• Crime - English

    Shadows of Alipore Lane

    Arvind Sen Episode 1: The Vanished Widow It was on a sultry September afternoon that I first heard of the case that would change the course of my modest career. The ceiling fan in my small office on College Street turned sluggishly, stirring the stale air, and I was almost dozing over a week-old newspaper when the phone rang. The voice on the other end was brittle, lined with suppressed panic, and unmistakably aristocratic. “Mr. Sen? This is Mrs. Chaudhuri of Alipore Lane. I need your help. My sister-in-law has disappeared. No one believes me, but something terrible has happened.”…

  • Crime - English

    The Art of Murder

    Mira D’Silva Episode 1 – The Hidden Canvas Ananya Mehta had never entered Professor Hall’s office without permission before. The narrow corridor outside the Fine Arts Department was deserted that evening, the winter light drained from the sky, and the flickering tube light above made the varnished wooden door glow in a tired, sickly sheen. She stood with her hand on the brass knob, half-deciding whether to turn away, but curiosity had its own pull. Hall had sent her a hurried message to retrieve a folder from his desk, nothing more. He had sounded distracted, impatient even, as though every…

  • Hindi - क्राइम कहानियाँ

    खून का सौदा

    राहुल देव मुंबई की बारिश अक्सर शहर को धो देती थी, पर उस रात की बारिश ने मानो अपराध की गंध को और गाढ़ा कर दिया था। लोअर परेल की एक संकरी गली में पीली बत्तियों के नीचे पानी चमक रहा था। उसी अंधेरे में एक आदमी दौड़ रहा था—काले रेनकोट में, हाथ में किसी पुराने अखबार में लिपटा पैकेट। पीछे से पुलिस सायरन की आवाजें गूंज रही थीं। वह आदमी हर मोड़ पर पीछे मुड़कर देख रहा था, जैसे कोई अदृश्य शिकारी उसका पीछा कर रहा हो। कुछ ही देर बाद वह एक जर्जर इमारत के भीतर घुसा। सीढ़ियों…

  • English - Suspense

    The Vanishing Ledger

    Arjun Malhotra  The Broken Lock The house stood at the far end of Chitpur Road like a stubborn relic, refusing to collapse even as the rest of north Kolkata modernized and decayed in equal measure. Its high arched windows were shattered, its stucco walls streaked with moss, and weeds sprouted in wild abandon from the cracks in its courtyard. The demolition crew had arrived at dawn with their rust-colored machines, but Rohan had been there before them, notebook in hand, his camera dangling from his neck, watching as the first hammer struck the gates of the house. Freelance assignments were…

  • Crime - English

    Salt in the Wound

    Mukta Joshi 1 The sun had not yet risen over the vast white plains of the Rann of Kutch, but the world was already glowing. A ghostly sheen hung over the salt flats, where the land met the sky in a silent, horizonless stretch of emptiness. Abdul Rehman Shaikh squinted into the distance, the crunch of salt beneath his sandals breaking the stillness. He had walked this path for over thirty years, guiding workers and checking the progress of the salt beds, but this morning something was different. There was an unnatural stillness near the third trench—where the water had…

  • English - Comedy

    The Great Office Coffee Heist

    Rishi Kulkarni Monday Mourning The Monday morning at Chai & Chat Media Pvt. Ltd., a mid-sized marketing agency in the heart of Koramangala, Bengaluru, began like any other—late. The office, located on the third floor of a building with exactly one working lift (which frequently stopped at every floor uninvited), had a culture of “flexible timing”—which really meant “come in before lunch, if possible.” By 10:47 AM, only four people had arrived: Sonal had her headphones on and was busy typing ferociously, probably fighting with a vendor over Google Sheets. Tapan was slouched over his MacBook, staring at an empty…