A Cobra's Bite Doesn't Hurt

Kalu can't read or write, but he has a story to tell.


Kalu, kidnapped from an orphanage at the age of fourteen and trained to pick pockets, is forced into a gang of thieves in Bengaluru. When Babu, their ruthless gang leader, murders his best friend Ramesh, Kalu - fearing for his life - runs away to Kolkata. While still being pursued by Babu, he meets and falls in love with Tanya, a stunning and gifted career girl from an upper-middle-class family.


This powerful novel presents life in contemporary India with vivid realism. Evocative and beautifully written, with a love story at its heart, it embraces a wide range of human emotions and has many intensely dramatic scenes.