Last week, when I was cleaning my studytable, I came across Pankaj Mishra’s Butter Chicken In Ludhiana, the author’s debut novel!!
The author writes about his unusual experiences when he travels in the small towns of India. He starts from Simla in Himachal Pradesh to Kotayyam in Kerala! The ’’signs’’ of progress which he notices, would definitely manage to bring a smile on your face.
He writes about Palatial houses, young businessmen with gold chains hanging around their necks and Hawaiian shirts and Marutis, overdressed guests at weddings who argue about the amount of dowry paid, the imitation industry which can provide almost every famous brand-name like Wrangler’s Jeans, Jurassic Park T-shirts, Chanel and Dior perfumes, Casio watches and Nikki shoes instead of Nike
’’Fast food’’ joints offer grated Amul cheese on white bread slice and a vegetable burger which comprised of a tikki between two slices of fruit-buns! A Rap singer from Lucknow had turned himself into a millionnaire and his most successful album was titled Main Bhi Madonna.
If you closely observe even the metros of India, you can make out that it is still in vogue! People still prefer Vada Pau over Burgers!!In the book he mentions the conversation of co-passengers and that adds to the humour!!
He manages to make you laugh by excerpts of the conversations between people like the three small-time businessman from Kanpur, holidaying in Kanyakumari, plan a sight-seeing tour of London and worry about their ’’English’’ and their ’’manners’’, and a teenaged girl from Jhansi cultivating her spoilt-girl looks and dreaming of making it big as a fashion model!!!
He has managed to bring satire even through the day to day conversations! Moreover, the literal translations of Hindi dialogues by the locals, like ’’Yeh saali videshi Chinese-Winese pasand nahin aati, apne ko desi maal hi chalta
hai’’ ’’I don’t like these foreign Chinese-Winese types, I am turned on only by Indian girls’’ are quite refreshing.
Conclusion
Though sometimes the book tends to be boring, it provides with loads of humour! I’m sure each and every page has a smile to offer!