Mainak Dhar’s latest thriller, Sniper’s Eye , pits a former Army officer, Aaditya Ghosh, against a sniper, Karzai. Like in Mainak’s earlier book, 03.02 , the protagonist is named after his 10-year-old son. “I’m doing it so that one day when he is old enough to read and enjoy these books, he’ll get a kick out of seeing himself as the hero!”
Talking of the genesis of the book, the 44-year-old says, “One day I was surfing the Net and virtually every news site was full of reports of conflicts around the world. On the surface, many of these conflicts have noble reasons — patriotism, pride, righting past wrongs… Do those fighting and dying pause to ask whose interests do these conflicts really serve? As I say in the book, we live in a world where the poor and young fight and die in wars started by the old and rich. If the young stopped and looked beyond the labels and propaganda that are used to divide us, perhaps they would find more common ground. That is where I thought of bringing together two strong characters, ostensibly enemies, who discover that the war they wage is serving the interests of others.”
The Mumbai-based Mainak says Sniper’s Eye could be looked at as an origin story. “It sets up both main characters, their backgrounds and motivations and how they first cross each other’s paths. As I build this into a series, while future books can be read as standalone novels, Sniper’s Eye will be where it all started.”
Mainak, who has written the best-selling Alice in Deadland series, a retelling of Alice in Wonderland with zombies, says, “As a writer, it is very rewarding to write a series. Alice was an immersive experience. You are committing yourself to that world and characters and almost living with them for years. It is also rewarding for readers as they also grow with the characters and immerse in that world. The experience was amazing and I had it in the back of my mind to create another series if the right idea struck me. The only real con is that you have to fully commit to the world you’re creating.”
Apart from the protagonist, Aaditya, Sniper’s Eye also has MK Dhar, named after and modelled on Mainak’s father. “He was a highly-decorated intelligence officer, a best-selling author, strategic expert, and he loved to cook, like the character in the book. He passed away in 2012. My weaving him into Sniper’s Eye is my way of paying homage to him, and also reuniting him virtually with his grandson.”
About the research, Mainak says, “Every novel requires its own kind of research, and for Sniper’s Eye I learned all kinds of fun things like how to make a bomb out of a cigarette lighter, how not to do water-boarding and how to escape if you are blindfolded with your hands tied behind you on a chair. The unarmed combat I portray in Sniper’s Eye is largely born out of personal experience and observation. I’ve learned karate for many years and hope to appear for my Black Belt this year.”
Karzai, who starts off as the antagonist, is not inspired by any one person, according to Mainak. “It was a thought process that began with trying to get inside the head of someone whom we’d dismiss as a terrorist. What is his story? What experiences have made him? What are the various shades of grey which make it difficult to dismiss him as a cardboard villain? Once I began asking those questions, Karzai came to life” On the title, Mainak said, “It refers to both the scope through which a sniper sees his victim, since the story kicks off with a shooting in Mumbai and a deeper meaning of looking into a sniper’s eye and understanding what makes him who he is.”
Presently looking at three novels in the series, Mainak says, “Let us see if the story grows in the telling.”
