BOOK REVIEW-Till We Meet Again

BOOK REVIEW

                      Till We Meet Again

                                           -Shiabji Bose 



 
‘Ordinary people have extraordinary stories'- the blurb says. So true it is! 
The story is about the mundaneness of a lower-middle-class household. Their financial woes. The worries of the lone earning member to make children capable of battling the challenges that life poses and his lifelong sufferings to realise only two dreams- to erect a roof over head and to solemnise his daughter's marriage. His shoulders happily and selflessly carry the burden of all other lives. And, when he perishes suddenly, somebody has to take up his role. The quantum of responsibility remains the same irrespective of his capabilities. The bereaved family survives on the saving of the deceased father.  Constraints and worries are an inseparable part of such ordinary lives.

I maintain that the rich only know what life is but the poor understand what life is. The story equipped with the author's deep understanding of life subtly corroborates my belief. The intrinsic and detailed narration of the struggles of a family makes ‘Till We Meet Again' a good read.
'Till We Meet Again' (though I have inhibitions about the validity of the title for the story) is a promising attempt by the debutant author Shibaji Bose. 

Another thing about this story that kept me hooked to it is the protagonist choosing to become a hairstylist. I could relate to it as I have gone through the same. I am a mathematics teacher and when my son conveyed his desire to become a Cinematographer, I was in a fix. After a few sleepless nights, I weighed that my son's dreams are more important than the bizarre opinion of society. 

The narration is a bit unfathomable in the first few pages where extravagantly compound and complex sentences and needless rosy adjectives make reading tedious. The inexperience of the debutante might be the reason for it and the editor should have guided him. 
The letter addressed to the protagonist from the diseased father is the only astounding feature of the story in the first few pages.  The letter to which every father and every son can relate to earned the first applause for the author from the emotional reader in me. The writing improves gradually as the sentences become shorter. Writing a book is a journey and it was appeasing to see an author metamorphosing through his maiden voyage. 

I also felt some loopholes in characterisation. Aryan, the protagonist is ordinary in everything but is like a hermit. He is a dutiful son, a doting brother and a decent male who doesn't 'salivate' (borrowed from the author's diction) seeing women. I would have cherished some more humanly vices in him other than being an ordinary guy. 
Kavya impresses me as a character (not as a woman). Shibaji Bose has portrayed her as a worldly woman with believable traits. Although the revelation of her connivance against the protagonist came as a rude shock, I felt for her. Committing adultery by a wife to teach a lesson to her husband for hiding some wrong practice is indigestible but I accept it as the changing values and modernised institution of marriage. Surprisingly, the marriage survives after the wife's revenge. I had to console the reader in me when the story announced that the couple had united again because I had envisaged that the story would end with Aryan and Kavya tying knot. Alas! It doesn't happen. Uncertainty is one beautiful aspect of storytelling. Readers may not approve of the unthinkable turn the story takes but they always appreciate the author's extent of imagination to outthink them.

Be it Aryan's mother, or his sister- Rhea, be it Kavya, Reema or Priya, all the female characters in 'Till We Meet Again' are self-centred and ambitious. I felt a repressed disharmony and denigration in the author's portrayal of women. I am curious to know the reason for it. The author's rich vocabulary also impresses me.

THE LAST BALL SIX- REVIEW

THE LAST BALL SIX- REVIEW

A Racy, Hilarious Saga of a Mad, Mad Indian Cricket Fan

If cricket could be equated to religion, Tijinder Tuteja or Titu would automatically qualify as Devotee Number One. Period. Cricket was the elixir of life for him.

Over time, Titu gets addicted to T20 - the new, bang-bang variety of cricket. His favourite team is the Punjab Pulverizers and his god is Khoobraj Singh, the PP's acest batsman. In a bit of a stroke of luck, Titu wins a couples entry-pass to the final match of BPL - the Bharatiya Premier League - the T20 cricket tournament on the face of this earth... and the cherry on the cake is that PP are going to be playing HH - the Haryana Hounds.

It turns out to be quite a humdinger of a match - sending Titu's heart-rate and blood pressure soaring with each passing minute. He turns very pale and begins to perspire copiously. But so engrossed is he in the match that he doesn't feel the gnawing pain creeping up his chest until suddenly, he collapses in his seat and his heart stops beating. Horrified, Tilottama, his wife, let's out a scream of despair which promptly gets lost in the excited, unrelenting uproar all around them.

What happens then? Does cricket manage to, quite literally, kill its biggest fan? Or does cricket, with one, final, life-saving stroke of its bat, manage to redeem the life of its biggest patron ever?

Who wins this match of life and death? Find out!

                                                                          REVIEW

I don’t remember who introduced me to cricket but, I started playing with ‘Thapki’ the baton for beating clothes every household had before the washing machines became common and compulsory. Gradually, the addiction to cricket grew so much that I even slept with ‘Thapki’. I was six when I got my first bat after much persuasion- a fish cover with number 5 sticker. Even the shopkeeper tried to dissuade me saying that I was too small for a fish cover bat and that too so long.

My father was as strict as Mr Tuteja. Knowing that he would not allow me to play a match during examination days, I used to slip away before anyone in the house woke up. Needless to say what sort of welcome I used to get when I returned after playing. ‘THE LAST BALL SIX’ brought back all memories.

Delectable, with not a pinch of sorrow in it. Very Punjabi. Very 'Cricket-ish'. Simple. Unpretentious. Humourous. And, very relatable.

  

Pradeep Kapoor, after reading this book anyone can know why you are a successful paediatrician. You have such fetish for everything life is about- relationships, families, parenthood, love, adolescence, even womanhood and most subtly, the indispensable ingredient of happy living-Humour. Now, I know why in every pic you share, you always appear smiling even when you are not.

"Oh, you can smile after anything."           -Page 199.

As you read into this book, you realize and wonder what a devoted student of life the author is. The way he describes the Tuteja household is remarkable. You feel you are virtually living with that family. Gradually, you can assume reactions of the others when one of them says or does something even before reading further.

All the characters have been so well crafted that I felt I know them intrinsically.

The evolution of Indian cricket from naive participants to giants runs parallel to Titu's (Tijinder Tuteja, the protagonist) life. The author has given a detailed account of all the major cricketing events from 1971 to 2011. I won't comment on how essential these details were to the story, maybe, to portray Titu as a diehard cricket fan, but they sounded more of a hindrance to the story.

Everything about this story is so Punjabi. The author has chosen the names meticulously. They sound familiar and funny at the same time. Titu's marriage,  'phoopha ji' ke tantrums,  Mama's (the 'moonch' wali Helen) cabaret,  the 'Nagin' dance, the dancing getting 'frighteningly vigorous' just at the gate and not to forget the 'Milni' everything has been so vividly described that the words create a spectacle for you to relish.

The narration neglecting Titu's old parents in the last 50 odd pages pinched me. Sorry. I am too emotional to handle this slump.

This is a book for every Punjabi, every cricket buff and lovers of simple but relatable stories. It will make you smile, laugh and take you the allies of your childhood that time and life have mercilessly made blurred.

EVERGLOW- Book Review

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...

https://www.amazon.in/Everglow-Romance-Nandita-Bose

The MONK - My Review

                                                 

                                                         The MONK 

                                                                                    - My Review


The debutant author, Akshay Shroff makes a huge promise with 'The Monk'. The way he has handled the story spanning almost forty years is commendable. A reader will never feel that he has picked up a book by a first-timer.

Also, worth appreciation is his characterisation. He has done complete justice giving each of his many characters, their fair share, and frame. It's a real daunting task to deal with such large number of characters, especially when you are playing your maiden innings as an author.

I will not label 'The Monk' as a patriotic story as it is more of a personal revenge against the enemies of the country.

The extensive research Mr. Shroff has done is evident. Though it seems copy-pasted stuff, it proves to be an integral part of the story ( although he could have cut them short as the italicised details tend to bore the readers sometimes and shifts the focus ), he has apprised the readers with details of every terror attack right from the 1993 serial bomb blasts in Mumbai to the mass killing in 2007.He educates the readers about the history of Taj hotel, the Temple-Mosque (Babri) strife, the Kashmir issue, the killing of Osama-Bin Laden by the US and every real incident around which he has knitted his story, profoundly and convincingly. It's a real art to weave a fictitious saga joining the threads of series of actual events. I congratulate the author for doing it so well.

The author has exploited the experience of his age and a long stint in the economic capital of India. It seems he knows every nook and corner of the big city. He flaunts it with dexterity in his book. Everything, be it the fondness of Mumbaikers for cricket, the food joints, life in police quarters, the-city-never-sleeps culture, the Police-Builder nexus, he has described to perfection. It speaks volume about the layers of evil sediments every common man gathers, some to ignore it and some, to say it as Mr. Shroff has done. 

'The Monk' is not a whisper but a shout to the 'Akkas' of terrorism that blood of common Indian boils every time they try to unsettle us with a misdeed.

Well done Akshay Shroff. My best wishes to you for your future endeavours. Keep writing.