Amit Verma was one of my favorite columnists when he was writing for Mint, and his blog India Uncut is probably the only blog that I have been reading regularly for the last five years. So when his debut novel came out I knew I would be reading it even if it’s not the kind of book I normally read.
I’m glad I did. This was one of the funniest, most poignant, stories I have read.
It’s the story of a journalist who gets what should be a dream assignment. A long profile of an encounter victim, and his life. To get started he meets with his daughter Muneeza, who was nicknamed Sancho by her father. She talks to him about her and her father’s life. I’m not going to say more because its probably best to come to the story with few expectations on where it will lead.
Its short, I finished it in 2 sittings, the first time I got about 20 minutes into it on a weeknight. And than on Sunday evening I picked it up at about 7pm and by 930 I was finished. It’s a quick read which will appeal to readers who don’t like the epic books. It is however not a simple book. The story hits on class, caste, religion, globalization, urbanization, mall culture, journalism, the media, freedom and so many other things. Abir and Muneeza are fully fleshed out three dimensional characters, there is a naturalness to their meetings that I’ve found rare. The Police Inspector is also a very interesting character, and I like how Abir comes to really understands this guy. The final important character in the book is Bombay. Amit Verma does a fantastic job of showcasing the city, both its frustrations and its promise.
I highly recommend this book.