This is the upteenth novel written upon the Babri Masjid-Ayodhya communal riots, yet absolutely unique in theme and plot. The story line revolves around the mysterious murder of a 24 year old American social worker in the backdrop of the riot. The ingenious narrative techniques allow the readers to peek into the events that lead to the riot, murder and its aftermaths. Shashi Tharoor experiments with narrative threads like journals, interviews, letters, poems, diary entries, newspaper cuttings and monologues and transforms the otherwise worn-out theme n cheesy love story into a brilliant work of art. Superb !
Nila a Bengali, ditched by her lover, marries a Punjabi restauranteur and settles in Paris. Soon she leaves her incompatible hubby and is on her own in the 'city of love'. She goes through a series of cultural shocks and even a bit of lesbian adventure. A brief trip to India finds her motherless and an alien in her own native place. She comes back to Paris and falls for a Frenchman but ends their torrid affair when she realizes that her lover is in love with himself. Thus she frees herself from all shackles and is on her own again and thus liberated. How come?
The author seems to be extremely biased against men. To her all men are selfish, self-centered, lecherous hypocrites............. which is almost true...hehehe..... but here Taslima is clearly bugged out. Nila is a messy confused bundle of contradictions and her love life surpasses that of Mills&Boon series. Hah !
The novel parrots explicitly the way Indian society treats their girls/womenfolk in all its glory. If only the adult content was less, this book could be ideal for wannabe brides though the personal freedom and the subsequent liberation of the protagonist is quite ambiguous and unconvincing.
