When her father’s unexpected death renders Disha homeless, she is brought to Kolkata by her father’s best friend, to live with them. Home is now a rambling joint family where there are more young men than Disha has even known in all her life. A far cry from the simplicity of her life back in Hamirpur, Disha sets about trying to fit in with the rhythms of this household and its members. And then she meets the second son and star of the family—Siddhant. Sid is the lead guitarist of the rock band, Derozio Dreams, and when he discovers that Disha is a classically trained vocalist, he brings her to his band to enhance their fusion repertoire. Music becomes their meeting ground and with Sid involving himself in her initiation into the band, they draw closer, to the chagrin of some family members, especially his mother, who thinks Disha, the outsider, has transgressed. When Disha’s elder sister wants her to come back to Hamirpur to be seen as a prospective bride for her husband’s cousin, Disha’s fate hangs by a slender thread. Will the promise of love and the music that Disha and Sid make together triumph over all odds?
REVIEW
I shall begin by complimenting the author's impeccable
knowledge of music. A couple of years back, I read ‘RASIA’ by Koral Dasgupta that taught me so much
about dance and now this book enlightens me about the numerous ragas. I envy
these Bangla women. Two things I know best about are –Cricket and Mathematics.
Almost everyone is an expert in the former and hardly anyone wants to know
about the latter. SIGH.
We had Music as a compulsory vocational subject in class
ten. We had all but one period a week and they used to give us grades that went
in our mark sheet. It was only the third week when my teacher told me not to
come to her class ever. I had learnt Arohan and Awrohan by then
and can sing it even today in my hoarse voice. Reading this book, I regretted
to have missed the opportunity to learn music a bit more.
Besides Music, the joint family, Sid-the protagonist is a
part of, impresses me. They disagree on
almost everything but they dwell together. It would have made no difference to
the story if the author showcased it as a nuclear family but I am glad, she chooses a joint family. Joint families yield so much just at the cost of a little bit of patience
and tolerance. Often, authors make such
choices instinctively and tend to find a justification afterwards same as she
chooses a British woman as the protagonist's mother who plays an undertone
villain and despite her veneer of refinement, she does no good except imparting
her complexion to her kids and English nicknames to every kid of the family.
Then comes the band -Derozio Dreams. Read the book and I
vouch, you would long to be a part of a Rock band yourself or at least yearn to
watch a Rock concert live. I do.
There are two remarkable aspects of this book- Music and
Writing.
'EVERGLOW' would have been a passable and flat love story
but for the chapters involving Music and concerts. The story appears more
lively and cheerful when the band-crew comes into the narration. Music has a
magical aura to enrich, enliven and buoy up everything.
The disciplined 'Point of View' in the first-person-narrative is commendable. Often, authors infiltrate the boundaries while
telling a story in the first person. The author restrained herself and didn't
hesitate to introduce new names and characters of the protagonist's family even
in the second half as and when the narrator is introduced to them.
The prose of Nandita Bose always has the tone of poetry
which coaxes the reader to go on and on even though the first twenty pages were
unfathomable. Even as she peruses the glorious but enigmatic equations of
relationships, her mind cannot escape the horrors of religion and
homosexuality.
Her authority over the language and rich vocabulary are
enviable. The adjectives are not clichéd. Dialogues are piercing. And, to top
that, her understanding of Man-Woman dynamics is subtle and though you may not
accept the psychology she imparts to her characters, you will feel curious to
know what they do next.
Sid outshines all other characters. He is depicted as a star
and appears so. He is spontaneous, flexible, responsible, dutiful and caring.
There are almost a dozen other male characters but no one comes close to him.
Nandita Bose certainly portrays male characters better than their counterparts.
Disha annoys me. She acts more than her age. She is
indecisive, uncertain, and hence vulnerable. Although she is from a small town
where even mobile phones do not work and she also confesses that her new home
has more young men she has ever known in all her life, she is easy-going with
boys and allows them to touch her, cuddle her, and embrace her without
inhibitions. She aspires so much but surrenders easily, allowing others to
decide every dawn of her life. I feel she is fortunate to have met Sid, whom
she calls annoying and intolerable. To me, she appears like the nightingale in
Vikram Seth's famous poem 'The Frog and the Nightingale'. She performs with
great panache on stage but her talent hardly makes her confident otherwise. I
will not call it characterization-glitch but, I feel sorry for her.
‘EVERGLOW’ is a brilliant read for the lovers of music and
literature.
'EVERGLOW' CAN BE BOUGHT...
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Thanks for your invaluable perception.