The Story:

Every story begins with a dot and Siddhartha Tagore is the
first dot in “Prisoner, Jailor, Prime Minister”. We first make his acquaintance
as the newly sworn Prime Minister of India, in the early hours of the last day
of 2016 in a very private, almost clandestine ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Within minutes of his taking the oath of office, he is apprised of a situation
where the “possibility of political disintegration would become a clear and
present danger.” Siddhartha Tagore who is no pussyfooting politician
immediately decides that there would be “no perpetrators or protectors for
those who try to damage India” and authorizes the head of RAW to go for the
Jehadi jugular.

One would expect this then, to be another political
thriller, a story of espionage and counter espionage, a fast paced adventure of
how Siddhartha Tagore tamed the terrorist tiger stalking the nation but
surprisingly, there is a change of tempo and we are taken back in time to
Harvard in 1985, a time of innocence when the young Siddhartha Tagore, a
brilliant young student from India  comes
to Boston  to pursue an undergraduate
degree in music, much to the dismay of his powerful politician father. Mozart
Man as he is referred to in Harvard has an equal passion for Mozart, Tansen and
political history – a lethal combination that makes him a liberal, secular hero
mesmerizing all he meets during his journey from Harvard to 7 RCR. At this point we are
introduced to three more dots in the story: Gregory Templar, his roommate at
Harvard and the beautiful Jaykar sisters who are identical twins.

Predictably, Siddhartha falls for Ruby , one of the twins and
once their student days are over; they return to Mumbai where the
Jaykar matriarch runs a successful perfume industry. But the course of true
love never runs smooth and a strange turn of events makes Siddhartha return to
New York, to immerse himself in music till he is discovered as a candidate
with great potential, a worthy successor to the Lok Neta, a member of the
ruling party. Once again, Siddhartha returns home and is thrust into politics,
eventually rising to the position of Top Job. However, Rukmani Devi, a
formidable opponent and an opposition ready to pull the rug from under his
precariously balanced coalition government , with the nation facing a serious
security threat and his own demons threatening him at every turn, Siddhartha Tagore faces an uphill task.

The style:

In a narrative that flows smoothly like champagne, there are some parts which I personally found disturbing but I liked the New Gen politician of this book – a member of the upwardly mobile urban intelligentsia, uninhibited conspicuous consumers – a deviation from the archetypical pseudo Gandhian Indian politician.

Tabrik C, like his protagonist, effortlessly straddles the
worlds of music,politics and high society ,recreating student life at Harvard, the uptight
Malabar Hill society and the intrigues at Raisina Hill with ease. Though billed
as a political thriller, it is more a love story with politics as a backdrop.
The characters are intensely passionate about their love and their beliefs and
live life on their terms. They are “superior” yet flawed and despite their excesses are strangely
endearing.

Towards the end, the dots become quite predictable but Tabrik manages
to engage and sustain the reader’s interest with unexpected twists in the plot which he handles
with sensitivity and understanding.

The final verdict:

Siddhartha Tagore, the suave, aristocratic musical genius
who zips around town on his Harley is not a hero one can forget quickly. “Prisoner,
Jailor, Prime Minister is definitely worth a read!