I don’t know why I keep reading his stuff, I guess for the same reason that he keeps writing them – “ to keep yourself busy”. Of course for me I have to pay 95 rs to keep myself occupied. I am now thinking what else could I have got for that much amount which was actually worth the price. Anyways, I got the book for two reasons – first, I had read all of his works, “One night @ call centre”, “5 point someone” and “3 mistakes of my life”, and second and the more valid reason was that the cost of the book was so damn low and I needed something for the 2 hours flight journey.
The book is about 2 states, 2 set of people namely Punjabis and tamilians.. its based on his true life (of course, how much of it is true.. only they know). The story is good, I mean it always is, I have always loved Punjabis and would like to love Tamilians. When he wrote this, I guess he wanted it to be funny. Well, it isn’t. Some lines do manage to put a smile on your lips, which vanish the moment you jump to the next . The punch lines are so bad.. (he could have described the doctor’s office in a more humorous way – come on now, it’s a doctor’s office.. a heaven for people who are fond of cracking jokes about occupation, so is the psychiatrist’s couch which for readers’s sake should also have been more humorously put.. there are many many such situations which were lamely described..). Then there was the usual fun about Punjabis and Tamilians. Well, yeah yeah.. for me, someone not belonging to the above it was fun. You know, the joke is always good if its on the other side.. but then thesis has been written about Punjabis, joke books are incomplete without them, atleast the description of all those Punjabi cousins of his should have sent ripples down my stomach. But no, it didn’t.
The language of this book is so very simple, its like reading those short stories when you were in class 8 or something. Of course, here the short stories stretches to 269 pages, and you yourself have to buy it. But for all those Bhagat’s fan, it’s worth a read. And for me, a connoisseur of books, I guess this would the last time I shall be reading it. Unless of course he further slashes the price to 50rs. With his two books already been made into movies, it wont be long before this Punjabi-tamilian remix hits the box-office. Under the hands of good director, the film could actually do well.
And as for me, I better read more of “Shantaram-ish” type of books. Amen.
