‘The Last City’: A Science Fiction Novel

At a time when Telugu writers and litterateurs are lamenting about their work not getting translated into other languages, Dr. Madhu Chittarvu, an established sci-fi writer published his latest novel, ‘The Last City – After the AI Apocalypse’ directly in English. Dr. Chittarvu is a well-known exponent of this genre, which has a limited, but niche readership in Telugu.

The premise chosen for any sci-fi writing creates the context and helps to build the ambience and the look and feel  of the narrative. More importantly, the premise should be rational, convincing and plausible enough for the reader to readily accept the state of ‘Suspension of Disbelief,’ making way for subsequent explorations in an imagined world of fantasy and adventure.

In the case of this novel, the premise is a nuclear holocaust triggered-off in the Indian sub-continent. The catastrophe is set-off by nuclear warheads launched as a result of a false threat-perception by Artificial Intelligence (AI) that regulates the missile launch system. This unfortunate, but credible chain reaction that has global ramifications is the opening gambit of the novel. The author successfully pulls it off and launches forth on to the ‘Leap of Faith’ – into the unknown and unexplored world of post-apocalyptic India.  He succeeds in taking the reader along, into a disturbing world of destruction, decay and scattered attempts at revival of a lost world.

As the novel unfolds, it explores the eternal theme of ‘conflict between good and evil.’ In this case, the confrontation is between a democratically elected Prime Minister and a malicious army General who is determined to usurp power at any cost. In the wake of the devastation unleashed by nuclear weapons, the struggle to wrest power from the General and restore democracy is led by the PM’s daughter Asha, who is endowed with access to the AI-enable robot, Indrani. The reach of the omniscient robot Indrani stands out as the most elaborately etched character in the novel. Re-capture of Indrani’s digital world in Asha’s brain and the repercussions thereof catapult the novel to a higher level.

The author successfully connects the dots that represent the motley resistance groups from across India that eventually succeed in ending the General’s evil regime. As ‘The Last City,’ Hyderabad, is revived by valiant efforts of the resistance groups. As the city limps back to relative normalcy, the novel ends with dreams and aspirations about possible migration of the human race to a newer planet.

The author’s attempt to cover such a wide canvas in a novel of less than two hundred pages spreads the storyline too thin. On the whole, this is a readable novel that engages the reader and throws light on a number of recent scientific developments – especially the AI.

The writing could have done with another round of copy-editing. The best part of the novel is that it happens in India – mostly in Delhi and Hyderabad. In that sense, it may not be an exaggerated claim to say that the book represents an attempt to put India on the world map of sci-fi writings.

‘The Last City – After the AI apocalypse’ – A novel by Dr. Madhu Chittarvu. Published by Notion Press. 194 pages, Rs. 249. Available in Amazon: https://www.amazon.in/dp/B0D9P45ZJK