Thuppariyum Sambu
Thuppariyum Sambu is a detective short-story series in Tamil, written by Indian writer Devan in the early 20th century.[1] The novel's protagonist is Sambu, a not-very-intelligent bank clerk in middle age, who solves difficult crime puzzles out of serendipity but is quick to explain as well as take credit. Sambu's character is sometimes considered to be a comical version of Sherlock Holmes.
The stories are known for their distinctive humor set around contemporary society and eloquently portray the conditions of the modern city of Chennai during the 1920s, 1930s and 1940s period. Some of the episodes carry subtle references to World War II as well.
Etymology
The prefix Thuppariyum comes from the Tamil thuppu = clue and ari = know (yum denotes present participle).
Sambu and other characters
Sambu is described by Devan as having a bald fringe, a prominent nose and a weak chin. Along with a generally bewildered stare his appearance invariably invites people to term him asadu (stupid), an assessment not far from the mark. This becomes an asset for Sambu as criminals often underestimate him. Even though Sambu displays a certain reasoning and cunning, it is Lady Luck who leads him to literally stumble on the truth. A typical Sambu story has him clutch a newly built window railing as he trips over some obstacle, and some stolen diamonds hidden in the cement by a mason come to light. The drama is maintained by Sambu triumphing over people who have previously laughed or ridiculed him, with Sambu often being the last to understand that he has actually solved the crime.
Sambu's stalwart companion in the police force is Inspector Gopalan, who usually brings a case to the detective's attention. Sambu and Gopalan usually have great regard for each other save for occasional irritants in their relations caused by Sambu's thin skin. Sambu eventually marries Vembu, who is clearly smarter than her husband and spares no criticism of her husband's vacuousness. The two eventually have a son called Sundhu who also helps in his father's work in solving crimes.
Sambu's detective career is launched when the Director of the bank where he works fires him for letting a corrupt bank manager escape. Sambu gets sweet revenge when the same Director eventually summons him to recover a lost pearl necklace. In another story Sambu traps the same corrupt manager who used to take great pleasure in referring to him at work as "that idiot". Sambu's best moments are when he walks into his old office on the case of the pearl necklace and haughtily ignores his former colleagues who once showed him scant respect.
Adaptations
In the late 1980s Thuppariyum Sambu was made into a popular TV serial with Kathadi Ramamurthy as Sambu and Delhi Ganesh as the Inspector.[2][3] In one of the last episodes Sambu visits London and meets with Scotland Yard sleuths and solves a crime for them, too, and on his return from the UK, he is heartily welcomed. His wife also delivers their daughter.
In early 1990s, Thuupariyum Sambu was made into a TV serial with Y. G. Mahendra as Sambu and A. R. Srinivasan as the inspector Gopalan.
The concept was also adapted into comics form created by Gopulu in Ananda Vikatan.
Shikari Shambu, a forest ranger character created by India Book House for their Tinkle series, is loosely based on Thuppariyum Shambu. Besides the name, Shikari Shambu borrows the concept where lady luck plays a key role in helping Shikari in many an adventure.
References
External links
- Sambu at Thrilling Detective.
- A description of the characters in the novel[usurped]. The Hindu.
- 15 episodes of Teleseries Thupparium Sambu Archived 23 March 2018 at the Wayback Machine. Indian Imprints.
- v
- t
- e
by Adrian Conan Doyle
and John Dickson Carr
- "The Adventure of the Seven Clocks" (1952)
- "The Adventure of the Gold Hunter" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Wax Gamblers" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Highgate Miracle" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Black Baronet" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Sealed Room" (1953)
- "The Adventure of Foulkes Rath" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Abbas Ruby" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Dark Angels" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Two Women" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Deptford Horror" (1953)
- "The Adventure of the Red Widow" (1953)
- The Seven-Per-Cent Solution (1974)
- The West End Horror (1976)
- The Canary Trainer (1993)
- The Adventure of the Peculiar Protocols (2019)
- The Return of the Pharaoh (2021)
- Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula (1978)
- Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Holmes (1979)
- The Perils of Sherlock Holmes (2012)
- The Prisoner of the Devil (1979)
- The Revenge of the Hound (1987)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Hentzau Affair (1991)
- The Tangled Skein (1995)
- The Scroll of the Dead (1998)
- Shadow of the Rat (1999)
- The Veiled Detective (2004)
- The Devil's Promise (2014)
- The Ripper Legacy (2016)
by Laurie R. King
- The Beekeeper's Apprentice (1994)
- A Monstrous Regiment of Women (1995)
- A Letter of Mary (1997)
- The Moor (1998)
- O Jerusalem (1999)
- Justice Hall (2002)
- The Game (2004)
- Locked Rooms (2005)
- The Language of Bees (2009)
- The God of the Hive (2010)
- Pirate King (2011)
- Garment of Shadows (2012)
- Dreaming Spies (2015)
- The Murder of Mary Russell (2016)
- Island of the Mad (2018)
- The Secret Cases of Sherlock Holmes (1997)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Running Noose (2001)
- The Execution of Sherlock Holmes (2007)
- Sherlock Holmes and the King's Evil (2009)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Ghosts of Bly (2010)
- The Lost Casebooks of Sherlock Holmes (2012)
- Death on a Pale Horse: Sherlock Holmes on Her Majesty's Secret Service (2013)
- Dust and Shadow: An Account of the Ripper Killings by Dr. John H. Watson (2009)
- The Whole Art of Detection: Lost Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes (2017)
by Andy Lane
- Death Cloud (2010)
- Red Leech (2010)
- Black Ice (2011)
- Fire Storm (2011)
- Snake Bite (2012)
- Knife Edge (2013)
- Stone Cold (2014)
- Night Break (2015)
- The Breath of God (2011)
- The Army of Dr. Moreau (2012)
- The House of Silk (2011)
- Moriarty (2014)
- Moriarty: The Hound of the D'Urbervilles (2011)
- The Man From The Diogenes Club (2017)
and Anna Waterhouse
- Mycroft Holmes (2015)
- Mycroft and Sherlock (2018)
- Mycroft and Sherlock: The Empty Birdcage (2019)
- The Stuff of Nightmares (2013)
- Gods of War (2014)
- The Thinking Engine (2015)
- The Labyrinth of Death (2017)
- The Devil's Dust (2018)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Shadwell Shadows (2016)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Miskatonic Monstrosities (2017)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Sussex Sea-Devils (2018)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Christmas Demon (2019)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Beast of the Stapletons (2020)
- Sherlock Holmes & The Three Winter Terrors (2021)
- Sherlock Holmes & The Highgate Horrors (2023)
- Sherlock Holmes: The Patchwork Devil (2016)
- Sherlock Holmes: Cry of the Innocents (2017)
by Sherry Thomas
- A Study in Scarlet Women (2016)
- A Conspiracy in Belgravia (2017)
- The Hollow of Fear (2018)
by Larry Millett
- Sherlock Holmes and the Red Demon (1996)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Ice Palace Murders (1998)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Rune Stone Mystery (1999)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Alliance (2001)
- The Disappearance of Sherlock Holmes (2012)
- Sherlock Holmes and the Eisendorf Enigma (2017)
Novels |
|
---|---|
Short stories |
|
Novel series |
|
- The Misadventures of Sherlock Holmes (1944)
- The Fossil Island (1951)
- The Adventure of the Peerless Peer (1974)
- Everybody's Favorite Duck (1988)
- Lizzie Newton: Victorian Mysteries (2011–2013)
- Sherlock Bones (2011–2012)
- Solar Pons
- Stoker and Holmes (2013–2017)