Book review: Jayanti Ranganathan's Sugar Daddy is a provocative, pacy murder mystery for the modern reader
Journalist-author Jayanti Ranganathan blends crime with social commentary in her novel on transactional relationships, love, lust, greed, revenge, and ambition.
A murder, a millionaire, and a woman half his age: author Jayanti Ranganathan’s latest Hindi novel Sugar Daddy opens with all the makings of a sensational crime story. But beneath its page-turning surface, it's also a sly, unsettling look at the power equations that shape love, lust, and ambition in the modern world.
The plot kicks off when a wealthy businessman, Shyam Rajgir is found dead at a hill station resort and his much younger companion, 19-year-old Mayra Vishwas, becomes the prime suspect. But surely enough, there’s more than meets the eye. As a curt investigation officer peels back layers of deceit and desire, some new characters – in the form of former wives and estranged relatives – emerge with varied motives, ranging from greed and jealousy to revenge and loneliness.
As a reader, one is guided into an uneasy world where intimacy is negotiated like currency. The ‘sugar daddy’ trope is not relegated into the realm of cheap thrills, but is meticulously used to explore and examine how transactional relationships can easily blur into emotional dependency.
The language is contemporary, peppered with Hinglish phrases and urban realism. At 215 pages, the pacing of the novel is brisk and succinct. Each chapter ends with a minor cliffhanger, pulling the reader deeper into the psychological maze thus trying its best to compel the reader to keep unravelling the puzzle, page after page.
What works best is the author’s refusal to hand out moral judgments. Mayra isn’t a helpless victim nor is she a calculating femme fatale. And Shyam, for all his wealth and posthumous creepiness, doesn't neatly fit into a predatory pigeonhole. Their relationship (like the crime itself) thrives in grey zones.
At times, the plot leans on familiar thriller tropes – flashy parties, sudden betrayals, and neatly timed revelations. But, the energy of the prose keeps the story engaging. The writing emerges as a hero, especially during moments when the author could have easily fallen prey to the cardboard norms of a murder mystery. But Ranganathan navigates the admittedly familiar territory with a surprising empathy, and introduces the depth that one seldom finds in whodunnits.
Seductive without being shallow and sharp without being cynical, Sugar Daddy is a fast, contemporary noir with a distinctly Indian heartbeat. It stands as a reminder that a Hindi thriller can be both commercial and socially aware.
Title: Sugar Daddy
Author: Jayanti Ranganathan
Publisher: HindYugm
Price: ₹249
Disclaimer: The author is an editor with Hindustan, the Hindi daily from the HT Media Group.
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