Atulya Mahajan, in his debut book, has written quite a hilarious account of experiences of two boys: Akhil Arora from Delhi and Jaspreet (Jassi or Jazz) from Punjab. The two protagonists are diametrically opposite of each other, and as fate would have it, they end up as room mates. There's little bit of romance and fun, to add spice to this chronicle of Akhil and Jassi's lives.
Mahajan himself had studied in the same university and this appears to be a first hand account of his experiences, the people he interacted with, accommodation, food, studies, recreation and more. The book also portrays human tendencies and cultures of the races very well - the Punjabi mother sobbing over her son's decision to go to Amreeka (America), the Bengali father of Akhil's girl friend being obsessed about fish and literature, the showing off by parents who think their son is doing well abroad. You may be either Punjabi or Bengali, or seen one from close distance - you would be able to relate immediately!
Amidst all the fun, Mahajan also clarifies some of the impressions we tend to have about life in America.
Overall, its a good and light read. 3 out of 5 stars from me.
Pretty good review. Was looking for some light reading. Will give this a try.
ReplyDelete@Ramakant,
ReplyDeleteMaybe its not a good book to own.. but its good for a casual read, yes.