huge feet, square and blunt, each cracked like a piece ofwood, and a beard that was smooth and red like a flame. That night he told us about his fust job, robbing an angadia couriering cash to

what?" "So the story's not over yet' smart Sardarji. Salim Kaka was closing the door, butthen he tumed around and came back

i
rt

lit
ot
d,

h,

I'

t33

him up and around, and put a knee

He caught the guy by the throat, lifted

be_

tween his legs. 'Come on, Salim pathan,' someone yelled to him, 'this is no time to want to fuck

boy.'And Salim Kaka, u,ho was groping^ the angadia's bum, said,
a

rf you squeeze a beautifirl ass, you would a peach, it reveals all the se_ crets of the world,' and he held up a lide brown silk packet, which the orgodiohad taped behind his balls. In it weie a good gross of the highest-qualiry diamo"nds, and aglitter, rvhich they fenced the
as

')ometlmes

"gl.r* next week at fifry per cent, and Salim Kaka's cut alone rvas one lakh, and this
was in the days when a lakh meanr somewas the least of it, money is onlt.monel,.' But after that he rvas knoun as a iusrrous

thing. 'But,'Salim Kaka said, ,the lakl

'No. rhev don'r.'Heivas leaning closer to me, rvhispering, and I could s:lell his
banian and see the pale phosphorescence of his eves. '\obodi kno,,,rs, he didn't rell his boss. Don't vou qer iri This is his ou.n

'Salim Kaka's people knou.. his boss knou's.'I could feel him laughing at me, his knee .jogginq aqainsr mv shloulder.

suddenly kindly toward him. ,lsn't this beaudfi.rl?'I said. He laughed. ,Beautiful? We could drown,'he sJd, ,and nobody rvould know what happened to us. \Ve would drsapp:N, phat, gone.' His ciga_ rette made spirals in the dark. ,Whatlo 1'ou mean?'I asked. 'Oh, you pitfii de/tati idiot,' he said. 'Don't.r,ou knorv? Nobody knows lve are out here.' ,But,' I said

be anlwhere close to Dev Anand's, iut still evry day he stroked ta_lcum powder onto that poinry rat face and triei. I felt

ber his features, which were too bonv to

the. big fishes. He thinks he's going to make enough to start himself"all iew and fresh a.nd shiny. Capital, capital, you

understand?' shoulder and swung himself up. .Beta,, hle sard, if )'ou want to live in the ciry you have to think ahead three turns, .nd took behind a lie to see the truth and then behind that truth to see rhe lie. And then,

"I. sar up rhen. He put a hand on my

and,then,

need a bankroll. Think about it.,Mrth" patted my shoulder and drew back. I saw his face lbr a second in dim light as he lorvered himself into the cabin. A"a I a;a think about it."

if I'ou_want to live well, you

talent,.a shalp lad. 'I'11 squeeze i.ou like a peach,' he'd say, cocking r .r^gg.,. ..,..brow, and the poor unfornrnate ,iih. ,.ceiving end would spill cash, cocaine, secrets, an'"thing.

"'How did

.rfraidi A nran u.lro is al-r.iid is a lrran u.ho

Krka-said, 'lt is verv simple. I looked rr hirn from the door and he rvas still alieid. \44'ren I had my knife at his throat he had said to me in a child's linle voice, ..please don't kill me, rn\, /,nnp." I h.rdn't killeJ him, he \\'rrs srill alirc end holding his lnuJa, the mone\'\\'rs qone. bur it r,iisrr't Itis, u'c u'crc lcar.inq, so uhr.rvas hc :till

angadia, Saiim Kaka?'I asked, and S;.iinr

1'ou knou, rvith the

'r'ou rhirrk \\.e are

deal. \\hr do r.ou thirrk.,.\.e re on rhis Lnle Ahatara ot-a boat. nor a rrau.leri \\'hr.do

smelling
111',_t_1ry'

nirh him. one ,ltl,t:i oipig shit and firrr din rrnd a
junior menrber of the companr.i
o.,,,,r,

Kaka," Katekar said softlr.. ,,I rerr:.:mber seeinq_him in Donqri, ,,,jking eround in a red lun{ai and a silk kuna. The kunas u'ere of ciifi-erent colors, but the lungi rvas
rrlu'a_r-s

f frotn thc speaker Katekar rurned his ,\J. head, right and left, and Sartaj heud the snrall clicking noise of the borres in his neck. "l renrimber this Salim

Ehi

\\hr i This is Salim Kakr's

operation. He u'ants to go independent,

li.,l.

our here s).tppin.q rrr.ru. in rhi. iucking \vncezlng tln rrxp, orre pitch au,av tiorn

and to go independenr rrhat do r ou needi Capirrl. Th.rr's u.h.ir. Th.rr's r*.hr. ,r.e'rc

mrn s gang, and he had a \\,oman in Dongri, I renrenrber hearing. Dongri u.as
Bachchu Singh's area, silk kurras."

red. He u'orked u,ith Haji'Sal-

..1T.. for rhe t'oman, in a r.ed lungi and

butitill Satil faU

Sartaj noddcd. Katekar's lace u,as AUTHORS

stiil has sorxerhing to lose.' " shifted in his chair, and regremed it im_ mediately as his shoulde, blade found a cun'e of heated metal. He adjusted his

IN;E.

RANGE
6<a

. , -V:ry impressive," Sartaj said. Hc

&)
W<at.e'

t rydgq"gi*u,

'-+.')

:lose as. I could get to the o-nrushing u,a-er, and I dreamed. Did I tell you T .,,r,*, rirrcteen? I u'rs ninetccn and I made mr._ elf stories about cars and a hieh house .nd m1'self entering a par$.and flashbulbs
roPplltg.

stirring of the air came Gaitonde's voice u'ith its cool electronic hiss. "I r-esolved to be sharplv rvarchfi-rl forrver after, for I u'as ambiiious. That night I.laid my bodl'dorvn along the bo,,'rlas

.rttcrnool ne\\.spaper, his eles abstracted end his forehead slack, u,hi1e into the slorv

turban and tried to breathe slor"ly, evenly. K-atekarrvas fanning himselfrrith a folded

&t
t*#{'

'qffl

U-"lt

rn!3

'l -tyi't't* -,
t t
!:

c:rme and sirr bcside rrc. I Ic t a cigarctte ior hinrself and grn,e nrc ne. I drerv hard on it lke hirn. In rhe .rrk I could see rhe pulIof his hrir, Iri, .r{{ard shouldcrs, and ] tried to rcmcrn-

"llathu

t"t-,

,\,/ t ly' /,2.

n.U^r

t34

puffi,

rrs

if he had just rvoken from

sleep.

"Love?" Srirtaj srrici.

Krrtekrrr grinrrcd. "fLrdqinq bv thc silk, rrLrst h.n'c bccn," hc said. "Or rnaybe it lvls jtrst that shc w'.ls sevcntecn ar.rd hird ',rn irss like a prrrncing deer's. She was an rtuto ntcchrrnic's drrughtcr, I think."

stcad there '"vere high nrshes that towered above our hcads. S.rlim Kakr took a pole

JHOVCAJE

DY

MAX VADUKUL

I I

it

"Don't belicve in love, Kateklr?"

"Satb, I befievc in silk, and in everything thrrt is soft, '.rnd ever)'thing else that is hard, but . . ."

Abovc their heads the speaker rumbled.'\\4rat in God's name are you mumbling about, Srrd'rrji?" "Go on, go on," Sartej said. 'Just mint;r instructions." "Not eiving up? Good, I like that. So listen. The next xfternoon, we started to see tree brirnches in the water, pieces of old crates, botdes bobbing down and up, tires, once the whole wooden roof of a

house floirting upside down. Gaston strncJ orr dcck thc rvhole timc now, one arnr arouncl. the mlst, looking this way and that lvith binoculrrrs, never stopaskccl Nl.rthu, 'Are rve close?' He slrru.{ged. S.rlirn Klkl c:lmc rrp in r ncrv kurtr. Ilc stood by the bo'"v, looking to thc north, and I s'.rv his fingcrs dabbing

ping.

rrnd pLrshcd trs throrrgh thc felthcred brnks thrrt creakecl rrnd r.vhisperecl, and although I rvasn't toltl to I hrrd nry pistol in rny'ha.nd. Thcn the',voocl scraped under m1'fect, irarcl on ground. Flashlight in hrr.rcl, S:rlim Kakr led us up the island, that's what it was, a soft wet rising in the swamp. We rvalked for a long time, half an hour ma1'be, Salim Kakr in front, under a rising moon. He had a brown canvas bag over his shoulder, big as a wheat sack. Then I sarv the bercon agein, over the top of the stallis. It ."vas a torch tied to a pole. I could smell the tallow; the flames junrped nvo feet high. Under it there lvere three me n. Thev rvere dressed like city people, and in theieaping light I could see their fair skin, their bushyblack eyebrorvs, their big noses. Turla? Iranis? Arebs? I don't knorv still, but nr.o of them hrrd rifles, muzzles pointed just a little :rway from us. IIv trigger ,,vrrs cool and swertl' on m\' finger. I cramped and thought, \'ou'11 6re and 6nish us all. I took a breirth, turned n.rv wrisr, feeLing the

MALCUDI'J MASTER
K. N,\R\\'d\, born in 1906, lives on, as if preserved in the tranquil, . perennial essence of Nlalgudi, the

fictional to'"vn where almost all his fiction

takes place. The lightness of his touch, the smallness ofhis chosen field of obsenation,

and the profound equanimiryof his Hindu vision have been criticized as inadequate to the problem-ridden, poverry-stricken immensiry of India. But who takes a continent for a subject rvhen humaniry is dose at hand? An observed detail has a reso-

t.
I

I
I

branching truth-that no generalization can match. V. S. Naipaul, who as a boy in Trinided and a young man in England had read and adrnired Narayan, rvas dismaved, on first travelling to India, to find it "cmel and overwhelming" com-

nanc-a

I
I
I
I I I L

plrcd to the cozv and comic lvorld of Nlrll'an's no'"'els. He concluded that "hrs comedv and ironv rvere not quite rvh'rrt
thel' had appeared to be, were prrrt of
a

at the sil'r,er medallion at his chest. I lvanted to ask him where we were, but there was a narrow-eyed grlviry* on his face thlt kept me frorn speaking." Srrtaj leaned fbnvard torvard Katekar. "Do you think our friend Gaitonde reall1'
hrd an aftair r,.'ith Nliss Indie)" Katekirr grinned. "She wls a very English-medium t)?e, that one. But it's true, she stayed at his house in Hong
Kong."
"N1aybe he learned

butt against mv thumb, and rvatched them. Srlim Kaka and one of them spoke, their heads close together. Now the bag rvas offered, and a suitcase in return. I sirrv a gleam of vellorv, and heard the clicks of locks shutting. IIv arm
ached.

Hindu response to the world." As a Hindu, Nrravln believes in reincernrtion---a universe

I
I

of infinite rebirths-and a genial

I
I I
I I

"Salin-r
rve edged

Kala srepped backrvard, and a*'ar-lrom the foreigners. I felt

eterniw keeps company rvith his unb[nking social realism. In'The Guide" (1958), a con mrn becomes a saint; in "The Painter ofSigns" (1976), the heroine ofa doomed romancc is momentlrilv "perhaps a goddess to be rvorshipped." lVeste rn liberal prejudice demands that Indian rwiters confront suffering. Naray'an confronts it somervhat as Fielding and

English."

"Nlay'be she liked his sweaters. He has a lot of sweaters."

Srrtaj remembered the pictures of Gritonde, the medium-sized body and

the medium face, neither ugly nor handsome, all of it instandy forgettable despite the bright-blue and red cashmere sweaters, everything quite commonplace. But now there was this voice, quiet and urgent, and Sartaj tipped his head toward the speaker.

the smooth rvet rim of a stalk against rnr. neck, and I couldn't find a rvav out, onlv the vielding pressure of vegetation, and panic. Then Salim Kaka nrned abrupdy and sl,ipped benveen the bushes, the faint beam of his flashlight marking his wa1', and then Nlathu. I came last, sidervise, my pistol hand held lorv, my neck taut. I can still see them rvatching, the three men. I see the gleam of the metal bands around the rifle muzzles, and their shaded
eyes. We were walking fast. I felt as ifwe were flying, and the tall grass that had

I
t:

O. Henry do, with the recognition that

suffering is never all there is to the picture; human buoyance and hopefulness are also part of it. "India will go on," Narayan told the young Naipaul, and if this affirmation falls short ofa political program it does prodaim a lifelong opportunity to observe, to invent, to express sulprise at the permutations ofhuman behavior, to smile. Travellers to India frequently remark upon its exhilarating liveliness, once culture shock has been absorbed; Narayan gives the reader that livelyjoy as registered by a native immunized against shock. He surveys his teeming scene partly from the perspective of this most ancient of practiced rel-igions'

I
I

pulled and clawed at me at first now

brushed softly along my sides. Salim Kaka

turned his head, and

"As night came, in the last failing light, there was a pinpoint of red winking steadily to the north. We dropped anchor, then headed toward it in a dinghy. Nlathu rowed, and Salim Kaka sat opposite, watching our beacon, and I between them. I was expecting a'"vall, like I had seen near the Gateway of India, but in-

saw his frantic

smile. We were happy, running.

"Salim Kaka paused at the edge ofa

little stream where water had cut

a drop
a

of three feet, maybe four, and he reached

down with his right foot and found

and pardy from that of Edwardian EngLish fiction,

place for his heel. Mathu looked at me,

his face cut into angles by the gaunt

moonlight, and I looked at him. Before

which took an animated, casteconscious, at times heartless sociefy as selF UPDIKE widendy an entertainment

-JorD{

r36

THE NEV YORKER, JUNE 23 T" 3C.,1997

Srrlim Kaka had complctcd his step, I

knerv where rve were going. The report

all the rval'back to the dinghy the fat

moon rvas lou.orerhead and lit us to ,afeg,.."

of the pistol bounced ofl tte r.varer into my belly. I knew the butt had bruised the base of my thumb. Onll. rvhen the flare left my e)s coLrld I see again, and
m)r stomach rvas trvisting ar.rd loosening

what.he rvas thinking. So I decidecl. I pL,t mypistol on_the pillorv, put my feet up on

Q.lnr',+1 and Katekar heard Gaitonde LJ. drink nou.. The1. he,rrd, clearly, er._ gulp and the glass empq-ing. :1..1?iS
"WJ'riskey?" Sartaj

to the boat. The rvater thrasted ani boiled. 'Fire, X{irthu,'I said. ,Fire, damn
you.' Those rvere the first rvords

and twisting, and at the bottom of th! ditch Salim Kaka's feet rvere treading steadil)i as ifhe \vere still findrng his rvaf

Katekar shook his head. ,,No, he

rvhiip...,l. .iB...i"

doesn'r drink. Doesn't smoke either. \rery health-conscious don he is. Exercises er,l ery da1'. Water he's drinking. Bisleri rvith
a

nvist oflime in it."

had

*'as firnr and strange, the souni of it

alien. X{athu tilted his head and pointed rveeds out from the shador,i.s, but still those feet clirrnbercd au'a1', going ste adilr.

spoken since rve'd come ashore . N4r,r oice

his barrel. Again a flash brought the

.___Gaitonde \\'ent on, hurrying norv. 'When the sun came up on the b-oat the next diu'l{athu and I u,ere still ar,vake. \\'e hrrd spent rhe night sitting in thc crrbrn, across trorn elch other, rvith the
suitcrrse nrcked under
stiU

not calm it. But I kept m1. breathinl my lipJ I:ody, my knuckles Thcr_e are somc thir.lgs"gainst ).ou call conr;ol. 'When I rvoke ir wai evening. Therc wrrs. a thick orange light pushing into rhe
cabrn fronr the hatclr, coloring the rvood like fire . M1'tonppe flled m1,-ihroat and

'\Vake me up in thre" hour, .ni rhen you can rest.' I turned to the rvood, lvith my back torvard i\{athu, and shut -y .y.r. Ver1,, very lolv dor.vn on ml.back there iuas a single circle on ml.skin u,hich nvitchecl and cra'u'"led. It expected a buliet. I could

thc bunk. 'l'm going io slelp,'

said.

aimed mv pistol into the round frothl'turbulence, and at the first

discl.rrrge all ntoven-rent stopped, but I put :rr.rother one in just to make surc. 'Conrc orr,' I said, 'lct's go horne.' \ larlru noddcd, as i[ I u'ere in charge, and he .jurnped into the ditch and sciabblcd fbr thc stritcrrse. The flashlighr g.rrs gloning undcr tl'rc \\,ater, a |.rn-rinous r.cllorv bub] ble tlrrrr enrbr,rcetl c\.rcrh. h.rliof S.tlinr Klkrr's lrcird and his grccn kun,r cojl:rr. I snappcd ir trp as I u'ent through, thouglr
I

sonteu'here.

risiblc. I hrJ nrr pi:rol in

sec

I coulJ
step.

JIrihu'i

nl l,ip, and unJer his thigh. The

llathu's bunk but

roof above mr-head crerrked out aite a.lthr.

h,rd roli Cr.ron :rnd pa.c,il rh.rr rve hrd been ambushed br-the police, rhe

\\'e

rveight. I thought the bullet had founcl rne, or I had found the bullet, but then I jerked.once hean rvas thudding
pain6.rllr' and I sat up. N{,v stomuch ."af co'ercd'* irh siveat. Niethri,r., ;;i.;1, il; f,rce dou'n on rhe pillou.. I nrcked mi pistol into ml u.:ristband and u.ent up. p.r_ c.il smiled rrr me our of hrs blrrck little face.

mouth, and my hr-rnd rvheir I triecl to mo'"'e it had becorne a loathsome bloatecl

ild -l'

police oi u'hatever countn. rve h.rd be en in. Pr.ial hrJ rrepr, anJ ih., u-erc horh nrovin: r'rn gcrid,,-notr.. in ,..pcat tur orri mourning. Behind Jierhu's heird there \f its rhc drrrk brcrrvn of the *.ood, and the ri'hire o1-his biinirrn llorrring and dipping u'ith the s*'ell oithe rvirr.es. There.r.,, th. hazl distirnce benr.een us, and ] knerv

The clouds rvere piled abovc r:s, e normo,.ls and buleine, higher and higher into the red herrvcn. And this bort i nlig on the
w-irter.

trlv lcgs shook and I

srrr

dorvn and

prrrved.

seid the

Hantrman ci:,t/i:a.I sitid

it again and again. \\/hen it u,ls d,uk, asked Pascal for rrvo srrcks. He ql-e me r\r'o rvhite sacls m,rde oicirrn..r.,

*'ith drarvstrings. "'\Vake up,'

u'hen I rvent dorvnstairs, rnd kicked his bunk. He c:rme arv:rke groping for his pistol, rvhich he could-n't 6ni

said to ^\lr.iir,-:

until I pointed to it, benveen

you

the

maftress and the rvall. 'Calm dorvn,

jumpyfuck.Just caLn dou.n. \\/e

,-7-

have to share.' He said, 'Don't er.er do that ag:rin.' He .w,as grorvlin!, -ir stretching his shoulders up like rooster heal'ing its feathers. I smilecl at hirn. 'Listen,'I said, j.ou fucking
sleepy fu

ck-drop from Kurnbhkrran,

'Half-half Hal-f:half.'

do you want your half or what?' He calculated for a moment, still all swollen and angry, but then he subsided with a laugh. Yes, I'es,, he said.

"Gold is good. It moves and slips on yolrr fingers u'ith a satisfying smoothness. When it is near to pure it has that herrlthy reddish glorvlhat reminds 1'ou of apple cheeks. But "vadkn

Mortini,

splash Ef ,uerntouth,.u)ith o tzuist. Let tbe henling begin."

thrt afternoon

as u,e

moved the bars

sacks, one

fron-r the suitcase

into the

VIKRAM CHANDRA

bl

one. one fbr one and then

c:.e :or the other, u'l-rat I liked the u-eight. The bars ie.l
'.,,.::e

s:nJ, a Lirde longer than :i-r- l:e:dtil of i'r-rv paln-r, much :.-..r i: t:;n I had erpected, : -: ::.e\' :e1r so dense ar-rd :,..:-.: I c.,uld hardlv bear to
"---,

"r'ls

,.u

vL: 1r$

.,....

...:: ir mr-sack IIv face -,ta* a"i ,,tu heart con:.

:.,:.i

:r:J I knerv I had done \\'e got to the last \\-:en -::: :::. '.'.:jil rr'ls nrine, I put it
-:. :--',' ieit prnts pocket,'tvhere

- : :-l :eel it ilrvavs, slapPing .:.i:^.t r,e. Then the pistol on :.-.: --:her side at the back of
::..','.';;:stband.

] Iathu nodded. '-l-::--:,.t home,'he said. 'How ::-, -;: Jo vou think it's u'orth?' I:: ;lr:ile u'as slotv and falter,:.: I lr,oked dou'n at hirn and ::l: --:1r'contempt. I knerv ab, ---::1r'.'-nd tbr certain and in ,-.: i:st:nt that he rvould al,...',: re t i,tfcri, nothing more, -: .'.:e elen u'ith ten or nvelve

Sh^ n^hotO
"And" becarce
a

pinces ian't

beJorced to testlf,t

ogohrt l:a'Vrirc, th4, /ir','r1 JrrOUi/y tt'er oJter."

:.-rle
..-'.'.':',.:

u'orking for him, but nothing more than a

:-.=:.'e-ircked srnall-time local bufroon,

:..:ied up into torterybrutisirness'rvith a :.-l rnd a cl.ropper under his shirt, :.r..:'s Jl. Iir-ou think in mpees you're a : ','iipr-s1ni1g bhangi, nothing more- Be:..-..c lakhs are dirt, and crores are shit. I :--:.:gl'rt. \\'hat is golden is the furure in
'.

torvard the horizon. 'Aa,t-hcoooootc,' he called, and the long cn'and its echoiriq reply rvrapped about mv shoulders. I r.'rs
horne.

Indee.l it n'as there, a black ler-iather.r

'We helped to beach the boet, irnd then took leave of Prscal and Gaston' Nlathu rvas rvhispering threats i1t thenl'
but I shouldered hin-r aside, not too gently, and said, 'Listen, bo\-s, keeP this quiet, r,ery quiet, and rve'li do business again.' I gave them a gold birr eachfrom my share-ar.rd shook hands u-ith them, and thev grinned and u'ere rr1'tellorvs for lif'e. triathu and I u'a-lked a little
rvay dorvn the road, to the bus stoP, \\'ith our white sacl<s dragging over our shoulders. I rvaved dorvn an auto rickharv and

thilt no\v ap'rp',eared xt the Yery end oi tl-re street, \\'ith its throary clar.rkir.rg causing a crou'd to ippear instantly. The n.r,-rchine h,rd a certrrin digniry, and thc driver l-rad
f, cirp

on his l-re,rd, u'orn v'ith thc flair of

rr

specielist.

: -. I shoved the sack under my bunk, ..: jqing the last of it under rvith my foot

-;r

irs6f,s1, the endless possibility of

it'

"Get those people out of the road"'

Sartaj said to Katekar. "Ar-rd that thing up here. Pointed this rvay." "I can hear it nol," Gaitonde said. The r-ideo ler-rs rnor,ed in its housing resdessly.

.. \lrthu s'atched rvith wide eyes' I :-:::ed ml brrck on him and clirnbed up : :.e deck laughing to myself. I was no
-:::er rfraid. I :.::rt I slept like a baby."
knew him now. That Kl:ekar snorted, and shook his head. l..J tbr vears he slept a restful sleep evfell right and =:,' r:ght, u'hile the bodies hand, and rvarning a held up Sartaj -.::." I-.teLrr uiped the sweat fiom his face and

"You'll see it soon," Sartaj said. The policernen near the vans lvere checking their rveapons. "Listen, Gaitonde, this is a1i a farce that I don't like one bit. We ve neYer lnet, but still rve've spent the afternoon talking. Let's be gentlemen. There's no need for this. Just come out and rve can go back to the station and rve can get you something to eat. Shrimp."
said. "But

nodded at Nlathu.

left him standing

there, buffeted by exhaust.

knerv he

d quietly, "They're all of them ::-e lucking same, greedy bastards. The
::-.'-:ltere

::--.':ble is u'hen one gets killed' fir'e come to take his place."

rvanted to come rvith me, but he thought more of himself than i.re rvas, and he u'ould've forced me to kill him, sooner or later. I had no time fbr hin-r. I rvas going

,:

to Bombay."

"Qriet," Sartaj said. "I want to hear

'

f
'-l-tHe
speaker rvas silent. Sartaj stood

"shrirnp',vould be good," Gaitonde I can't do that." "Stop it," Sartaj said. "Stop acting the llunt villain, you're better than that'

-L:1,t\.

The speaker growled again. "The day

up, turned, and looked up and

This isn't some bloody schoolboy game." "It never was, my friend," Gaitonde
said. "It never was." Sartaj turned away from the door. He

:ier

the next, I saw, over the water, afar .'.rav hi1lock. \Vhat is that?'I asked Gas:: l. 'Home,' he said. From the bow Pas-

dorvn the street. "Eh, Gaitonde?" he said. A moment passed, and then the answer came: 'Yes, Sartaj?" "The bulldozer's here."

:..i cailed to another boat leaning out

rvanted, with an excruciating desire, a cup of tea. "A1l right. \Alhat's your name?"

t3B he said to the driver of the bulldozer, who lvas leaning ag:rinst a gargantuan track.

JKETCHBOOK BY DODO

"BashirAli."
"You kno."r'.lvhat to do?" Bashir Ali tw.isted his blue cap in his
hands.

LE CURRY
/-flHn inrisiblc cook hcrc is clearly setting out to mlkc n curq', but ! rvhat, cxactll'. is a currl') Asking I
an

"It's rn1'responsibiliry, Bashir Ali. I'm giving vou an order as a police inspector, so you don't have to ."vorr1. about it. Let's get that door dorvn." Bashir Ali cleared his throat. "But that's Gaitonde in there, Inspector sahib," he said tentativell'. Sartaj took Bashir A1i bi.the elborv and rv'rlked him to the door. "Gaitonde?" 'Yes, Sardarji?" "This is Bashir A1i, the dri.,'er of the bulldozer. He's afraid of helping us. He's frishtened of1'ou." "Bashir A1i," Gaitonde said. The voice \\ias commanding, like an empcror's, sure

Indian isn't much help, since the -"vord

"curn/' seems to have been popularized by the English (as r,r,as the sruff in that jar); the relationship of various similarsour.rding Indian terms to the r.vord invoh'es a fair amount of conjecrure. When
Eneiish-speaking Indians sar"'curry.," they usuallr'mean a stew flavored rr.itl.r a subde , customized mlxnlre of spices and finished rvith anv of an assortment of thickeners, enrichers, and narural colorings. Requesting a rnore precise ans\\.er is fike asking

a trrble of French rruckers to define

cirssoulet.

of its consonants and its generosig..

Bashir

Ali

rvrrs

iooking at the middle

This kitchen scene, dr:ru'n by the

Frerr.']r rrnist Dodo in 199u, on licr lerur,' from a joLrrner- to Indi,r, acnrallv rells us

ofthc door.

Sertaj pointed up at thc video camera, and Ali blinked up at ir. "Yes, Gaitonde Bhai?" he srrid.

"Don't rvorrl'. I u'on't forgive ).ou"Bashir Ali blanched-"bec"use there's nothins to forgir-e. Wc are both trapped, 1'or.l on that side of the door and me on this. Do rvhat thev tell 1'ou to do, get it
over rvith, ar.rd go horre to your children. Nothine *'i11 happen to vou. Nor nou- and not Llter. I gir.e r-ou my tvord." There u.as

nrorc lbotrt French notiorri of tooJ rhln

about Indian cookirrs. The cloth-cor-cred

table belongs in a French kitchen, rvith Grand-mdre setting up for he r blarrlu;tte dt r,;,itr, irnd not in an Indiirn rrrsoi. Even

the rvrrllpirper, dcspite its motil, hints nrorL' ilt thc conciergt-'s loge thrrn at the
open fire

lntl

fiene tic cacophonv of an

In-

"The rvord of Glncsh Grritonde." 81'the time Bmhir Ali had climbed up. to his seat on top ofthe bulldozer he had rrndcrstood, ir sccnrcd, his role in the sinration. He put his cap on his hcad rvith a nr.irl and pointed it bachvard. The engine gmnted and then settled into a steadl' rotrr. Sartaj leaned close to the speakei. The left side of his hcad, from the nape of the ncck to the temples, rvas caughtln
21

dirn kitchcn in hrll srving. Obviouslr., the

prluse .

irtirl \r';l: h.Lr ing I lirrlc

proud Indirrn cook rr'ould forgo thc crrreful hand-roasting and handgrinding of spicc mi-\tures-the cornerstones of L.idian cooking-in far-or of that jar of curn'porvder. And don't bet on the pitcher of cream: Indiirn cooks favor )'ogurt (u.hich provides a *'elcome acidic tane) and coconut milk (.rvhich adds srveetness and richness). That beaLrtiful

\o

tirn.

a srveeping pulse

of heat and pain.

rectilngle of bufter rvould have dripped

off

Ualtonde.'
"Speak, Sardarji, I'n.r lister.ring." 'Just open this damn door."

the edge of anr.'table south of Darjeeling:

ever so attentivell.cooked until it rakes on the butterscotch aroma of a clear and golden ghee. Lemons? Indians are far more likely to use lirles, r'inegar, t:Lmarind, or powdered dried mango to gir,'e zing to their curries. And thet' eat ra\r' and cooked

in lndia, butter is slou,h'and

"Oho, yotr tvant me to just open this

door? I knorv, Sardarji, I larorv."

"Knorv r'vhat?"

\vant to arrest me and take me to the st:rtion. You \vrrnt to be a hero in the newspapers. Yotr rvirnt a promotion. Two promorc. You want to be rich. You lvant to
be an all-India hero. You.rr.ant the Presi-

"I knorv lvhat )'ou w2rnt. You want me to just open this dirrnn door. Then 1'or-r

onions-never leeks. Ifan Indian sketched a French kitchen, u.hrt rvould rve see? i\llai'be a big jar
ofghee, some coconuts, and one ofthose

motions. Decp dotvn )'ou want even

pretn'jrrs of dried htrbts de Provence.

-J

rrres Pr.;Tunsox

THE NEV YORKER, JUNE 23 A 30,1997

seat, and the behemoth

iurched fonvard, past Sartaj, and smashed against the building with a dull crunch,
rvith
a soaring cloud of plaster. But after a mo* ment, r,vhen the buLldozer pulled back, the building still stood complete and sacrosanct, the door not even dented. On\. the video camera had been injured: it lrry

lr.L
I

r1

t'''

next to the door, flat-

tened neatly halfivrv

along its length. ,\ n1

,l
/<*'A bialy, a latte, and

long jeer rose from the crorvd do',vn the street.

It

grerv louder u'hen

Bashir Ali srvitched off his engine. '\\/hat the hell rvas

thirt)" Sartaj said B :uhir Ali stepped

rvhe n dour-r

on the shaded side c-i

tl-re

/.^

bulldozer.

A Ftrt;:'i/l

"\Vhat do I'ou erto

Arii::."'

pect r."'hen You u'or-i't

.let me do it the ..virl it

should be done?"

dcnt to gir-e xru ir r.ncd:rl on llcpublic I)rrr'. \'ori \\-rurt thc n.rcr-l.rl in tirll color on teler'ision- \'or.r u',rnt to tirck 6L-t-i st,rrs."
"Grritor.rde-" "But r-otr hrorv I'r'c hed all tiret. And

"Do:r't \\'r)rn', Grii,rrie .;.rid. "I rvill." S.-.rtii stooi u:r sIr.u'{:rt. hrs b.rck to thc do,rr. ,..r.i.1 chccked his pisroi. He rot:rtcd
the cr'lindcr,
rir.iJ.

ir.rg

Thel'uere both u'ipplaster fiom their noses. On the suirrvr.s

lit

side of the bulldozer the crou'd cl-rantins'/ar Gaitonde."

th:

r'eLrxv c;rnridges sirt

f,rt anJ round in the nret:il. The hcat

cirrle through the
his fect.
Strdde
soles

I'll

be :rt

i'otr."

of his shoes, into

"Du r..ru knorv the wrr.r' to do iti" i Brshir A-li shrugged. "I have rrn ide.r." ) "All right," Srrtaj said. 'Tinc. Dolt 'l

"I lou'? \'o,,r l-r,rve some ofvour bols in thclc rtith vor-ri" "No. Not one. I told vou, I'r.r.r alone." "A tunneli A helicopter hidde n ir-rsidel" Gaitonde Lrr-rghed. "No, no."

horv t'ou rvant."

nh' thc speaker came to life

"Get out of my rval' then. And get

)'our men back from the building." As Beshir Ali spun his steed on the gra.,.el, Sartaj sarv that he lvas an artist. He operated rvith flicks and thumps of his hands on the driving sticks, leaning into

"\\/hat then? \'otr

"Not
gtrns?" e."'en an

have a batterv
I'11 beat

of Bofors
t-olt." -

AK-47. But

again agirinst his shoLrlder blade. "Sartaj, votr cirlled me .].?!77.. So I'll tcll lou somcthing. Build it bie or sn'rrLl, there is no hou;e th,rt i: srife. Love i. an iron trap. and the grrme alu'irr-s rvins." Sartaj could feel the tinr.l'tren-rbling in his chest from the spreaker. The m;rchine

the direction of his turns, in s1'mpathy rvith the groaning gears underneath. He
raised and then lorvered his blade, positioning it precisely, with its lon'er extended edge level rvith the doon He reversed ten feet, trffenry, thirty, his arm jauntill on tl-re back of his seat. He came at the building at a diagonai, and as he \,vent past Sartaj he flashed a u'hite grin. This time there was a scream of metal, and r,vhen the violent juddering of the bulldozer had ceased Sartaj sarv that the door had been peeled back, inu'ard. A crirck ran threc feet up into the masonry.

The bulldozer rvas shimmering on the black road, flanked by grim-e1.ed policernerr. Thcir choices rvere nlrrorving rapid11', leading them inevitably to this metal door, and they r.vere determined, and helpless, and afrarid. "Gaitonde," Srrtaj said, rubbing his eves. "Last chance. Come on, ynor.Thrs is tcn, r'c11'snrpid." "I can't do it. Sonr''." "A11 right. Just st'rv back from the door u-hcn r.ve comc in. And for God's sake have l'our hrrncls trp."

in front of him produced a blare that pressed him back against the door, and it
rvas enough. "A11

He palmcd the c'linder back

into the pistol, and stepped offthe porch.

right," he shouted. "Let's go, let's go, le t's go." Hc rvaved tou'ard thc door u'ith the rveapon. The speaker r','as buzzing again, but Sartaj rvasn't [stenine. "Cor-ne

on, Bashir Ali, get that thing dorvr-t." Bashir Ali raiscd a hand, and Sartaj
pointcd a rigid finger at him. "Get that fi.rcking thing moving."

Bashir

Ali

cror.rcl.red

in his high

"Backl" Sutaj shouted. He rvas run-

VIKRAM CHANDRA
ninq fonverd, pistol lield in front of bim.

l+t

flooded rvith rvhite trcon radiance' gcnerous and encompassit.tg and cletrn. Al-rd

"Cet back, get back." Thcn Bashir Ali

was gone, ar-rd Sartai rvas leaning against one side ofthe doonvay, and Katekar on

his u'a1'througl-r the pl-rotograpl.re rs. Soon he u,rrs at the u'heel of a GrPsl', rvir.rdirlg

the other. An icy rvind carne out and Sartaj felt it drf ing the su'eat on his face and his forearms. Suddenlr', for a moinent, he er-rvied Gaitonde a1l his airconditioners, the frigid climate control rvon by his audaciq'. And for a moment' rising from someu-here deep in his hips, unbidden and nauseating, like a buolant dribble of bile, rvas a tiny bubble of admiration. He took a deep breath. "Do vou think the building u'ill holdj" he said' Katekar nodded. He u'as looking in' tl'rrough the door, and his face n'as dark rvith iase. Sartaj touched the tip of his tongue to his upper lip, felt the dryness, andlhen they u'ent in. Sartaj rvent ahead, and at the first door inside Katekar u'ent by him. Behind them follou'ed the rustling of the others. Sartaj rvas trf ing tohear above the thunderous ur.rclenchir.rg

irr the universal illumination Grritonde sat, revealed, a black pistoi in his left har.rd, and half his head gone.

of

his heart. He had done entries like

tl-ris

before, and it never got better. It rvas ven' cold inside the building, and the light u'as low and lururious. There rvas carPet Lln-

der their feet. There u'ere four square rooms, all white, all empw. Ar-rd at the exact center of the building \vas a \-erv steep, almost vertical, rnetal stirircase' Sartaj nodded at Katekar, and then followed him dorvn. The metal door at the bottom oper-red easily, but it rvas verl' l'rear.y, and rvl-ren Katekar finally had it back Sartaj saw that it rvas as thick as a hatch to a bankvault. Inside it rvas dark. Sartaj rvas shivering uncontroilably. He
moved past Katekar, and now he sarv a bluish light on the left. Katekar slid past his shoulders and 'ivent out rvide, and then they shu{fled fonvard,'rveapor.rs held rigidly before them. Another step ar-rd now in the nerv angle Sartaj salv a figure' slroulders, in front of a bank of hazefilled TV mot.titors, a brorvn hand near the controls on a black Panel.

through the heat,y trafllc. He didn't knorv u,heri he rvas going. He thought, It's finisl-red, Sardarji, finished. It's only rvork. Enough. But he could still see rvater slapside of a fl' nrs night uhen Sart,rj cemc up the ping against tl're rust-brorvr-r sitting irl a figure s}ry, I m.tal stairs. He left trndcrnelth him boat, a cloud-laden horizon. the toward the symn-retrical roor.us of the cube' tl.re borv lookir-rg Sartaj rurned tl-re je ep's rvheel violently nhich the nlo police coumissioners beleft and rvas now driving along a to the lorv 1'ere ne11, snlling a slfe house. The road, rvhich led to the sloping familiar it, and three lab technicians u'ere dusting Kausa rvhere he used to go picat beach i1 rt'ith Katekar u'as guardiug lt Procollege. The curving rvaduring nicking stood Sartaj prietor's fierce u'atchhrl-ress. rvitl-r tiny fishing villages lined terfror-rt door. rnetal the 1ee of ihadorted in tl're then. Norv there secret a great had been a behind u'aiting u'ere reporters There built in an epic hotel, u'as a huge colhis checked He rorv of police ieeps. 1'ellorv lar, and ran his l.rands trlong the sides of 'arc to maich the bay. The hotel belonged to l tin-rily in tl.re construction business, his rurban, arrd step.ped out' In the flare ofthe flashbulbs, he found that he could and the perrnission required to build in ir not leale behind Gaitonde's .tare. Gei- l.rotected ,rrea hrrd conre Jiont I nrinistcr close to Gaitonde. There n'as nothing to tonde hird looked at hin-r in the I'rst suduith be dor.re ;.rbout it r.rorv. The villirgers' sor.rs den light; his right ele had bulqed daughters r.'orked in it, as gardeners, and the ,',.rrni. intensin'. S.rrtri hed seen " u'aiters, rrnd r.nirids. Tl're l'rotel u',rs far hrrdthe fiagile trrcen' oi pink lines' in tl.re tl;rrk but Sartaj co,.rld see it rhei.rd ot seep .hining black oi the cupil. rhe like irr-r eltormous rvall stretcl'rirlg declearlr', u'hich ln.ide .onler, fluid tiom ile le ft. In its rooftop bar, Sartej to iion-r right tear. a of as lhouqht he hrd spite himsef a Scotch. FIe veered to drunk had once the to reacting bodv the .r',rs oi"lrit Bl,t gigrrntic b1o*' thrt h:d erploded even- tl-re side of the rorrd ar-rd stopped t1-re ihing tiom rhe chir.r uP oil the other side Glpr)'. Sartaj sat for a lor"rg u'hile' Tl-rerl he of his tice, slicin3 iron the leti nostrii mor-e d the jeep ir.r a slorv halt circle across into the torehetd. "Enoush.' S;nai said. :.:d shoddered the road, 'and ri,ent back to Kailashpada. r

I.*i+/ ;i'/

{.ffi

"Gaitonde!" Sartaj hadn't meant to shout-a gende admonitory assenion rvas the preferred tone-and norvhe squeezed his voice dorvn. "Gaitonde, put 1'our hands up verv slowly." There was no movement from the figure in the darkness. Sartaj tightened his finger painfully on his trigger, and fought the urge to fire,

and fire again. "Gaitonde. Gaitonde?"

From Sartaj's right, rvhere Katekar

was, carle a very smal1 click, and even
as

r1
'Just once, Ict like to be able to usrite a check u:ithout getting throttsn in

Sartaj turned his head the room rvas

jail."