The Sialkot Saga, Bharat Series 4

There are some books that you simply read, and then there are some books that grip you in their magic and you start breathing them.. The Sialkot Saga by Ashwin Sanghi is one such book that you should definitely devour into this summer.The Sialkot SagaA twisted tale of faith and fate, The Sialkot saga is a mix of two stories, one that has been going on for centuries and the other which starts with the partition of India and Pakistan.The Sialkot Saga opens with the story of Partition of India, 1947 where a train has just entered Amritsar station, leaking of blood and smelling of gore. Sukhbir Singh, the Railway Constable has just found a boy who has survived the massacre, born by a mad man's fascination to create two nations out of one. He has just passed on the boy to his assistant under safety when he hears another cry.Parallel to this story, the book takes us back to 250 BCE, Pataliputra, King Ashoka's Kingdom. Tired of blood and gore that he witnessed in the War of Kalinga, Ashoka is now a transformed man. He now seeks to create a secret society of Nine Men, who will be burdened with a secret to guard with their life and pass on to the right person when the time comes. These nine men have the secret towards power, peace, better and longer life, something with which they want the world to be a better place.The Sialkot Saga then moves on to the cities of Mumbai and Kolkata. Arbaaz Khan from Mumbai is a teenage scrawny boy who hunts while he hides. Arvind Bagadia from Kolkata is something which we call smart, a trait to be acquired if you want to be successful quick. Both Arvind and Arbaaz grow up to be similar, successful, smart, rich and with their own count of skeletons in the closet. While Arbaaz grows in life with support from Abdul Dada, the notorious don of Mumbai's underbelly, whereas Arvind grows in life with his own set of rules and presence of mind, using which he twists regulations and finds loopholes that can help him in his journey towards success.Bound by fate and faith, their paths cross from time to time. Both are unaware that what they seek and fight over is the very obstacle in realizing an ancient secret that dates back to a time long forgotten..The Sialkot SagaThe story of the Sialkot Saga is impeccable and brainy, something of a business thriller. Two men from different backgrounds trying to cut off each other with tricks that no regular man would be able to figure out easily. Arvind and Arbaaz are two such characters that will leave you mesmerized and in awe, leaving you wanting for more from Ashwin Sanghi.Overall, The Sialkot Saga is a great read, And by great I mean a phenomenon where you will be hooked to a 500+ pages book till the time you finish it. Every page that you turn leaves you stunned. And before you know it, a climax will come that will again leave you spell bounded. Ashwin Sanghi is one talented writer who has spun two tales into one, leaving the reader wanting for more. The story line is pretty smooth, full of twists and turns that will keep you engaged till the end. The characters are something which will leave an imprint on your mind, making it difficult to move on to another book. Though some pages could have been removed to shorten the length, but then it is something that can be easily overlooked when those extra pages turn put to be a great story.What I really loved about the Sialkot Saga was the amount of research Sanghi has put in to create such a masterpiece! The story is a perfect mix of ancient secrets and mordern phases of India since the time of partition. Sanghi has beautifully covered lives of Arvind and Arbaaz through the time of 1950-2010, a time when India was trying to struggle to be a great nation. From falling leaders like Indira Gandhi, to fodder scams and peace talks between India and Pakistan, even 9/11! When you read the Sialkot Saga, you realize how much hard work in research and creativity has been put in by Sanghi!All in all, The Sialkot Saga is something that you must definitely devour into! If you miss out on this, then it's totally your loss!

Truth be told, I ordered this book just 'cause it's written by Ashwin Sanghi ( The Dan Brown Of India ) but after reading few pages I realised that the author had jumped to another court which is held by Jeffery Archer in which historic chain of events are related to a fable and hence popped a great work of fiction like ' Honour Among Thieves ' & so is like ' The Sialkot Saga '. Another confession is that I discourage my fellow readers not to read this book 'cause as mentioned earlier I'd picked the book with a hope to find another ravishing theology like that of Chanakya's Chant & The Krishna Key and so the beginning was not gripping, as what I always expect from this author,but with turning of pages the plot turned gripping . Better to say that the plot had engulfed me.* And with alacrity, I corrected my mistake of discouraging readers by ranging 'em & telling (not asking) to read the book ASAP with tipping off that Ashwin Sanghi is now the Jeffery Archer of India *Now coming to the Book, The Sialkot Saga is the 4th book of the Bharata Series written by the best-selling author (And still my fav) Ashwin Sanghi. Launched with an anecdote of the most heinous incidents in the history of mankind, The Partition of India , which desecrated more than million families with many children rendered helpless. Towns were looted, Women were raped , Brothers which once live together turned against each other & somewhere in between same time a train rolled in the Amritsar railway station with pin drop silence inside the coaches.Sukhbir Singh entered the train and found a little soul alive and as was about to deboard the train he heard another voice , so handing over the kid to his colleague , Sukhbir started the search of other voice. Then on the book is divided into 7 parts carrying the description of 10 years in each part from 1950-2010 in 6 parts while the 7th holds about 2010. Alike Jeffery Archer, Ashwin Sanghi had bolted the major real life incidents that cracked in the Indian history with the life of his protagonists, Arbaz Sheikh & Arvind Bagadia.Raised in different families but with the same set of codes in mind to earn as much as possible, Arbaz and Arvind were committed to their business in the different locations but found themselves against each other on the table of money and started a sinister and actual gripping plot. Arbaz Sheikh, son of a Dockworker, was raised in a Muslim family with very limited resources at the hand but Arbaz was always motivated to study hard till the day he lost his father, the only bread maker of family and eventually led Arbaz to take his father's place as the earning member & feed his mother . With time, Arbaz started trying his hand in local business under the patronage of & Abdul dad his journey towards affluence started . On another side, Arvid was raised in an upper class marwari family & had started investing in different buisnesses since school days & using the same tactics, years later, he landed in the Forbes list of Richest Man.The dates, the geographical specifications and detailed description of the actions in the book add to its authenticity. While the novel is simple , the narrative is not passive and leaves covert clues to hint the incident taking place in the book,but lets the reader keep track of them .Like Archer, Ashwin doesn't go deep into the emotional turmoil faced by the characters, instead, he focuses on one aspect of their lives. It can either be a motive or a driving emotion of revenge or pride or even sense of duty towards public. It's because of this that I didn't find myself as involves and attached to the character as to the plot.Beside this outline the plot is balanced on of the famous myth or better say about the oldest brotherhood of the world, Ashoka's Nine which were deemed to protect a secret whose presence in the public milieu can bring havoc.'Cause I felt sated after wrapping the book so 5/5 to the sagaciously written The Sialkot Saga .

Nicely written, interesting till end

Definitely unusual. This is a story of two Indian men, set against Indian history of the second half of the 20th century, and so far as it is this it is quite entertaining. But it is interspersed with chapters of ancient Indian history which baffled me as I could see no point - until I got to the end. This last part of the story is wrapped up in Indian mysticism and seems odd after the rest of the book, and is completely fanciful.I am not Indian and found reading it rather difficult due to the long complicated Indian names. I would hate to try and read it out loud! Some words in Indian languages are not translated. Try it if you fancy a challenge.

The story consists of 2 parallel plots spanning history and weaving real life events and both plots merging in end in current day. Some of the plot is easier to understand if you are familiar with some of historical facts and teaching of Upanishads.The book is easy to read and whilst predictable, still leaves you wanting to find out more.

What a cracking book. A fantastic mixture of real history and imagination. Hooked from start to finish. As someone who has visited Sialkot and Lahore in the past I was particularly enthralled by this book.I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a rollickn good read which leaves you wondering how much is truth, and how much is fiction.

The novel is quite fast paced and keep reader engrossed. The characters of Arvind and Arbaaz are well etched and at the end, the futility of their enmity is well bought out. Back and forth references to Nine unknown does require some concentration to appreciate.

Great Read. Highly recommend