22 December,2023 07:25 AM IST | Mumbai | Nandini Varma
Lubaina Bandukwala. Pic Courtesy/Instagram
A child's bookshelf is incomplete without the Middle Eastern folktale of Aladdin and his wish-granting genie living in a lamp. But as author Salman Rushdie says, a djinn may sometimes be way too potent to have a master. True to this, Lubaina Bandukwala's new children's novel, The Misadventures of a Diamond Thief, opens a world of time-travelling djinns, ensnared in the sneaky business of thievery and mischief.
Sahabzada Hawa Singh Rafu Chakkar, a âmisunderstood djinn' teen, is set on a two-week mission by a conniving king of djinns, Nathulal, to steal the most magnificent diamond, the Shah-i-noor, from the city of Haiderabad. However, Rafu has very real teen conundrums, too. He is a chef at heart. He has no desire to carry the family tradition forward. Rafu is promised he would be allowed his dream, should he perform this one last thieving act. Will he make it?
Bandukwala's novel distinguishes itself through its spectacular ability to paint for its young readers the landscape of Golkonda as it stood during the Qutb Shahi reign. Although she takes a few creative liberties at places, the writing imbues in us a sense of adventure and thrill, as we walk through the kingdom with the plucky Rafu, in search of the diamond. Delectable dishes roll out of the royal kitchens often to stall him. But he must keep going.
Apart from putting together an exciting narrative, Bandukwala makes the story worth bouncing along through her characters. With Bibi Haath ki Safai and Mir Dhoke Baaz the Third rooting for the protagonist at home, and Nawabs Sawaluddin and Jawabuddin conspiring against one another in the court, one can never find a dull moment in the story. History hidden in the architectural descriptions of Charminar and in the aromas of the biryani and kebabs is enough to generate curiosity and wonder for a reader who is picking up the book to travel on a bit of a misadventure with the little diamond thief.
