Aditya Hitkari & Divya Palat
Aditya Hitkari & Divya Palat

Time Out Mumbai hosted a delightful book reading at Crossword, Kemps Corner. This edition of Time Out’s Book Nook featured a truly fascinating book, The Hound Of The Baskervilles written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He is one of the finest writers of crime fiction.The book reading experience was shared by eminent theatre personalities Aditya Hitkari and his wife, Divya Palat.

Aditya Hitkari & Divya Palat
Aditya Hitkari & Divya Palat

The couple run a theatre company called Balancing Act Productions. Divya and Aditya have been associated with famous plays like The Graduate, My Way and The Legend of Ram.Their reading was very dramatic and engaging. It actually tempted me to revisit the book which is considered one of Arthur Conan Doyle’s best works.

Time Out Mumbai's Book Nook At Crossword
Time Out Mumbai’s Book Nook At Crossword

So, the book is essentially one of the four crime novels that feature the legendary detective Sherlock Holmes. The book which is set in England’s West Country is the story of an attempted murder inspired by the legend of a supernatural hound. People across the globe loved the book immensely and it was even adapted into a movie starring Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce and Richard Greene.

The reading gets dramatic
The reading gets dramatic

The reading was a part of Time Out Mumbai’s tribute to crime fiction. In Time Out this month, Jerry Pinto takes us on a journey of the best novels on crime ever. I have always wondered about the challenges that artists have to face in adapting a crime fiction novel for stage. Someone actually asked Aditya and Divya about recreating Hound Of The Baskervilles for a theatre audience and they both agreed on the fact that it is extremely difficult. They spoke about how they find comedy especially romantic comedy easier to work with.( their awesome chemistry probably helps!)

All smiles after their first reading together: Divya Palat & Aditya Hitkari
All smiles after their first reading together: Divya Palat & Aditya Hitkari

Personally, I feel that the Golden Age of crime fiction was the best. It was a return to innocence as the older books combined the feel of a Gothic plot and setting with an ordinary but believable motive. Divya and Aditya spoke to me about their views on contemporary crime fiction as well. We’d generally assume that they both preferred classics with an old world charm but it was interesting to learn that they had several contemporary favorites as well.

Aditya Hitkari & Divya Palat
Aditya Hitkari & Divya Palat

It was the couple’s first book reading together and they looked like they were having a blast. Divya told me that she was just glad she got to be Sherlock Holmes in the reading. The preview of the book made me want to delve deeper into the world of detective stories. I do love Agatha Christie but I’d love to read some more classics. So, tell me about your favorite crime novel, MissMalini readers and help me get started!