The Buddha Of The Brothel by Kris Advaya (Book Review: 4*/5) !!!

1627th BLOG POST -->>

I am just done reading the book with one of the most interesting titles “The Buddha of the Brothel” written by the debutante, Kris Advaya. The title and the cover page of the book, both are enough interesting to not let you pick it up. The book took me more than a week to complete because of the author’s style of writing English and narrating the story. This is the first time when I have read such kind of a narration of a story which could have been written in a simpler language. I found it little tough but the readers into English authors will love reading this book.

The story is said to be true and author’s own tale but the way this non-fictional plot is given a fictional narration and styling speaks about the skill the author has. Initially, it is quite tough to get into the flow of the story but once you get used to author’s writing style, you will start enjoying the tale. I believe that author could have edited the book a little more as I found several plots repeating itself in the first half of the book which makes it quite boring for the reader.

The characterization is nicely done and the best part about author’s style of narrating the conversation between two characters is incredible where he uses less dialogues and more emotional verdicts. This book is full of emotions, self-realizations, confusions, love, lust, belongingness, helplessness etc. Every emotion is nicely projected by the author which directly touches the reader’s heart. This book is unique in its very own way. I give it 4* out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

I Owed You One by Madhu Vajpayee (Book Review- 3.75*/5) !!!

1626th BLOG POST -->>

I am finally done reading Dr. Madhu Vajpayee’s 2nd book named “I Owed You One”. The book is published by Lifi publications and consist of almost 260 pages. Being a female, authoress have chosen to write the book in first person for a male protagonist. Nowhere while reading can you guess that the book is not written by the same gender considering how the authoress have managed to get a male protagonist’s emotions right. The book is very dark as it’s about a boy who has suffered all his life due to his father’s cold attitude towards him and his mother. And that particular thing leads to one and other events in life which does not leave him till a long time.

Madhu’s writing style is very intriguing and impresses the reader with the first chapter itself. The timelines in the book is nicely managed which does not confuse you because of several characters and multiple twists and turns. As this book is more about the emotional journey of a boy, authoress has very nicely captured all of them. You will be able to relate with the character and his pain. The good thing about the book is that it keeps changing its plot every 30-40 pages in the first 60% of the book while the rest 40% is about one particular plot that is been discussed. All the characters are treated very well and you won’t find any character disappeared at all after a point of time.

The pre-climax does get little slow and uninteresting as the story gets stuck at a particular instance and could not grow due to the limitations in the plot written by the writer. But the climax is ended well without making the book seem incomplete. Though I expected a lot from the story the way the first half was going but second half is little boring when compared to that. Overall, the book’s narrative is very poetic and you can feel the emotions throughout. I give this 3.75* out of 5. 

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

Review: Padman: Another feather in Akshay Kumar's hat! ***½

1625th BLOG POST -->>

Seeing Akshay Kumar’s movies are a delight these days. When we wanted to see something else in 90s except romance, he presented us with action movies and entertained. When in 2000s after Govinda lost his charm and audience were hungry to watch some good comedy movies, he emerged out with some epic comedy genres which have repeat values. And now in this era when there is no one who makes films on patriotism and social issues, Akshay Kumar is delivering movies back to back on the same concept winning audience’s heart.

His latest release, Padman, is another movie which is made on a very sensitive issue of women’s menstrual hygiene. Living in cities, the urban citizens do not even know the kind of lives the women in the not so prominent areas of the country lives. The movie discusses how the wife of Lakshmi has to stay out of house for the 5 days of her periods which he does not like. He tries his best to make his wife agree to use sanitary pads but all his efforts go into vain. Later on, he tries to explain other women in his village but in return gets snubbed and humiliated. And this makes his resolve to make the lives of women easy by producing sanitary pads himself so that it is available easily at affordable costs.

The movie has flaws in its screenplay but irrespective of that, the way the writers have tried to make the message reach the audiences without sounding vulgar or disrespectful towards the women is commendable. Also, the dialogues are entertaining which keeps the humour and seriousness alive in the movie in right proportions. The music is not so excellent in the movie and almost all the songs are forgettable. The movie also becomes repetitive at times with the same thing being discussed again and again. The climax is very well executed. Talking about the performances, above everyone, Sonam Kapoor is the surprise package of the movie and every frame in which she is, she brightens the screen. Her role is very well written and she executes in the best possible manner. Akshay Kumar, as always, makes the audience laugh, smile, cry and weep with him. Radhika Apte is also apt in her role but does not have very much to impress the audiences.

Overall, the movie is a perfect one-time watch and you should go to watch with your family. That’s the essence of the movie. I give it 3.5 stars out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!

Let Me Go by Shriram Iyer (Book Review- 4*/5) !!!

1624th BLOG POST -->>

There are plenty of books upon love and friendships in the Indian market but very few are able to generate emotions among readers. I am just done reading another book based on the same genre written by Shriram Iyer named “Let Me Go”. The book also has the tagline which says “To Friendship… With Love”. By the title, I had termed this book as another cheesy stuff by an Indian author but after completing the same, I am surprised by the fact that this is one of the best books I have read which is purely based on the concept of deep friendship along with a backdrop of a love story.

Shriram Iyer’s writing style is very intriguing which involves the reader and enables him/her to concentrate on the story without getting distracted with uselessly added difficult words or over-exaggeration of not-so-important events in the book. The author keeps the focus on the story itself and gives the backdrop of each instance in such a perfect manner that you won’t feel that you have joined the story through this book but feel as if you were already a part of the story. The characterization is very nicely done where each character is given undue importance which makes you understand each one of them completely.

The way different timeline of 2-3 decades is presented tells how skilful the author is. The way book provides twists and turns and also manages to sustain small suspenses keep the interest of the reader and makes this book a perfect page-turner. The climax is also very nicely handled and justifies the long story perfectly. Talking about the drawbacks of the book, I would say that the story is quite predictable at times and thus, makes the whole purpose of those long chapters null. But overall, talking about the book, do read it for the emotions that it displays through words and scenes that can take you in the world of imaginations and empathy. I give this book 4 star out of 5.

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

Let's have Coffee by Parul A. Mittal (Book Review- 3*/5) !!!

1623rd BLOG POST -->>

There are few authors whom you have seen progressing in the field of writing since their 1st book itself. Parul A. Mittal is one such author whom I am following since her first book itself. I am just done reading her latest book “Let’s Have Coffee”.  By the name, it sounds as if the book is very casual in terms of story but I must say the story has enough ingredients to keep you interested. Parul’s writing style is still very friendly that makes it easy for readers to understand the pace of the story and thus, complete reading the book in a single sitting itself. 

The writing style of Parul is very natural and you can feel the ease with which she pens down her stories. The book starts describing how two individuals meet in a wedding where surprisingly, their respective ex-es are getting married to each other. This is quite undigestible but the authoress takes the plot ahead in a very interesting manner where these two individuals start showing interest in each other i.e. Meha and Samir. Later on, Meha comes to know that Samir has been using her for his own writing project and her heart breaks. Co-incidentally, both of them meet each other again after years in a wedding. The story is totally Bollywood-ish and anyone who loves Hindi films’ drama will love this book. 

The book is edited very well without overly describing small incidents or segments. Authoress has kept her story focused on the characters and maintained the same very well. Talking about the drawbacks of the story, I would say that it’s quite predictable and to make the story sound very fancy, authoress has written some parts which are hard to related with reality. But overall, the book is a nice read which you will enjoy once for sure. I give this book 3* out of 5. 

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

The Malhotra Bride by Sundari Venkatraman (Book Review- 3.5*/5) !!!

1622nd BLOG POST -->>

I remember the two authors from Fingerprint! Publication often, Anita Shirodkar and Madhuri Iyer. They write stories about super-rich families of India and their tales are so apt that you can’t leave the book without completing the story. I picked another book from the same publishers written by Sundari Venkatraman named “The Malhotra Bride”. The book carries the same essence as the two authors’ books I mentioned above hence I enjoyed reading this book a lot. The best part about this book is that it has been edited well keeping it up to the mark without useless segments between the story. The book is of 222 pages which you can easily finish within few hours in a single sitting. 

The narration of the story is perfect which keeps you excited in knowing what happens in the next page. The writing style of the author is very simple which makes it easy for the reader to complete the book in a sitting. The characterizations in the story is nicely done where each character is different from the other and each of them is treated equally well without ignoring for some other character. Thee book speaks about the concept of Arrange Marriages in India where the sons and daughters aren’t asked if they wish to marry a person or not and forcibly matched with the person of the parent’s choice. Author has very well put lights on this topic and made the reader understand how idiotic it is and how tough it becomes for the children to agree for such marriages. 

Though the book is silly when the contractual marriage is talked of but the way this particular thing is mentioned at right points makes this book more interesting. The way both these characters couldn’t get through with each other initially and how they start falling just before marriage is very nicely written. The way the contractual marriage topic comes in the story just after the marriage gives the book a nice twist which engages the reader more with the book. The pre-climax and climax is again apt for this book. It is a nice read overall and author has done a commendable work for sure. I give this book 3.5* out of 5. 

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

"I'm an Average Looking Boy… Will You Be My Girlfriend?" by Roopesh Kumar (Book Review- 3*/5) !!!

1621st BLOG POST -->>

There was a time some 7-8 years ago when people liked the books written by Durjoy Datta because it took you in a world where you could feel yourself sitting in between of a college or school and watching all the boys and girls around you hooking up with each other. It took you to a world of fantasy where romance and sex used to overpower your emotions and feelings. I recently completed reading a book the title of which is somewhat how Durjoy’s books used to have “I’m an Average Looking boy … will you be my girlfriend?” written by Roopesh Kumar. The title of the book is quite cheesy which author should have avoided because it’s hard for readers to share the name of the book with anyone and also feels shy in letting anyone know the name of the book he/she is reading. 

The narration of the story is very nicely managed by Roopesh in his very first book itself which tells that he is ready to write many more books getting better with each of them. The story of the book is also engrossing which keeps you interested as you want to know what happens with each of the characters. The author has included lot of characters in the book which makes it even harder to give equal justice to each of them but he manages to take all the characters ahead in the story. This book is very good for the audience who are either in junior college or just joined their Graduation course as they will find it relatable. 

Author has tried discussing many social elements too. There are parts in the book where author discusses some segments which is hard to believe as generally, such things are not possible in reality. E.g. a girl’s father accepting the baby she produced before marriage, a wife giving divorce to her husband within 6 months itself because she comes to know about his husband’s love story etc. These narratives make the book look silly in intervals otherwise it’s an interesting stuff to read. I give this book 3* out of 5. I am looking ahead to Roopesh Kumar’s next book. 

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

Scent of an Undiscovered Writer by Callre (Book Review- 2*/5) !!!

1620th BLOG POST -->>

The biggest risk as a reader is to pick up a debutante’s book of an Indian writer. This time I picked up a book having a very unique title as “Scent Of An Undiscovered Writer”. It is written by Abhishek Mohta under the pen-name of “Callre”. The book is published by Notion Press and is of around 240 pages. The name of the protagonist is the name of the author himself and while reading the book, I felt that I am reading author’s own autobiography itself. Many a times, a person believes that his story is very interesting and worth sharing and those interested in writing, scribble it down and self-publish the same. But the kind of thrilling books getting published these days, it is very hard to attract readers with such autobiographical stuff. 

This book does not carry a story as such but timeline of life of the protagonist divided into different chapters. Thee book is written in a very simple English language. This book is strictly for readers from small towns or who aren’t very much exposed to English language because it carries a lot of grammatical and spelling mistakes. It will not go very well with the avid readers. Also, the book consists of lots of conversation and it is written so plainly where many of them directly gets over with a person saying “Okay”. Few conversations are interesting to read but mainly, it is not quite appealing. 

This book is sort of personal diary of the author and hence, it could not interest me as the book does not have focus of any particular thing. The characters are not very deeply discussed in the book and introduction of new characters keeps on happening which doesn’t let the reader get connected with any of them. Few chapters are totally out of the line and I could not understand why are they even part of this book. Overall, I would say that the book needed lot of work and I hope that author will bounce back with his 2nd book after going through the kind of books getting published in Indian market these days. I rate this book 2 stars out of 5. 

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!! 

I Tagged Her in my Heart by Anuj Tiwari (Book Review- 3*/5) !!!

1619th BLOG POST -->>

Though the Indian readers are currently trying different genres but how much the reading tastes might change, the books on love and romance will always have its audience and there is a certain target audience in which the books will surely do well. Getting into the readers’ favorite list in India is very tough where 1000s of books are getting published each day, surprisingly. Anuj Tiwari has been one such writer who has managed to thrill his audience since his debut work. I am just done reading his 4th book- “I tagged her in my Heart”. Reading the title of the book it suggests that the story must be having some connection with the Social media but it is nowhere related to that. 

Anuj Tiwari’s writing style is similar to how he had narrated his story in this 3rd book named “It’s not right but it’s okay”. The positive for Tiwari’s fans is that his command over the English language has improved in multiple folds. Even the narration of this book is a bit better than his previous book. The way author has been able to integrate so many characters in the book is applaudable as maintaining each of them with the continuity of the story is not that easy. Though, personally, I felt that author did not handle each character that effectively and ignored most of them while concentrating only on few of his favorite ones. Also, I believe that few characters are given too much focus in the 1st half while another sect of characters are given importance in the 2nd half which makes it difficult for the readers to connect with any of them except Adrika. 

Author promotes his book with the character of Dimpy aunty but I think the character is not very well-managed. It could have been better. This book is said to be one of the inspiring stories but I believe that leaving the pre-climax and climax, the book cannot be sectored into the “inspirational books” genre. Talking about the plot of the story, the book starts slowly in the beginning but takes a very good pace in the middle which asks readers to continue turning pages and know what happens next. The book is basically portraying the power of relationships that one maintains in life and does very good in making the thought reach the reader’s mind. I believe that the book could have been 15-20 pages less as author has elaborated the break-up of one couple a lot in middle pages. Overall, this book is not as good as “It’s not right but it’s okay” but still matches Anuj Tiwari’s style. I rate it 3 stars out of 5. 

Thanks.

ABHILASH RUHELA!!!