First Impression
BY SUCHITRA BEHAL
Once Upon a Timezone; Neelesh Misra; Harper Collins; Rs 195.
REMEMBER the adage: "Oh what a tangled web we weave; when first we practise to deceive". Bear it in mind when you read this slim little book that takes you into the hearts and minds of a generation fed on McDonald's, chips and ketchup.
Neel Pandey's only aim in life is getting to the land of milk and honey that beckons those hoping to jump out of their boring existence in the dry and dusty heart of India. But even as his dream seems to take shape, an irate visa officer at the American Embassy dashes Pandey's hopes to the ground.
Rocky Randhawa, who specialises in sending people abroad, approaches Pandey. Affronted by his dubious offer, Pandey turns it down and joins a call centre where he shrugs of his Indian identity and name and becomes Neil Patterson.
But his conversation with an American customer and subsequent friendship with her leads once again to dreams of America. Events lead him once again to Rocky Randhawa, who comes up with a foolproof plan to get Neel into America.
Rocky and his gang carry out their audacious entry, but little does Neel realise that the woman he loves has deceived him. As the two try and sort out their "true lies", romance flowers.
A series of skirmishes follow Neel and his girlfriend till they accept each other for who and what they are.
The book captures the essence of relationships in a family — a mother's thwarted ambition, a husband's domination and a father's insistence on having his children live the way he would have them.
Though some of the characters are well sketched out, the element of verbosity could well have been avoided. Even so, this slim volume makes for interesting reading.
Endless Rain; Meera Arora Nayak; Penguin; Rs. 295
KASHIR to its inhabitants; Kashmir to us. As its people struggle to combat violence that has become part of their lives, Meera Arora Nayak's book captures the essence of their ordinary everyday existence, telling in graphic detail about the nuances, customs and rituals that control their lives and sometimes destinies.
Here is a strange but compelling story of one such family to whom finally is born a male child after many daughters. Even as the old grandfather rejoices in his birth, ordering his son to prepare the feast and slaughter at least two goats, fate decrees quite something else for the little boy.
Just as the father and grandfather begin to recite the name of Allah into the ear of the baby, there is a broadcast on the radio informing the people of Kashmir that India has declared ceasefire against Pakistan, thus ending years of hostility, terror and violence. The boy's father — reacting sharply to this piece of news — utters the words of war into the little baby's ears. Aghast, the grandfather lives with a fear of the unknown as to what this breach may portend for the boy.
And, despite all attempts, the little boy grows up different to either of his sisters or his friends. His life seems to be riddled with burdens that he is unable to comprehend or forget. The biggest and most complex of these is his uneasy relationship with his eldest sister. Both sister and brother share a secret that no family member knows. Looking for peace the boy finally takes a decision that changes not only his home but also the way the people of his land live.
Arora Nayak writes with compassion about a people torn by violence and grief and makes a telling commentary on a generation that lives in confusion and no hope.
Cat O' Nine Lives; Jeffry Archer; Pan Macmillan; £2.99.
WHEN Jeffery Archer was jailed for two years, apart from taking regular walks, he continued to write. This is a collection of his short stories — many of them based on the lives and tales of his co-prisoners. Archer has, of course, changed the names, but retained the essence of everything he heard in those two years. Some have a bizarre and twisted ending and others leave the reader with a sense of surprise and there is the Archer touch.
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