There is nothing like a whodunit on a weekend. The weather is cooling down, which makes it perfect to curl up with a mystery novel and a steaming cup of tea or coffee. And for the Bengali reader, the choices are endless in the realm of mystery stories!
When it comes to mystery and suspense, there are countless best Bengali books to read. There’s Hemendra Kumar Ray’s Jayanto-Manik and Bimal-Kumar. There’s the Byomkesh Bakshi series by Saradindu Bandopadhya, which has been adapted into movies and series, in Bengali and Hindi. Then, there has been the iconic Feluda series by Satyajit Ray.
But today, we’re going to discuss another “detective” who traversed both adult and teen fiction. Who is he? Keep reading to find out!
Kishore Sahitya: The Original YA Category in India
Today, we know that the Hunger Games series and the Twilight books all fall under the Young Adult category. Did you know this category existed in Bengali literature way before the Western YA scene existed? Most of us have grown up with it and knew it by the name Kishore Sahitya.
Feluda fell into this category more than Byomkesh did. It seems most detectives were divided into the adult and adolescent categories. Particularly, in magazines, before the era of Bengali book online shopping. There were a few exceptions, and one of those definitely was Syed Mustafa Siraj’s Colonel Niladri Sarkar.
Who’s the Colonel?
Originally created for adult readers, Siraj was convinced to write a few stories for adolescent readers. This meant that much of the adult themes and violence were toned down. Some of the adolescent stories even contain fantasy islands and mythical creatures!
Now, who is this man who doesn’t really consider himself a detective? Actually, he doesn’t even consider himself a “satyaneshi” like Byomkesh does!
Colonel Sarkar has retired from the army and is an amateur sleuth. Sometimes, the police visit him if they are puzzled by a case. And sometimes, old friends and acquaintances just show up at his doorstep with a confusing conundrum. He is jovial, even if he’s eccentric and is constantly compared to Santa Claus. He loves plants and introduces himself as a naturalist, ornithologist, and butterfly collector. His collection of rare varieties of cacti and orchids is his whole world. The other things he loves are coffee and his smoking pipe.
Lastly, he is a great shot, likes quoting Bengali nursery rhymes and proverbs, and solves complicated cases in his own creative ways.
Colonel and His Friends
What’s a fictional detective without their narrator and sidekick? Every Sherlock needs his Watson, so the Colonel has Jayanto.
Jayanto is a reporter working at Dainik Satyasebak. He enjoys a siesta after lunch, despite the many cups of coffee Colonel supplies him with. To quote from his introduction, “He wants to play it safe most of the time, but when the Colonel decides to throw caution to the winds, he joins him in his reckless enterprises, despite his misgivings about the discomfort and dangers they might lead to.”
So, yes, despite Jayanto’s nature and misgivings, he never leaves Colonel alone (except for a few stories). He is a good driver and also a good shot, even if he ends up shooting for no good reason in a couple of stories.
The third Musketeer is Haldar moshai, a former police officer. He retired from the service and opened a private detective agency. Sometimes, Colonel’s cases come via Haldar moshai when he gets stuck. He is described as tall, thin, and dark with a very expressive moustache. He also talks in an erstwhile East Bengal accent and dons various disguises to trail the bad guys.
The Colonel, of course, towers over Jayanto and Haldar moshai with his in. His physical nimbleness and quick comprehension always keep him five steps ahead of everyone.
Still In Our Imaginations
If you want to buy Bengali books online in India, you are bound to come across a Colonel compilation. There has been a recent surge in interest due to the many YouTube Bengali story channels that have adapted the written word into audio.
The Colonel comes across as a genteel grandfather who putters around his terrace garden and drinks copious amounts of coffee. But behind the snowy white facial hair lies a brain that’s sharper than a knife and a scathing wit that can detangle the messiest of webs. So, the next time you make a Bengali book online purchase on Oxford Bookstore or elsewhere, pick up a Colonel Samagra. We hope this blog convinces you to give this gentleman detective a try!