A Case of Exploding Mangoes is fiction, but one cannot be faulted for tracing its genesis. How do you respond to reviewers bent on filling in the historical context of your novel?
I think one shouldn’t respond to reviewers. Also, a writer can’t really tell people how to read what he has written. I have written a novel but if someone reads it as history, that is fine by me. It was suggested to me that I should at least change the names of some of the characters. But I was too lazy to do that.

Your research is very detailed.
I read a couple of memoirs by former Pakistani generals, but those were quite useless. I visited a few websites about plane crashes, but mostly I just made it up as I went along. I did try some serious research once: I registered with an open forum run by retired US air force types to get some technical details about aviation procedures. Within minutes I was the target of so much abuse that I felt like the son of Osama. I hadn’t realised that I had registered under my first name. I gave up on research after that.

Could generals Mirza Aslam Beg and Akhtar Abdur Rahman have been involved in the ‘conspiracy’?
It would be preposterous to think so. There is no Mirza Aslam in the novel, [There is a character who is just called General Beg, and seems a bit too close to the real-life Beg.] and I have only borrowed General Akhtar’s name. I am absolutely sure that none of them could have been involved. If I knew who was involved, I would not have resorted to writing fiction.

... contd.