International migraine continues…

The book starts with the quote by the then US Foreign Secretary Madeline Albright that “Pakistan is an international migraine” and ends with the same quote by the author, “The Great Migraine continues.”

The thriller takes the reader through a rollercoaster ride without losing grip on the subject. The protagonist Syed Qais Ali Qureshi, fondly called Cash by his admirers, is proud of sharing same surname of the Prophet though he is a habitual liar.

One shudders at the lawlessness in some provinces of Pakistan. The author candidly admits that the Army is under control of Punjabis and the business under Sindhis. And the rest of the provinces feel that they are pariahs. Every other province has its own language or dialect and they feel that Urdu is imposed on them.

The author quips that there is virtually no administration in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). Kidnaps, ransoms, beheadings and the excesses by Taliban are vividly described during the narration.

The author points out that Pakistanis agree only three issues—Cricket, Kashmir and Bomb. No two persons agree on anything over the rest of anything.

The story starts when the protagonist, Cash, the insurance surveyor, is asked to prepare a report on the loss incurred after a cigarette godown is gutted in the small town called Jandola. Sonia, his one time girlfriend, offers huge amount of two million Pak rupees for preparing the report.

Lured by the offer, that would help his teen daughter Shereen to go for higher studies abroad, Cash starts to Jandola with the help of Riaz Khan Mehsud. The trouble starts when the godown owner Malik Awan refuses to accept the insurance amount as it is haraam under Sharia law.

His son was killed by American drone attack. Cash convinces Malik Awan’s daughter and the widow, to accept the insurance amount of US$ 200,000. Naturally Malik Awan gets angry.

Cash along with Riaz is kidnapped. Tragically, Malik Awan and others also killed Drone attack and Cash and Riaz aretaken hostage by Taliban. How he faces the gauntlet and almost misses execution by a whisker forms the rest of the story. Cash, who loses his wife Jameela to breast cancer, finds his love interest in Bilquees but unfortunately loses her.

Some of the gory scenes like the Taliban gang sodomising Riaz and finally slitting his throat moves the reader though it it is work of fiction.

Throughout the story, there are vivid descriptions of the political and social conditions in Pakistan and how the sectarian violence might cause an end to its existence. A number of characters come and go during the journey of Cash making running commentary over the precarious conditions in the failed state.

The Waziris claim that theirs is Islamic Emirate of Waziristan to which the protagonist quips in an off the cuff remark that it is neither Islamic nor emirate.

Some of the expressions the author uses are really baffling. At one place he describes that the woman has the eyes of a hunted gazelle. There is a Sanskrit metaphor with the same meaning, “Bheeta Harinekshana”.

The author uses a number of Urdu words frequently causing annoyance to the reader who is not well-versed with the language. Probably he took it granted since the book is published by Hachette India for the Indian subcontinent only.

Anyway, the book is unputdownable and drags along the reader till the end.

By: MV Syam Sundar