The Ghosts of Gurugram by Debeshi Gooptu is an ebook. So you don’t have any other choice than reading it on your Kindle, laptop, or smartphone. But if you have an interest in reading stuff about the harsh realities of life in a satirical manner, then this book is for you. There are 14 chapters in this 150 pages and 3.7 MB ebook. Every chapter promises to keep the story run fluently. And, at the same time, to keep reader’s interest alive till the last page. This book, in fact, is a rare combination of humor and horror thus keeping it apart from regular genres. Sometimes, some incidents create deeper impacts on our minds. If you belong to that creative class of people that includes writers and authors, you are bound to create such interesting stories. Generally, such stories are quite close to the real life.
The story of The Ghosts of Gurugram depicts the transforming phases of any city. Like, Gurugram becoming an industrial hub from a sleeping city. This usually happens as a result of globalization, outsourcing, BPO, and technological advancements. While every such developmental phase has a darker side too that is not easily noticeable and visible to most stakeholders. It is hard to notice such incidents like dowry deaths, suicides, murders, and violence against women. Because those start occurring so frequently that we take those as a normal routine. But that is not the case. Every such incident has a reason behind it. And most of the times, the reason that media or administration presents is different from the real one. Who pays the price for each of these incidents and what makes them happen? Is it not that in the name of progress we start falling prey to it?
The key character of The Ghosts of Gurugram is Tara, 26-year-old is a new manager shifting to her company’s Gurgaon office. Thus she has to look for a house for her. Mahesh Sharma, one of the prominent agents in Gurgaon takes the onus of getting her one. He was thinking it would not be a tough task. But despite showing her 9 houses that include apartments, Bungalows, Flats, and what not, he is desperate to understand what exactly she wants. Tara is on a run from her recent incidents in life that include a breakup with Nikhil. She was about to marry Nikhil who all of a sudden refuses to carry on any further. It was only two months back that Nikhil had proposed her in an official party. The party was by the company both were working for. The story of The Ghosts of Gurugram is crisp.
The denial too was abrupt and at the last moment when the marriage was about to happen thus shocking everyone in Tara’s family. Coming back to the house hunt. Tara finally zeroes down apartment number 103, the tenth house in their half-day hunt. After all, she had to manage her life, leave her job where she was working with Nikhil. That made her land to a new place, Gurugram, and a new digital agency to manage. Settling in Gurugram from Kolkata was not an easy task for her. But then that is what life is all about. you never know where the next stride will take you to. Finally, the pious landlady of 103/103 Cedar Oaks, Gurgaon, Savitri Mahajan hands over the house keys to Tara after creating a fuss about her age and beauty. And Tara was wondering what those elements have to do with renting?
With conditions like no wild parties at home, keeping the home clean, and no men staying at night, finally, Tara gets a nod from Savitri Mahajan. The papers would get ready in next 2-3 days and the rent finalized is 15k that is well within Tara’s limits. But one strange thing happens by this time. Tara encounters a cat at Savitri’s house that is a non-existent entity as per Savitri. After shifting to her new house, the first incident that happens with Tara is quite scary. Neetu, one of her team member in office gifts a box of sweets containing milk Cake to Tara. She also instructs her to keep it in the refrigerator to avoid it from spoiling. One night, when she is back from an office party after having a couple of beers, she hears a loud noise in the kitchen.
Rushing there, she finds, a plate on the floor and the pieces of milk cake scattered around. Now that is quite scary and disturbing. If Tara is staying alone at home, who in her absence takes out milk cake from her fridge and then those pieces and plate on the floor. And while she is cleaning the floor she hears a cat’s voice clearly coming from her living room. Suddenly that black cat at Savitri’s house flashes in her mind. That cat which didn’t exist and Savitri didn’t own any. And her hate towards cats would not let any enter her home. What was this? What was all happening with Tara? Was it really a game of ghosts or something else. Maybe someone was playing tricks with her? Or Tara’s illusion? Grab a copy of The Ghosts of Gurugram and read this interesting story in one go.
