27 May,2026 09:50 AM IST | Mumbai | Shriram Iyengar
The mystery of the deaths at Rajabai Clock Tower in 1891 is one of the city’s well-known unsolved cases. File pics
There is a secret guilty pleasure to reading true crime books. The fascination of the procedure is only rivalled by the incredulity at the actions themselves. In Sunil Nair's The Bombay Heist & Other Forgotten True Crime Stories of India (Juggernaut), the experience is magnified through the details.
The daring daylight heist at Bombay House was infamous as it befell the city's famed Tata family trust
While the dramatic nature of the Lloyd's Bank Robbery, or the Bombay House Heist are depicted in cinematic detail, it is the procedural authenticity of tales like the Mystery of the Rajabai Clock Tower Deaths that stand out. We chat with the Bengaluru-based author about the journey of compiling these fascinating tales together.
Excerpts from the interview.
How did the search for these stories begin?
I have covered crimes from the 1830s-1940s in my first book, Tales of Crimes Past: A Casebook of Colonial India. This book was to be a sequel, focusing on crimes in Mumbai. However, when the publisher [Juggernaut] came on board, we decided that we would need to expand beyond Mumbai.
Commander KM Nanavati dropped off his family at Metro Cinema fin Marine Lines for a screening of Tom Thumb on the infamous day in 1959
How did you go about finding them?
I collect a lot of old books, and had found some of these stories during the research for my previous book. Besides, I am always trawling the Internet for stories. As a railway enthusiast, I was also fascinated by the great train robberies. Few people remember, or know, that the famous toy train in Shimla was once held up in a robbery. Similarly, there were some cases like the Elokeshi murder from Bengal, which inspired the Kalighat paintings, and became a cultural phenomenon, that demanded inclusion. I also wanted to write about the infamous Pagla Murder Case from Kolkata, but did not find enough details to flesh it out.
How do you pick one story from such a compendium of crimes through the years?
When I select a story, I look at how authentic the story is, how much can I add to it, and how much research is possible into it.
Jehangir Mansion played the venue for a gory quadruple murder in 1971. Pic Courtesy/Art Deco Mumbai
How long did this process take to put them all together?
For the stories set in the Colonial era, I spent about 10 days at the Asiatic Society Library, poring through the pages of The Times of India and Bombay Chronicle, most of them on microfilm. For the others, I had to return to my old book collection and online sources. The process took me nearly two years. I also visited some of these places. One of the locations was the Rajabai Clock Tower. I hope to write an entire book on that mystery.
Do you plan to pursue it as part of a larger story?
In fact, this book was initially framed as The Rajabai Clock Tower Deaths and Other Dark Tales. That was my working title. Then, we opted to start with a faster paced story; The Bombay House Heist. It had the drama of a film.
It was a surprise to see a number of crimes involving Parsis...
That came as a surprise to me as well. It is a coincidence, but not a reflection of their nature. I mentioned it to one of my Parsi friends who laughed, saying, "Do not underestimate an angry Parsi." I also wanted to write a chapter about the Bombay Dog Riots of 1832, and the policemen of Mumbai. But I couldn't add them in this book.
How important was getting the details of the crime and the witness stories to your stories?
That was a personal interest. When you are a child, you always want to play the sharp-eyed policeman. While they are much maligned these days, it is a fascinating job.
>> Bombay House Heist (1949)
>> Lloyds Bank Robbery (1951)
>> Jehangir Mansions Murder (1971)
>> The Nanavati Case (1959)
>> The Rajabai Clock Tower Deaths (1891)
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