Seafood, though, is a Mumbai specialty (the city is, after all, on
the sea). Chandra likes Trishna, an upscale seafood spot downtown:
"It's quite busy and full of people, so it's an interesting place
to visit."
But he also likes Mahesh Lunch Home and Apoorva, less expensive
seafood places in the same area. They're both known for their
fresh, local, in-season fish. It's the kind of food the star of
Sacred Games, police inspector Sartaj
Singh, would eat. "You can get dinner for 200 rupees, exactly what
Singh could afford," Chandra says. "He'd like this stuff."
In the book, Singh delves into the life of a Mumbai godfather,
Ganesh Gaitonde, who, in alternating chapters, tells his own story.
Gaitonde is a violent, ruthless crime boss, but he's also a
confused, loving, likable man. In one of the most touching scenes
in the book, Gaitonde has his boys drive him to a hilltop in Film
City so he can sit and stare at the sea and worry about a promise
he's made to the daughter of one of his associates. They drive past
a film set's castle, town square, and fishing dock. Without
connections, the average tourist can't get into Film City quite as
easily, but regular, law-abiding people can visit with advance
permission. "Sometimes the films need foreign extras," Chandra
says, recounting the story of a movie scout who approached a friend
from the
United States. "They needed her for a bar scene," he says.
"So she shot for a couple of days, for fun."
Some of the small-time crooks Singh encounters in
Sacred Games might show up at Chor
Bazaar, which translates as "thieves' bazaar." Once true to
the name - it was the place where stolen goods found new
owners - it's now a big flea market, with a huge range of
individual shops. "Some are like a hole in the wall; some
have taken a hole in the wall and poshed it up and put in
air-conditioning to attract tourists," Chandra says. "You can
get antiques and old stuff, although you have to be careful:
People are expert at faking things, so make sure you know
what you're looking at."