I have been looking for a good Indian writer who writes with honesty, about life in contemporary India. A sensible urban story, not chick-lit, not Bollywood wannabe script. I read two books recently and I am sorry to say that the search still continues.
"Tread softly" by Nandita Bose is the story about Paroma, a small-town girl who finds herself marrying the older step-brother of the intended groom and finding herself in Kolkata in an unusually hostile home. She starts off as a typical "sati savitri" trying to put the house in order, cooking, cleaning, being a good "wife" in spite of not sharing the bedroom with Abhinn, her distant husband. Mamun, the spinster aunt constantly berates Paroma for being the stereotypical backward woman whom Abhinn was brought up to abhor. Even on her deathbed, the aunt engineers the proximity of the beautiful Geetika who willingly gravitates into her beloved nephew's arms. Paroma is a bundle of contradictions as she watches the drama, wanting to escape it while fearing the consequences if she returns to her parents home. But that does not seem to stop her from distancing herself from Abhinn, blinded by her self-righteousness. She leaves only to return, assuming Abhinn will help her establish a bookstore in his home, put up a facade of a normal marriage when her father shows up while she holds no such responsibility towards him. The second half of the book drags on with repeated instances of people stepping in and out of their lives. The dialog between the couple is regressive sometimes and plain illogical most of the time. Paroma argues well with Abhinn but is unable to sustain a life on her own. Abhinn is the good husband who is unable to get through to his wife. What a long winded story until the final expected ending!
The author has created layered characters but they don't seem to generate much sympathy in the reader. Parts of Paroma's character seem incoherent like much of the dialog. Abhinn is a wimpy goody goody character, sweet and difficult to digest.
No comments:
Post a Comment