DARJEELING, 15 Jun: Writer, director and producer Sujit Kumar Singh, an alumnus of St Joseph’s School, North Point, Darjeeling, has released his latest novel, The Hostage, a fast-paced thriller published by Nu Voice Press and distributed across India by Penguin Random House India.

The novel tells the story of a man who walks into a south Delhi bank with a bomb strapped to his chest, triggering a tense five-hour hostage crisis in which a group of strangers must uncover a hidden conspiracy before time runs out.

For Singh, the release marked another milestone in a creative journey that began in the hills of Darjeeling.

At just 17, he wrote Saakar Sapnay, the first major Hindi theatrical production in the 135-year history of North Point School.

What began as a school play eventually led to a career spanning radio, television, film, documentaries, music programming, and publishing.

After moving to Mumbai in 2002, Singh became one of the pioneering voices of private FM radio, creating popular properties for Radio City 91 FM, including ‘Popat’, ‘Babbar Sher’, and ‘Santa Banta Pvt Ltd’. He later built a successful television career, working across fiction, documentaries, reality programming, and film-based shows.

Among his notable achievements are bringing Aamir Khan to television through the acclaimed Star Gold special Rang De Basanti: Salaam, pioneering the adaptation of television franchises into feature-length telefilms, and creating the acclaimed docu-drama Abhayanand: The Cop with a Chalk, which later inspired filmmaker Prakash Jha’s feature film Pareeksha.

While The Hostage represents a departure into high-stakes suspense, Singh’s literary work also includes A Handful of Clouds, an emotional father-son road novel set against the backdrop of Kolkata, North Sikkim, and Darjeeling.

Padma Shri awardee Anand Kumar, founder of Super 30, praised the novel, saying, “This novel reminded me of my own father. The father-son bond is so real and deeply moving.”

Acclaimed writer Akhilesh Jaiswal, known for Gangs of Wasseypur, described The Hostage as “an exceptionally well-written thriller” that he “couldn’t put down.”

Singh is currently working on his next novel, a supernatural thriller set in the mist-covered hills of Darjeeling and adapted from one of his original screenplays.

The Hostage is available on Amazon and at leading bookstores across India.