Of crime and horses: Berjis Desai’s new thriller stirs intrigue at Mahalaxmi

Berjis Desai smiles as he interacts with the audience at the venue. Pic/Ashish Raje

The murder was fiction but thankfully the cool watermelon mojitos were real at an event held at the Mahalaxmi racecourse over the weekend, a discussion about the fictional crime thriller: ‘Murder at the Racecourse' by lawyer and writer Berjis Desai. This is Desai's - who is a horse owner and served as racing steward (stewards ensure that races are run fairly within the rules) - fourth book. His other three books are ‘Towers of Silence', ‘Oh Those Parsis' and ‘The Bawaji'.

Intrigue, scandal

The book, ‘Murder at the Racecourse' also slices open the darker underbelly of racing - intrigue, scandal, cheating and betrayal. Event anchor Vivek Jain, who gave a succinct introduction of the writer and his work at the outset said with a laugh, "the book's twists 'n' turns remind me of the fighting as the high stakes RWITC elections loomed every year. Not any more though". The audience comprising primarily of those linked with racing in different capacities looked amused. Jain added, "Initially, there were a few in the RWITC committee who had some reservations about holding this book discussion at the racecourse stating that the book highlighted negative aspects about the sport. Yet, we know there are some ills and one cannot simply wish them away."

Give away

Desai began, "I have been asked to read from the book but since it is a crime thriller, it is difficult to do so without revealing too much. So I will just try and give you a flavour of the book. I am so heartened that so many of you have already read the book. This is a story about a notorious horse trainer called Nari Mansukhani who is shot dead in broad daylight at the racecourse. A senior police inspector (PI), and a young officer of impeccable integrity are assigned to solve the case." Having said that, Desai added, "People do have frailties or failings which are shown in the book. About the negative aspects of racing, I say there are honest and not so honest people in all professions. Sometimes the sympathy of the readers lies with the perpetrators of the crime."

Guess who

At the session, to the inevitable questions about "who" he had based his characters on, who were these in real life at the race course, the audience was guessing furiously to which Desai replied, giving nothing away, "Sometimes people assume it is on them. They think to themselves: does it mean me?"
Desai regaled listeners with an anecdote that gives credence to the adage ‘fact is stranger than fiction'. He said, "There are many real life episodes that are way more complex and intriguing than those in the book. I remember years ago, a notorious racehorse trainer actually painted a Class I horse in a different colour as ‘disguise' and made him run in a Class V race (a lower category). Unfortunately, it started raining in Pune that day and the paint started coming off the horse after it had won! The trainer, terrified that he had been exposed, took the horse back to the stable, shot it and actually burnt it. He was banned for life," he said as some of his listeners looked startled.

Mirth worth

Desai went on, "Many believe that all or every race is rigged at the racecourse. That is certainly not true. My book ends on an optimistic note for the racecourse and continuance of this sport." Desai was asked a last question by a gentleman. "Would you like to be known as the Indian Berjis Francis Dick Desai?" he asked, alluding to late British writer Dick Francis who was legendary for his racing crime thrillers. "Certainly not Dick Desai" came Desai's quick retort as many chuckled, summing up an evening of racing ribaldry, observation of human behaviour and leant a bit what goes to make a classic whodunit that sets a crackling pace right from page 1, just like a thoroughbred flying through the course as the race gates slam open.