MANGO PEOPLE IN BANANA REPUBLIC
AUTHOR: VISHAK SHAKTI
PUBLISHER: THE WRITE PLACE
GENRE: POLITICS, SPIRITUALITY, SATIRE
PUBLICATION DATE: 1st JANUARY, 2018
FORMAT: PAPERBACK
PAGES COUNT: 236
GOODREADS RATING: 4.07/5
MY RATING: 3.5/5
BLURB:
Ravi Bhalerao is a top of the rung business strategy consultant struggling with two disquiets in life- a festering career disillusionment and a festering wound in his posterior. Stung by an unfair performance appraisal, he pulls off an outrageous stunt at his workplace, drops off the urban map and reacheshis ancestral land, a village in drought-prone Vidarbha. There he encounters India in its elemental form. Convinced that his destiny is somehow entwined with that of his country, he sets off on a truth-seeking mission. On that mission, he finds love, revolution and most importantly, a redemption for the disquiet in his rear.
Anand is a former physicist on a spiritual quest through esoteric India. He realizes that the path to realization is beset on all sides by gurus, their cults and their boundless quirks. As he hops from one ashram to the other, he grows convinced that liberation does not come with a user manual in a neat little box.
Wrapped in light-hearted, almost tongue-in-cheek prose, 'Mango People In Banana Republic' is a tale of an Indian's search for personal identity, against the backdrop of a country divided along fault lines of countless social identities. Teeming with a cast of characters and ideas that encapsulate nodern India, the tale ascends from the gross to the sublime, much like the Kundalini powers some aspire to acquire. With a steady peace, and gentle mocking humour, the book is an absorbing read and a laugh.
MY REVIEW:
'Mango People In Banana Republic' has an interesting plot line, that revolves around two characters, Ravi and Anand, and talks about some of the serious issues of our society.
Ravi Bhalerao, is a senior strategy consultant in a prestigious company of Bangalore. Dissatisfied with his corporate life, he decides to quit his job. After getting rid off all his material possessions, he sets off for his hometown, Sankatpur, a drought-prone village in Vidarbha. On the other hand, there is Anand, a former physicist on his journey to achieve spiritual attainment, who hops from one ashram to another in search for peace. There are also some short chapters in the novel, describing other supporting characters such as Devang, Ravi's boss in the consulting firm and about Madhu, Ravi's true love.
The narrative pace is normal, neither fast nor too slow. Language is simple and rich in vocabulary, mixed with perfect doses of humor and sarcasm. The story starts on a light note, but as it started progressing, it touched upon some serious topics of our society like, plight of the farmers, work of various political parties, activists, Naxalites, spiritualism and many such other issues relevant to our society. The book seems to have been very well researched as, all this has been presented in a realistic way.
The title of the novel is very funny and catchy, however, I was confused by the cover design. The book is divided into seven parts or seven 'chakras', but I couldn't connect the 'chakras' with that of the plot line. Characters are not very strong, but well described. Also, how the two main characters meet each other is very surprising, and that is when the spiritual element comes in the story.
I am not very fond of genres like spirituality and satires, but this book didn't disappoint me. Overall, 'Mango People In Banana Republic' was a refreshing read. This book is recommended to all those who enjoys reading satires.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Vishak Shakti is a writer by compulsion. He writes to vent, to purge, to indulge and sometimes just for the heck of it. He has written for publications such as MSN India, The Hindu, and Clean Bowled. He thinks that a good book had three essential ingredients- entertainment, artistry and relevance, in that order.
* I received a copy of the book from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.*
To buy a copy of the book, click on the link here
For more bookish updates, follow me on Instagram
AUTHOR: VISHAK SHAKTI
PUBLISHER: THE WRITE PLACE
GENRE: POLITICS, SPIRITUALITY, SATIRE
PUBLICATION DATE: 1st JANUARY, 2018
FORMAT: PAPERBACK
PAGES COUNT: 236
GOODREADS RATING: 4.07/5
MY RATING: 3.5/5
BLURB:
Ravi Bhalerao is a top of the rung business strategy consultant struggling with two disquiets in life- a festering career disillusionment and a festering wound in his posterior. Stung by an unfair performance appraisal, he pulls off an outrageous stunt at his workplace, drops off the urban map and reacheshis ancestral land, a village in drought-prone Vidarbha. There he encounters India in its elemental form. Convinced that his destiny is somehow entwined with that of his country, he sets off on a truth-seeking mission. On that mission, he finds love, revolution and most importantly, a redemption for the disquiet in his rear.
Anand is a former physicist on a spiritual quest through esoteric India. He realizes that the path to realization is beset on all sides by gurus, their cults and their boundless quirks. As he hops from one ashram to the other, he grows convinced that liberation does not come with a user manual in a neat little box.
Wrapped in light-hearted, almost tongue-in-cheek prose, 'Mango People In Banana Republic' is a tale of an Indian's search for personal identity, against the backdrop of a country divided along fault lines of countless social identities. Teeming with a cast of characters and ideas that encapsulate nodern India, the tale ascends from the gross to the sublime, much like the Kundalini powers some aspire to acquire. With a steady peace, and gentle mocking humour, the book is an absorbing read and a laugh.
MY REVIEW:
'Mango People In Banana Republic' has an interesting plot line, that revolves around two characters, Ravi and Anand, and talks about some of the serious issues of our society.
Ravi Bhalerao, is a senior strategy consultant in a prestigious company of Bangalore. Dissatisfied with his corporate life, he decides to quit his job. After getting rid off all his material possessions, he sets off for his hometown, Sankatpur, a drought-prone village in Vidarbha. On the other hand, there is Anand, a former physicist on his journey to achieve spiritual attainment, who hops from one ashram to another in search for peace. There are also some short chapters in the novel, describing other supporting characters such as Devang, Ravi's boss in the consulting firm and about Madhu, Ravi's true love.
The narrative pace is normal, neither fast nor too slow. Language is simple and rich in vocabulary, mixed with perfect doses of humor and sarcasm. The story starts on a light note, but as it started progressing, it touched upon some serious topics of our society like, plight of the farmers, work of various political parties, activists, Naxalites, spiritualism and many such other issues relevant to our society. The book seems to have been very well researched as, all this has been presented in a realistic way.
The title of the novel is very funny and catchy, however, I was confused by the cover design. The book is divided into seven parts or seven 'chakras', but I couldn't connect the 'chakras' with that of the plot line. Characters are not very strong, but well described. Also, how the two main characters meet each other is very surprising, and that is when the spiritual element comes in the story.
I am not very fond of genres like spirituality and satires, but this book didn't disappoint me. Overall, 'Mango People In Banana Republic' was a refreshing read. This book is recommended to all those who enjoys reading satires.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Vishak Shakti is a writer by compulsion. He writes to vent, to purge, to indulge and sometimes just for the heck of it. He has written for publications such as MSN India, The Hindu, and Clean Bowled. He thinks that a good book had three essential ingredients- entertainment, artistry and relevance, in that order.
* I received a copy of the book from Writersmelon in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.*
To buy a copy of the book, click on the link here
For more bookish updates, follow me on Instagram
😍😍😍😘😘splendid as usual
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