'60 minutes'- Corporate Thriller by Upendra Namburi-Book Review

60 minutes is a fast paced corporate thriller, written by Upendra Namburi involving 2 major FMCG firms and lots of people with great business acumen coupled with bitter rivalry, cunning thoughts and execution abilities that seek to outsmart each other.

I finished reading “60 minutes” in 3 nights. Book gives detailed insights into the operations of FMCG companies- how their marketing plans work, how sales & distribution works and so on.

Brief overview of the plot:

Agastya, CMO of an international FMCG giant has a major product launch due in another 60 minutes. But minute by minute, a series of developments unfold, throwing out of gear not just the launch, but also his career and personal life. Fierce competition from rival firm, an affair going terribly wrong and unforgiving nature of corporate politics is making situation tense- heads could roll, crores could be lost and recovering from it all just doesn't seem to be possible.

But Agastya is no ordinary man. He wouldn't have been in his seat of CMO if he weren't smart thinker and executioner. So what does he do to come out of the crisis? Will the bets pay off or does he end up succumbing to the crisis?

Book reinforces that everything is fair in love, war and corporate battle for supremacy. Ethics and integrity aren't always the merits. One needs lots of tactics to outsmart the competition, defend ones position and cover his/her back. Friends and foes can swap positions in matter of minutes when money, job, reputations are at stake.

Key information about the book:

• Title: 60 minutes
• Author: Upendra Namburi
• Publishers: Westland
• Genre: Fiction
• ISBN 978-93-84030-24-7
• Pages: 361
• MRP:  Rs 350 (Available on flipkart for Rs 200 as of now)

In the first chapter it wasn't very clear why Maithili was trying to commit suicide. But we get clearer picture as the story progresses. It was also not clear how she found out about Priyanka and Agastya.

Though it appeared to be a 60 minute event, every now and then incidents of past are introduced. So end to end story does take couple of years in total duration, though plot seem to suggest it begins and ends in 60 minutes. The flashbacks are not in chronological order, but are based on the specific incidents which serve as background for some of the current developments. Some names of real companies & brands- Pepsi, Gillette are used in the book.

The way story ends, it looks like a sequel is in the cooking, with a plot centered around China. Let us wait and see.

A slightly more competitive price, something around of Rs 250 MRP could have made this book even more tempting to buy. Nevertheless, book is discounted heavily on flipkart and priced at around Rs 200, so it is still a decent buy.

I've ordered the other book by Upendra Namburi- titled '31', for Rs 140 on flipkart. Should be a good read.

Cover Image from Author's website, http://www.upendranamburi.com/. You can check more about the author here.

Other Corporate Thrillers: Business Doctors * Incredible Banker *

Other recent book reviews: Mouse Charmers * 2 States * Dada * RIP * Chapter Eleven * Dinner date * Never Mind Yaar * Kashi  *