Dr Ruby, a renowned mystery writer, was honoured at the International Agatha Christie Festival (Sep 2022) in Torquay, Devon, England. Here’s a report for Different Truths.
Dr Ruby Gupta, professor of humanities and HOD English at the ACC Wing, Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, has brought laurels to India by being honoured as the International Writer-in-Residence at the International Agatha Christie Festival (2022) in Torquay, Devon, England, informed the author.
This international recognition by the Agatha Christie Festival Foundation is a testament to Dr Gupta’s prowess as a crime fiction author of repute. The works of Agatha Christie inspire her mystery novels.
The International Agatha Christie Festival is organised annually in Torquay, Devon, England, the birthplace of Agatha Christie, the world’s best-selling novelist. This annual Festival of arts and literature celebrates the life and legacy of Christie. It draws international authors of repute, renowned academicians, and a global audience.
As International Writer-in-Residence, Prof Gupta gave a talk on how Agatha Christie inspired modern Indian crime fiction with British author Vaseem Khan. She presented the prizes to the 2022 Young Writers Mystery Short-Story Writing Competition winners. Her stint included attending all the talks/lectures, involvement in all the festival events and visiting the landmarks associated with the life and work of Christie. She made an active contribution to the festival through talks and debates on literature and improved the understanding between the two countries. Her residency includes the submission of a report on the festival as well as a blog/piece of creative writing (short story/other), it was informed.
During the festival, Dr Gupta’s suspense thriller, The Secret of Leifeng Pagoda, was unveiled. The world-renowned nano-expert, Professor Shantanu Bose, learns of the mysterious death of his friend, a senior engineer with BARC (Bhabha Atomic Research Centre). Deeply distressed, the Professor delves into the case and is stunned to discover a series of inexplicable deaths of scientists and engineers engaged in cutting-edge research, ranging from the Arihant nuclear submarine to thorium-fuelled nuclear reactors. The bizarre deaths connect almost all the nuclear and defence establishments of India.
The plot spans decades, from the dangerous attempt to assassinate Jawaharlal Nehru to the Indo-China War to the honey-trapping of scientific and defence personnel. Professor Bose is astounded to discover that the trail leads to China. He follows the convoluted trajectory from Hangzhou in China to Shanghai and Beijing. Exploring the murky bylanes of medieval Chinese bazaars, ancient temples, and lofty pagodas, he is alarmed to find sinister forces at work.
The CIA has long been on a similar trail involving international espionage. Almost all the CIA agents deployed in China have been eliminated over the past decades. As Shantanu investigates, to his horror, he deduces a diabolical plan to execute one of the biggest terror plots in the world. The Professor, along with Indian and US elite security officials, race against time to defuse the fiendish plot. Will they succeed? Only time will tell…
Prof Gupta’s tenure at Torquay will have a trickle-down effect; it will benefit and enlighten successive generations of future military leaders she teaches and lead to the all-around enrichment of IMA. It is indeed a matter of great pride for IMA and for the country that she was thus honoured at such a prestigious platform in England, it was added.
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