Once Was Bombay

Comprising Three Novellar And Four Short Stories, To Be Read As Stand-Alone Or Inter-Linked Pieces, This Is An Engaging Piece Of Literary Non-Fiction Rich In Memories And Insights.

A native of Bombay, Suketu Mehta gives us an insider’s view of this stunning metropolis. He approaches the city from unexpected angles, taking us into the criminal underworld of rival Muslim and Hindu gangs, following the life of a bar dancer raised amid poverty and abuse, opening the door into the inner sanctums of Bollywood, and delving into the stories of the countless villagers who come in search of a better life and end up living on the sidewalks. As each individual story unfolds, Mehta also recounts his own efforts to make a home in Bombay after more than twenty years abroad. Candid, impassioned, funny, and heartrending, Maximum City is a revelation of an ancient and ever-changing world.

'City of Gold', 'Urbs Prima in Indis', 'Maximum City': no Indian metropolis has captivated the public imagination quite like Mumbai. The past decade has seen an explosion of historical writing on the city that was once Bombay. This book, featuring new essays by its finest historians, presents a rich sample of Bombay's palimpsestic pasts. It considers the making of urban communities and spaces, the workings of power and the nationalist makeover of the colonial city. In addressing these themes, the contributors to this volume engage critically with the scholarship of a distinguished historian of this frenetic metropolis. For over five decades, Jim Masselos has brought to life with skill and empathy Bombay's hidden histories. His books and essays have traversed an extraordinarily diverse range of subjects, from the actions of the city's elites to the struggles of its most humble denizens. His pioneering research has opened up new perspectives and inspired those who have followed in his wake. Bombay Before Mumbai is a fitting tribute to Masselos' enduring contribution to South Asian urban history

Nominated for an Edgar Award for Best First Novel! In 19th century Bombay, Captain Jim Agnihotri channels his idol, Sherlock Holmes, in Nev March’s Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award-winning debut. In 1892, Bombay is the center of British India. Nearby, Captain Jim Agnihotri lies in Poona military hospital recovering from a skirmish on the wild northern frontier, with little to do but re-read the tales of his idol, Sherlock Holmes, and browse the daily papers. The case that catches Captain Jim's attention is being called the crime of the century: Two women fell from the busy university’s clock tower in broad daylight. Moved by Adi, the widower of one of the victims — his certainty that his wife and sister did not commit suicide — Captain Jim approaches the Parsee family and is hired to investigate what happened that terrible afternoon. But in a land of divided loyalties, asking questions is dangerous. Captain Jim's investigation disturbs the shadows that seem to follow the Framji family and triggers an ominous chain of events. And when lively Lady Diana Framji joins the hunt for her sisters’ attackers, Captain Jim’s heart isn’t safe, either. Based on a true story, and set against the vibrant backdrop of colonial India, Nev March's Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Award-winning lyrical debut, Murder in Old Bombay, brings this tumultuous historical age to life.

All he needs is to find her. First, he must remember who she is. Jenny Ashcroft's "Meet Me in Bombay is a powerful, poignant and deeply emotional tale of love, mystery, loss and joy." –Kate Furnivall, New York Times bestselling author It's New Year's Eve in Bombay, 1913, and Madeline Bright, new to the sweltering heat of colonial India, is yearning for all she has left behind in England. Then, at the stroke of midnight, Maddy meets Luke Devereaux, and as the year changes so do both their lives. Bold and charismatic, Luke opens her eyes to the wonders of Bombay, while Maddy's beauty and vivacity captures his heart. Only her mother disapproves, preferring the devoted Guy Bowen as a match for her daughter. But while Maddy and Luke are falling in love, the world is falling apart. World War I is on the horizon, and Luke will be given no choice but to fight. They will be continents apart, separated by danger and devastating loss, but bound by Luke's promise that they will meet again in Bombay.

Tanuja Desai Hidier's fantastically acclaimed cross-cultural debut comes to PUSH!Dimple Lala doesn't know what to think. Her parents are from India, and she's spent her whole life resisting their traditions. Then suddenly she gets to high school and everything Indian is trendy. To make matters worse, her parents arrange for her to meet a "suitable boy." Of course it doesn't go well -- until Dimple goes to a club and finds him spinning a magical web . Suddenly the suitable boy is suitable because of his sheer unsuitability. Complications ensue. This is a funny, thoughtful story about finding your heart, finding your culture, and finding your place in America.Author BioTanuja Desai Hidier is the critically acclaimed author of the groundbreaking novels Bombay Blues and Born Confused, which was named an ALA Best Book for Young Adults and hailed by Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone as one of the best YA novels of all time. Born and raised in the USA, Tanuja is a writer/singer-songwriter now based in London. For more about Born Confused and Bombay Blues, as well as her "booktrack" albums of original songs to accompany them, please visit www.ThisIsTanuja.com.

"A biography of Bombay beyond its definition as the Bollywood capital and a real portrait of the Bombay of the past and of the present"--Publisher's description.

Mumbai is an ever-evolving city, bustling and brimming, never sleeping for a wink. But the past four decades brought upheavals of great magnitude that shaped the city as we know today. Marred by communal riots, gang wars and terrorism, the spirit of Mumbai has emerged indomitable every single time. Born and raised in the lanes of Bombay 3, this is the story of Jagan Kumar who dreams of being a television journalist and changing the world. But once he achieves this, he realises that television journalism has lost its path, now afflicted with sensationalism, corruption and bias. As a crime reporter, he comes across various unscrupulous means that law enforcement agencies adopt to combat organised crime syndicates. He is shocked to witness interdepartmental rivalry that often jeopardises public security. Disenchanted, in conflict with his conscience and confused about his calling, he is about to quit when something happens that changes the course of his life. Bombay 3 begins from the bylanes of old Bombay of the seventies and then takes you to Mosul in ISIS's Iraq of 2014 and finally to the streets of Bangkok where the underworld of Mumbai has spread its tentacles. A fast-paced thriller, it answers certain questions about life in Mumbai and raises a few new ones.