Mumbai, Nov 1: This Desi Sherlock Holmes hailing from Palghar, in Thane district of Maharashtra has claimed to have busted more than 80,000 cases since she first donned the detective's hat.  Rajani Pandit, aka desi Sherlock began her work as a private detective when she was merely 22-years-old.

As a child, Pandit loved reading mystery and spy novels. She once took it upon herself to investigate cheap counterfeit merchandise that was circulating in local markets, and successfully located the source.

She studied Marathi literature at Ruparel College in Mumbai where she first became interested in detective work when, in 1983, she investigated a classmate who was involved in prostitution. Concerned about her classmate's behaviour - and afraid that the girl was being "taken advantage of" by others - Pandit informed the girl's parents. When this was not enough, Pandit proceeded to gather photographic evidence, which convinced her classmate's father to take action.

Although her father initially expressed skepticism at her desire to become a detective, Pandit's mother supported her in the endeavor.

After college, Pandit worked as an office clerk, but this changed after she agreed to help a colleague in need. The woman had noticed that money was going missing from family accounts, and she suspected her daughter-in-law might be the culprit - but had no proof. Pandit patiently tracked the daily schedules of all the woman's family members, and discovered that the youngest son was the true thief. This was her first paid case as a private investigator, and it motivated her to put her skills to use on a more regular basis.

Pandit then set up an office in Mahim, Mumbai and, by 2010, employed a staff of 30 detectives and was handling about 20 cases a month.

A Facebook page called 'Humans of Bombay' had also recently featured the story of Rajani Pandit, a desi woman spy.

In a Facebook post on social media which went viral, Pandit recalls her early days when she was working as an office clerk for a woman who was fed up with frequent instances of theft at her home. Inspired by her father who worked in the CID, she offered to investigate the thefts and ended up solving the case. Soon enough, she was branded 'the first female detective in India' by media channels and newspapers.

The most interesting part of her Facebook post was when she talks about what she describes as her toughest case - one that involved a double murder and required her to go undercover as a maid to solve it.

"For 6 months, I went undercover as a maid to live with the woman who was suspected of being the murderer," says Pandit.

Rajani says she is "married to her job" and she never felt the need to start a family. She's won countless awards, featured on news channels and has also got some threats here and there!

The netizens love her entire tale of courage. The post so far has gained 1,631 shares (and still counting). Comments praising her bravery have surfaced over the post.