Vish Dhamija | |
---|---|
Born | July 30th Ajmer, Rajasthan, India |
Occupation | Digital Marketer; Crime Fiction Writer |
Language | English |
Education | MBA |
Alma mater | Alliance Manchester Business School |
Genre | Crime Fiction; Legal Thrillers; Psychological Thrillers |
Years active | 2010 to present |
Notable works | Rita Ferreira Series |
Website | |
vishdhamija |
Vish Dhamija is a British Indian crime-fiction writer. According to the Indian Press he is India's Best Page-Turner [1] and one of the ten most popular Indian thriller authors. [2] [3] He is the only writer of Indian origin listed among the major legal thriller authors of the world. He is also known for his psychological thrillers. [4] Dhamija is one of the very few Indian authors to be translated into French.
In August 2015, at the release of his first legal fiction (his third novel) Déjà Karma, Glimpse Magazine called him India's John Grisham [5] [6] for stimulating the genre of legal fiction in India which was almost non-existent before his arrival on the scene. [7] In a survey by eBooks India website, Vish Dhamija was listed along the top 51 Indian authors you must follow. [8] The Asian Age and The Times of India have cited him as the only legal fiction writer in India. [9] [10]
Dhamija's stories have been published in India (Pan Macmillan, Harper Collins, Srishti Publishers), in the United States (Blackstone, Tantor Media) and in France (Mera Éditions).
In March 2024, Amazon India announced that Bhumi Pedenkar would play Vish Dhamija's fictional DCP Rita Ferreira, based on his bestselling book, Bhendi Bazaar. [11]
Dhamija grew up in Ajmer, Rajasthan, where he spent the first twenty years of his life. He attended St. Anselm's School, a convent school in Ajmer. He earned his B.Com. from Government College, Ajmer. Dhamija dropped out of law school after his first year, and then attended Jodhpur University for a degree in management. After a few years of working in the corporate world in India, he left for Manchester Business School in the UK for an MBA in Marketing and Strategy.
In school, Dhamija was very active in literary and stage activities. He was the President of the school's Literary Society.
Dhamija's first book, Nothing Lasts Forever, a crime thriller was published in 2010 by Srishti Publishers; it was long-listed for "Vodafone-Crossword Book Award 2011.". [12]
Bhendi Bazaar and tells the story of a serial killer and the police officer [13] who attempts to identify the pattern behind the killer's murders before she becomes the next victim. The book spent over a year in India's Top 100 list for 'Crime, Thriller, and Mystery', and has been noted for its ingenious plot and rich characters. [14] [15] [16]
Dhamija has said in interviews that crime fiction, which is mainly what he reads, is the only genre in which he can imagine himself writing for the time being. [17]
In August 2015, Déjà Karma (Dhamija's third book and first legal and psychological thriller) became a bestseller and was featured on both The Financial Express [18] and Crossword Bookstores [19] lists for two consecutive weeks.
His next book, Doosra – The Other One* was released in Feb 2016, and Business Standard featured it in March, calling it a "…must read.". [20] Dhamija's fifth book - Nothing Else Matters was launched at the Kumaon Literary Festival in October. In November it reached number 6 on WH Smith charts on both, domestic and international airports in New Delhi. Bloggers rated it as one of the top 10 books by Indian authors in 2016 [21] and top 10 romance novels of 2016 by Iindian authors. [22] HarperCollins India released Dhamija's sixth book, Unlawful Justice [23] in June 2017, [3] which The Times of India called: "a gripping legal thriller [24] ". Unlawful Justice was recognized by Amazon India as one of the Memorable Books of 2017, and The Asian Age included it in its annual listing of the Best Books of 2017. [25]
Dhamija's seventh book (his third legal fiction), The Mogul was released in July 2018 by HarperCollins. "Gripping", said The Times of India. [26] The Indian Express, in its review, called out that "Dhamija has set the sky as the limit, figuratively and literally." [27] The Telegraph praised, The Heist Artist (Dhamija's eighth book, a crime caper) saying: “It’s difficult to find a single dull moment in this book...”. [28] The Heist Artist was the only Indian author/publication to be included in The Times of India list of "Crime fiction and thrillers you should read in 2019" [29] and is listed as one of the eight crime fiction novels that other crime writers must read. [30]
In June 2019, Abundantia Entertainment [31] announced that it had acquired the rights to Dhamija's much sought-after "Rita Ferreira" series (Bhendi Bazaar, Doosra & Lipstick) to adapt the books into a multi-season, premium original digital series. [32]
Dhamija's second psychological thriller, Prisoner's Dilemma, was published by Pan Macmillan in April 2021. [33] It had a slow start due to COVID-19, but it has been on the WH Smith charts (at airport) even a year after launch.
Cold Justice, Dhamija's fourth legal thriller, released on July 4, 2022, and The Times of India called it: "A gripping, heart-stopping novel… a must-read recommendation for thriller lovers." [34]
Déjà Karma was republished by Pan Macmillan India in 2023. It was called, "The Most Riveting Courtroom Drama of The Year" by Deccan Chronicle.
Le Magnat was published in French by Mera Editions in April 2024.
Dhamija worked in marketing and retailing for almost two decades for global brands like Ford, Kodak and United Colors of Benetton. He is now a public speaker, and runs a nursery school. He is married to Nidhi Singh, the great-granddaughter of Raja Mahendra Pratap. Vish spends his time between UK and India.
Books | |
---|---|
Stand Alone Works | Nothing Lasts Forever |
Nothing Else Matters | |
The Heist Artist | |
Prisoner's Dilemma | |
DCP Rita Ferriera Series | Bhendi Bazaar |
Doosra | |
Lipstick | |
Legal Thrillers | Déjà Karma |
Unlawful Justice | |
The Mogul | |
Cold Justice | |
Le Magnat (French) |
Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, often a murder. It is usually distinguished from mainstream fiction and other genres such as historical fiction or science fiction, but the boundaries are indistinct. Crime fiction has several subgenres, including detective fiction, courtroom drama, hard-boiled fiction, and legal thrillers. Most crime drama focuses on crime investigation and does not feature the courtroom. Suspense and mystery are key elements that are nearly ubiquitous to the genre.
Sudha Murty is an Indian educator, author, and philanthropist. She is married to the co-founder of Infosys, N. R. Narayana Murty. She was a former chairperson of the non-profit charitable organization Infosys Foundation. In 2024, Murty was nominated as Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha on 8 March 2024 for her contribution on social work and education. Murty was awarded the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award in India, for social work by the Government of India in 2006. In 2023, she was awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award in India.
Ashok Kumar Banker is an author and screenwriter. His writing spans crime thrillers, essays, literary criticism, fiction and Indian mythology. The author of several well-received novels including a trilogy billed as "India's first crime novels in English", he became widely known for his retellings of Indian mythological epics, starting with the internationally acclaimed and best-selling eight-volume Ramayana Series. His books have sold over 2 million copies and have been published in 16 languages in 58 countries. His Epic India Library is an attempt at retelling all the myths, legends and itihasa of the Indian sub-continent in one story cycle comprising over 70 volumes.
Karin Slaughter is an American crime writer. She has written 24 novels, which have sold more than 40 million copies and have been published in 120 countries. Her first novel, Blindsighted (2001), was published in 27 languages and made the Crime Writers' Association's Dagger Award shortlist for "Best Thriller Debut" of 2001.
Kia Abdullah is a British novelist and travel writer. She is the best-selling author of courtroom dramas Take It Back, Truth Be Told, Next of Kin and Those People Next Door. She has written for The New York Times, The Guardian, The Times,The Financial Times, The Telegraph and the BBC, among other publications.
Bhendi Bazaar is a market (bazaar) in South Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. Bhendi Bazaar occupies an area between Mohammed Ali Road and Khetwadi. The closest Central and Harbour lines station for the Mumbai Suburban Railway is Sandhurst Road, and the closest Western railway stations are Charni Road and Grant Road. The bazaar is popular for shopping viz antique and hardware items. It is also home to the popular Bhendibazaar gharana of Hindustani classical music.
Adrian McKinty is a Northern Irish writer of crime and mystery novels and young adult fiction, best known for his 2020 award-winning thriller, The Chain, and the Sean Duffy novels set in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. He is a winner of the Edgar Award, the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award, the Macavity Award, the Ned Kelly Award, the Barry Award, the Audie Award, the Anthony Award and the International Thriller Writers Award. He has been shortlisted for the CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger and the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière.
Piyush Jha is a film director, screenwriter, author and series creator from India.
Durjoy Datta is an Indian author and screenwriter.
Flirting With Fate is a 2012 novel conceived by Pinaki Chaudhuri, written and edited by Indian author and Freelance Editor Writer Preeti Singh. The book was released on Saturday 14 July 2012 by Writer Vivek Atray at CII in Chandigarh. Preeti was fond of writing since the age of nine.
Anees Salim is an Indian author known for his books like Vanity Bagh, The Blind Lady's Descendants and the Small Town Sea. He is from the town of Varkala, and now lives in Kochi, Kerala. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award for The Blind Lady's Descendants in 2018, becoming only the fourth Malayalee in history to win the award for an English work. Some of his columns have appeared in newspaper The Indian Express.
Anand Neelakantan an Indian novelist, columnist, screenwriter, and public speaker. He is known for writing mythological fiction and has authored 14 books in English and one in Malayalam. He has been writing a column in the The New Indian Express since 2017.
Joygopal Podder is an Indian writer. In 2016 he was listed in the Limca Book of Records for having had 15 crime fiction novels published in 57 months. Before this he went on to feature in Limca Book of Records five times. In 2015 as the author who has had 14 crime fiction novels published in 45 months. As the author with most books on crime fiction in shortest time in 2013 and in 2014. For writing five crime fiction novels in nine months in 2012 and writing 10 crime fiction within in 21 months.
Preeti Singh is an Indian author based at Chandigarh. Singh has been working as a professional writer since last 21 years before authoring her four best-selling novels. Her debut novel - Flirting With Fate was published by Mahaveer Publishers, India in 2012, followed by Crossroads, which was published by Authors Press, India, in 2014. Her second book Crossroads has made its place in the India Book Of Records as the First Indian Fiction having real-life people as characters.
Ritu Lalit is an Indian novelist, short story writer, and blogger based in Faridabad, India, noted for writing fiction and mostly of the fantasy and thriller genre. She is author of five novels, A Bowlful of Butterflies, a coming of age story about three fast friends in school, Hilawi, a fantasy thriller, and Chakra, Chronicles of the Witch Way, a fantasy adventure, Wrong for the Right Reasons, a story about a young divorcee bringing up her children and a murder mystery, and His Father's Mistress.
Archana Sarat is an Indian author, a short story writer, a flash fiction author and poet. She is known for her 2016 novel, Birds of Prey, a psychological crime thriller. The novel has been adapted for the screen in Tamil on the OTT platform, Aha Tamil. It is titled Irai, and stars R. Sarathkumar. It is directed by Rajesh M. Selva and produced by Radaan Mediaworks.
Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust (SBUT) is a non-profit organization established in 2009 to undertake one of urban India's largest makeover projects of sheer magnitude and impacting around 20,000 people.
Satyarth Nayak is an Indian author and screenwriter, known for his bestselling novel The Emperor's Riddles, authoring the biography of Sridevi and for scripting Sony's historical television epic Porus. The Emperor's Riddles turned out to be a bestselling thriller with the media calling it "a hit with young readers". Porus created by Swastik Productions was one of the most expensive and acclaimed shows on Indian television. Satyarth's biography of screen legend Sridevi titled Sridevi: The Eternal Screen Goddess published in 2019 by Penguin Random House also went on to win high praise. Satyarth has been named one of the Top 50 Indian authors to follow on social media.
I Will Go with You: The Flight of a Lifetime is a 2015 suspense thriller novel by Indian writer Priya Kumar. It is the fifth book written by Priya Kumar. The plot follows a pilot of the flight, who decides to commit suicide while on board. Instead of dying alone, he chooses to endanger the lives of 300 passengers of the flight and dies in mid-air along with them. The novel became bestseller, and was adapted into 2019 web television series The Final Call.
Priya Kumar is an Indian motivational speaker and writer. She is an author of 12 books including novels and self-help books. Her works mainly deal with inspirational and spiritual themes. Her book License to Live (2010) was nominated for Vodafone Crossword Book Award in 2010. In 2019, her novel I Will Go with You (2015) was adapted into web television series The Final Call, starring Arjun Rampal, Sakshi Tanwar, Javed Jaffrey.