With ‘The Fixer’, it’s yesterday once more (IANS Interview)

By Vishnu Makhijani New Delhi, Nov 3 : Hes lived in 12 cities around the world, including in El Paso, a lynchpin of the Mexican drug cartels. As a keen observer of human nature and the reasons why we make the decisions we make, its but natural that Suman Dubey should make what he terms “Aspirational Regret” — in this case, that of a cricketer — the theme of his debut novel “The Fixer” (Rupa) that lays bare the fictional world of a privately-owned league in a setting is similar to the IPL.
“I have been fortunate in my career to have lived in as many as 12 cities around the world. These include the town of El Paso, which is famed for its stories of Mexican drug cartels, the college city of Boston and the tech-centre of San Francisco and Silicon Valley. In each of these cities I have met some fascinating people who’ve enlightened me with their unique stories,” Dubey, now based in Mumbai, where he pursues his two greatest passions of gourmet coffee making and fiction writing, told IANS in an interview.
“As a storyteller, I love observing human nature and the key reasons why we make the decisions we make. It is truly fascinating for me to imagine how a character might behave in a particular situation. After spending years thinking of various fictional situations and characters, I decided to sketch them through my words in a novel,” added Dubey, who studied at Cornell and has worked in Silicon Valley.
The outcome is quite fascinating — a no-holds-barred look into the soul of the protagonist — Neil Upadhyay. Named the ‘ICC Emerging Cricketer’ at 19 — and viewed as the next Kapil Dev — he returns 5/26 in a Test against Australia but is then sidelined due to injury and 21-years later, attempts to resurrect himself by coaching the best team in the nascent Indian Club Cricket League (ICCL).
An Oscar Wilde quote — “When the Gods wish to punish us, they answer our prayers” — created a powerful impact on the way Dubey perceives things.
“I realized that Aspirational Regret can be a strong driver of human nature and can make a person think out of their usual personality. Thus, I wrote about the journey of a character struggling for redemption and survival and the decisions he makes to achieve his goals.