India, Aug. 16 -- Shrikant Bojewar's 154-page novella is a wickedly clever satire set in a small village in Maharashtra where the intermingling of felines and humans establishes beyond a doubt the unconscionable conduct of the latter species. The protagonist, Langdya Pitambar, has failed Class 7 for the third time. Langdya, named so because of his prominent limp, wants to ensure that his father Ajabrao does not learn about his failure from Gengane-master, his mathematics teacher, at their nightly drinking adda. Pondering ways to tamper with his marksheet and escape his drunk father's wrath, he has a brainwave when he spots the newly appointed, rather beautiful music teacher, Alaknanda Deshpande, heading towards a 400-year-old mud fortress at sunset. Landgya alerts two rival teachers, Gengane-master and Habib Sir. They take position, Gengane-master hoping to catch Habib Sir red-handed and vice versa. However, it is Langdya who catches Mrs Deshpande and Dhamale-sir, the school principal, in a compromising position. This sets off a chain of events and the tables are turned in Landgya's favour. Fearing an expose, Dhamale-sir tells Langdya not to waste his time in Class 7 and allows him to appear for his matriculate exam, which he miraculously passes with 39%. Overnight, his limp becomes less prominent and he becomes the school principal's favourite student. Then, a casual comment by a local journalist becomes his mantra: "The marks you get in school have little relevance to life. What matters is how you fare in the school of life. That's what counts." Giving up all efforts to excel in school, the shrewd Langdya goes on to become a much-sought-after dalal or middleman in the corridors of power in Mumbai's Mantralaya. However, it is not his talent alone that leads to his meteoric rise. His unusual journey is facilitated by a tomcat called Latthya. A hitherto cat-hating Langdya, now known respectfully as Pitambar-ji, mysteriously begins to understand Latthya's meows, and the two develop a shared understanding. Latthya dutifully brings his master political gossip. He gets chicken and fish treats in return. With every turn of the page, Bojewar takes this social satire up a notch. He compares the politicians at Mantralaya with laboratory frogs in a school - of different sizes but when dissected their internal organs are the same. Nothing escapes the author's eye as he deftly outlines human and feline values and reminds readers how animals are a lot fairer in their dealings. Though both Langdya and Latthya are fixers, it is only Latthya who feels guilt when a line is crossed. In Mumbai, Latthya makes it a point to not mix too much as he doesn't want a cat to "propose to him". Ever since the death of the love of his life, Ghaari, he has taken an oath to remain single, and breaking oaths is "a human trait". It is difficult to read this novella with a straight face, and quiet chuckles soon give way to full-blown laughter. One such moment comes when Pandurang, a local MLA, lands a ministerial post thanks to Langdya and Latthya. Baffled by his new position, he asks Langdya, "What does this ministry do, Pitambar?" When a film delegation from Bollywood arrives to meet the minister, who, in his previous avatar, had owned grocery stores, he is smitten by an actor and compares her silky strands of hair to well-cooked grains of basmati rice that don't stick together. When a local Marathi film delegation visits the minister and raises key issues, most resulting from a lack of grants, he says, "All I can advise you is that if the shop doesn't make a profit, one must shut it down. If Marathi films don't make money, don't produce them. I can assure you that the government will not penalise you." Bojewar has been a journalist for 32 years, and has been writing political satire for 23 years. This novel, originally written in Marathi as Pavane Don Payancha Manus, which won the Baba Padmanji award, has been translated by Vikrant Pande. Pande has successfully retained the essence of the novel, which must have been a challenging task. Bojewar's prose is deceptively simple and unadorned and his understanding of the human and the feline worlds is riveting. A delightful read, One and Three Quarters is highly recommended....