As sheepishly mentioned before,I bought it with great enthusiasm hoping that I would read the book and enjoy Deepa Mehta’s movie better .For the uninitiated, read this
Now this idea was almost shelved, after many ifs and buts,I finally decided to give the 933 paged book a try .
The story begins with Roberts escaping from a maximum security prison in Australia and landing up in India,here begins his journey ,a fantastic,almost fictional tale(I would say so since his experiences are narrated superbly -quite hard to believe)
The central characters are strongly highlighted all throughout the book.Prabhaker-the naïve yet smart guide,Karla-the woman who stole Robert’s heart,Khader Bhai-the leader of the Bombay Mafia..All the characters are etched out beautifully and just blend with the backdrop of his tale .
Robert’s tale is inspiring,interesting and makes you look at India both in awe and disgust.With corruption,drugs,mafia and scandals galore it shows you the deep,dark Mumbai,yet the people at the slum,Prabhaker’s zest towards life and several other things bring about a smile to your face.
The book makes you laugh,cry,sympathize,worry,complain--A mixed bag of all emotions !
I was hooked on to the book thoroughly and thanks to Google images,I checked out what Roberts looks like..I was quite taken aback .I also saw the Leopold café that is the backdrop for most of the events occurring throughout the book .
Shantaram is the gripping tale of a man’s journey throughout Mumbai and his vast multitude of experiences. I am so eager to visit some of the places described in his work,that is the power of his narration .Roberts has mastered Hindi after his stay in India and also speaks Marathi !The novel was trashed twice after Roberts wrote it in prison.
I strongly recommend Shantaram to anyone who would be interested in getting a closer look at Mumbai- in its entirety.
Yes,the book can get quite a bit boring in between but it’s an experience in itself to finish the book.I was left craving for more,I wanted to know what happened to Roberts after his stay in Mumbai .Some sites tell me he has plans to write another book on what happened next in his life . Do give this book a try,you wouldn’t want to miss it :)
More recently,Gregory David Roberts was spotted at the LIFW on 30th March’08
