Train to Pakistan - Khushwant Singh

Train to Pakistan by Khushwant Singh is a modern Indian classic. It has been converted into a movie and also is included in the list of must read books for every Indian. From the title itself any Indian can understand that the book deals with the one of the difficult times in Indian history, i.e. the partition of India. I have been planning to read this book for long and I finally grabbed it when I saw it in my office Library.

Khushwant Singh deals with the struggles an ordinary Indian faced at the time of Independence by the way of a smile story based in the fictional village of Mano Majra. An village where the words Partition or Independence doesn't mean much to the Sikhs and Muslims living there. A situation that rapidly changes with the murder of  a hindu moneylender, Ram Lal. 

Khushwant Singh has beautifully explored the various problems India faced at the time of Independence; such as class system, government corruption, and a large population with very little or no education through his various characters. 

An example would be the characters of Aqbal and Juggut. Aqbal, a social worker who is very well educated compared with Juggut, a poor illiterate peasant.  Even when both of them are arrested, Aqbal was treated very well compared to Juggut because education placed them both in two different class levels. Aqbal was a class “A” prisoner who was provided with warm food, good beds, and newspaper to read and write while Juggut a class “C” prisoner whose food was thrown at him.

Similarly, Khushwant Singh explored government corruption through Hukum Chand, a deputy inspector who would knowingly break laws such as having sex with prostitutes or arresting someone without justifiable cause or evidence. Singh  further shows how when passions are aroused, sensible talk or thought is thrown our of the window and mob mentality rises.

The ending of the novel is disappointing when you read it. Its only when you close the book and think do you realise the message Khushwant Singh is conveying: action is never political; it is always personal. Nobody is going to get up and do a thing for anyone else unless it's for someone they love and  it's something that comes from the heart.

This book is an absolute must read for every single person who cares about Hindu-Muslim harmony. If not for the graphic description of death I would suggest making this book a must read for all school children.  The book is meant to make you think of your actions and thoughts to the society at large.  I would give this book a rating of 3.5/5

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Last Man In Tower - Aravind Adiga

Last Man In Tower is the second book of Aravind Adiga I reading after The White Tiger. I had liked The White Tiger and had picked "Last Man In Tower" with a lot of hope and am happy to say Aravind Adiga didn't disappoint me.

Last Man in Tower explores how money changes people? How far would people go for the sake of money? It pushes us to think does the convictions of one man out weigh the consensus of the many?

The story is about "Masterji"; The one man refusing to leave his home in the face of property development. Tower A of Vishram Society  is a pucca housing society established in the 1950s. A property developer "DarmenShah" offers to buy out the residents for mouth-watering sums, the principled masterji is the only one refusing the offer, determined not to surrender his sentimental attachment to his home and his right to live in it, in the name of greed. But as his neighours, the others in the building can't get the benefit from the offer until all agree tensions in the society. As the deadline to accept the offer looms - Friends turn enemies, acquaintances turn co-conspirators. His neighbours gradually take matters into their own hands, building up to a nice climax.

Arvind nicely explores the psyche of humans, How money can turn people, how friendships can break when money comes in between. He nicely shows the changes in thinking of the people, how one-by-one each neighbor gets seduced by money. Arvind again captures the changing India, he shows us the co-existence of both the slums and the high rises in Mumbai.

Arvind lets the reader decide with whom his/her sympathizes lie, With Masterji - who stands in the way of his neighbors' most audacious dreams, and whose integrity and incorruptibility borders on the improbable. Or with the middle-class neighbors for whom the windfall can make all their dreams come true. 

He makes us think what is the price growth? Will so called good people risk their humanity when faced with a chance to bag a lot of money? Who can we trust to stand by us when we take a lone stance? The breakdown of family life in modern India.

I give the "Last Man in Tower" a rating of 3/5. Its a  Gripping read, with the right mix of humor and suspense. At every point, the reader is wondering, "What's going to happen to the Masterji?" Arvind has etched out the Characters are well. It lost points because its not always a page turner, at some parts you feel he has stretched out the book.

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