It’s been full 2 years that I’ve read Shantaram but I must confess that I’m still searching for a book which can give Shantaram a run for it’s money. To say for the least is this is an unbelievably amazing, gut-wrenching story, right from the starting few pages till the very end no matter if it is a good 900 pages and how much of it is actually biographical.
Anything that was associated with Mumbai & fiction always attracted me(the recent one being Maximum City), so when I read the gist of the story on the back cover it took me seconds to decide that I was on for some seriously good reading. All the more since I also had a train journey from Pune to Bhopal to cover the next day. I was sure that this is going to be a perfect companion for my journey.
The book’s narrative is a journey of author’s roller-coaster life. It begins with his escape from a jail in Australia and arriving in Mumbai with a fake passport and no plans for his future. He finds his friend in Prabhakar, a street guide and the city becomes his home. As the pages go by and narrative unfolds you begin to associate with Lin and his troubled past, and then how he becomes "Shantaram". Never had been reading a troubled man so effortless that you can actually relate to him or the characters around him. The flavour of Mumbai makes it all the more unique especially when someone from other country brings it to you.
All the characters are so well sketched that you actually become a part of them and so are the one-liners from them. Anyways sorry for writing this review so late. Go read, this irresistible literary masterpiece and wait n watch for Mr.Jhonny Depp portray this cult classic on the silver screen!