“No, take a right,” says Joygopal Podder as he guides the driver to the rear entry of Gurgaon's Ambience mall in Haryana to what he claims is the best parking. “I set a gun battle here, that’s why I know this place so well.”
Podder, 53, is one of India’s most prolific novelists, but it is the speed at which he writes that is most astonishing. He is in the Limca Book of Records for writing the most crime fiction novels in the shortest amount of time.
The Limca records are akin to the Guinness Book of World Records, but contains only feats by Indians, such as “the most prolific writer ... in prison” and “first book launched by an elephant”.
When the new edition of the record book comes out in 2013, he will have shattered his own previous record of five books in nine months. To date, Podder has written 11 novels in the space of 21 months. His 11th book, Merchant of Dreams, came out on Tuesday. The 12th book, Vanished, will be out in August.
He is currently writing his 13th book.Podder was at the mall to stop by a bookstore to look at his books. “I write so much, because I like seeing myself in bookshops,” he said. He maintains a blistering publication schedule and tires to “publish a book every month” to ensure that a title of his is always a regular feature in the new arrivals section.
Each book is at least 40 to 50,000 words.While he enjoys the attention that has come as a result of his speedy writing, Podder said he never set out to break records. “It happened accidentally. I just happened to write fast and people happened to notice,” he said.Podder had his first novel published at 50, which he said fuels his desire to churn out novel after novel. “I am making up for lost time.”He began writing at the age of nine and had his first short story published in a children’s magazine at the age of 12. At 14, he created Ramesh, a teenage detective who featured in a dozen stories.
Eventually, adult life and a career took over and he left writing. It was Ramesh that made Podder want to start writing again. “Some time in my mid-30s a group of children showed up at my house, saying that they wanted to meet the author,” he said. “I had no idea what they were talking about.”
Apparently, one of his Ramesh tales had been placed in an English primer used in Indian schools. A decade later, a friend told him that a collection of stories from the defunct magazine that once published Podder’s works contained Ramesh stories. “This book has stories by people like Satyajit Ray, so I began to think that maybe there might be a future in writing for me, not in terms of writing, but as a career.” Satyajit Ray is a famous Bengali writer and filmmaker, and Podder, who is also Bengali, thought it a sign.
The final impetus came with the near death of his wife. “On January 19, 2008, my wife got blood poisoning. All her organs failed, and she nearly died,” he said. “I realised that life is fragile and if you have a passion, you should stop thinking about it and pursue it.”He knew he wanted to write, but did not know what to write. The inspiration came when Podder, a fund-raising manager with a charity in India, attended a conference. “I realised that there is a cornucopia of stories from experiences in the NGO sector – tragedy, successes, beating the odds.”
Those stories served as the inspiration for one of his first books, A Matter of Survival, in which “the successful test firing of India’s Agni III missile collides with a conservation campaign to save an endangered species of sea turtle”, according to the book’s dust jacket. Such unlikely plots arise easily from Podder’s self-confessed “childlike imagination”. He takes inspiration from his own experiences and from items of news, which he collects. “I write three kinds of novels: thrillers, murder mysteries and Bollywood crime fiction,” said Podder.
His latest novels, including Merchant of Dreams, are of the final category. He uses his seemingly encyclopaedic knowledge of Bollywood trivia, built up over years of watching Hindi cinema. “I am only a film fan, I’ve never been involved in a film shoot, and, obviously, I’ve never been party to a murder,” said Podder. “I do research about how films are shot, I always have a burning make-up van, a star with a supersized ego, somebody from the star’s past who wants to avenge past faults.”
Podder’s books also heavily feature his current home, Gurgaon, a burgeoning urban centre on the border with New Delhi. If Dubai’s Marina were somehow transplanted in Bur Dubai, it would closely resemble Gurgaon, a mess of hi-rises and tiny crowded streets, which Podder believes makes it well suited to be the setting of a murder mystery.
Eventually, Podder would like to be known for the quality of his writing rather than the quantity. To that end, he hopes to eventually write more Ramesh novels. “That writing is different. When I write thrillers, I write action scenes, go into descriptions, build up characters, but with Ramesh I had witticisms. I fancied myself a bit like P G Wodehouse when I was writing it.”
He acknowledges that the records are what is drawing attention to his writing. He embraces it as motivation to continue his writing. Eventually, he would like to break the Guinness World Record held by the Japanese spiritual leader, Ryuho Okawa, who published an astonishing 52 books in 52 weeks. “I can’t write one book a week – yet,” said Podder. He does, however, remain driven by his desire to have his work in bookstores and, more importantly, the new arrivals shelf. “I hate when they come off that rack. Five years from now you will see at least 10 or more of my books in every store.”
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Business Insights
- As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses.
- SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income.
- Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
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SPECS
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Shubh Mangal Saavdhan
Directed by: RS Prasanna
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Bhumi Pednekar
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Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
JAPAN SQUAD
Goalkeepers: Masaaki Higashiguchi, Shuichi Gonda, Daniel Schmidt
Defenders: Yuto Nagatomo, Tomoaki Makino, Maya Yoshida, Sho Sasaki, Hiroki Sakai, Sei Muroya, Genta Miura, Takehiro Tomiyasu
Midfielders: Toshihiro Aoyama, Genki Haraguchi, Gaku Shibasaki, Wataru Endo, Junya Ito, Shoya Nakajima, Takumi Minamino, Hidemasa Morita, Ritsu Doan
Forwards: Yuya Osako, Takuma Asano, Koya Kitagawa
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh1,100,000 (est)
Engine 5.2-litre V10
Gearbox seven-speed dual clutch
Power 630bhp @ 8,000rpm
Torque 600Nm @ 6,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined 15.7L / 100km (est)
The specs
Engine: 2-litre 4-cylinder and 3.6-litre 6-cylinder
Power: 220 and 280 horsepower
Torque: 350 and 360Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
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Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
The specs
Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
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What is graphene?
Graphene is a single layer of carbon atoms arranged like honeycomb.
It was discovered in 2004, when Russian-born Manchester scientists Andrei Geim and Kostya Novoselov were "playing about" with sticky tape and graphite - the material used as "lead" in pencils.
Placing the tape on the graphite and peeling it, they managed to rip off thin flakes of carbon. In the beginning they got flakes consisting of many layers of graphene. But as they repeated the process many times, the flakes got thinner.
By separating the graphite fragments repeatedly, they managed to create flakes that were just one atom thick. Their experiment had led to graphene being isolated for the very first time.
At the time, many believed it was impossible for such thin crystalline materials to be stable. But examined under a microscope, the material remained stable, and when tested was found to have incredible properties.
It is many times times stronger than steel, yet incredibly lightweight and flexible. It is electrically and thermally conductive but also transparent. The world's first 2D material, it is one million times thinner than the diameter of a single human hair.
But the 'sticky tape' method would not work on an industrial scale. Since then, scientists have been working on manufacturing graphene, to make use of its incredible properties.
In 2010, Geim and Novoselov were awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics. Their discovery meant physicists could study a new class of two-dimensional materials with unique properties.
TO ALL THE BOYS: ALWAYS AND FOREVER
Directed by: Michael Fimognari
Starring: Lana Condor and Noah Centineo
Two stars
The BIO
Favourite piece of music: Verdi’s Requiem. It’s awe-inspiring.
Biggest inspiration: My father, as I grew up in a house where music was constantly played on a wind-up gramophone. I had amazing music teachers in primary and secondary school who inspired me to take my music further. They encouraged me to take up music as a profession and I follow in their footsteps, encouraging others to do the same.
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Favourite holiday destination: Italy - music and opera is so much part of the life there. I love it.
Kanguva
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Other ways to buy used products in the UAE
UAE insurance firm Al Wathba National Insurance Company (AWNIC) last year launched an e-commerce website with a facility enabling users to buy car wrecks.
Bidders and potential buyers register on the online salvage car auction portal to view vehicles, review condition reports, or arrange physical surveys, and then start bidding for motors they plan to restore or harvest for parts.
Physical salvage car auctions are a common method for insurers around the world to move on heavily damaged vehicles, but AWNIC is one of the few UAE insurers to offer such services online.
For cars and less sizeable items such as bicycles and furniture, Dubizzle is arguably the best-known marketplace for pre-loved.
Founded in 2005, in recent years it has been joined by a plethora of Facebook community pages for shifting used goods, including Abu Dhabi Marketplace, Flea Market UAE and Arabian Ranches Souq Market while sites such as The Luxury Closet and Riot deal largely in second-hand fashion.
At the high-end of the pre-used spectrum, resellers such as Timepiece360.ae, WatchBox Middle East and Watches Market Dubai deal in authenticated second-hand luxury timepieces from brands such as Rolex, Hublot and Tag Heuer, with a warranty.
