Review: The Panchatheertha Part I

Author: Rajiv Mittal.

Genre: General Fiction, Folklore.

Rating: 🍫🍫🍫

Blurb:

The Panchatheertha (five pilgrimages) Part 1 is a facetious, satirical revision of sections 1 & 2 of The Panchatantra, the masterpiece Vishnu Sharma wrote between 1200 BCE to 300 CE. The stories are primarily about statecraft and full of wisdom and morals. Despite that, youngsters found them very entertaining. In the tales, animals act and speak on behalf of human beings. The series begins with a parent story that unfolds story after story; each strung to the other by a narrator.

Vishnu Sharma’s reincarnation Shiva Varma has, in this redraft, revived the ancient Indian tradition of parampara (continuation of knowledge from one guru to the next). In his excitement, he forgot the younger age group of his shishyas (students). His characters now try to explain the motives for their actions, also express their feelings; something The Panchatantra had cleverly avoided doing. Within its pages, animals are still made to think and behave like human beings but have not otherwise been harmed in any way.

The Panchatheertha was considered lost but the discovery of two altered strategies ‘The Loss of Friends’ and ‘Gaining Friends’ should create hope within the large and growing community that has had considerable success with the first and complete failure with the second. Those wanting to meet Shiva Varma are hereby informed he dislikes economists, preferring astrology. He is in samadhi, (seclusion / deep meditation) and not in hiding.

There are many intriguing characters not known to Vishnu Sharma in this adaptation; from a sex consultant plying his trade in the locality Ajilundpenodhoka in district Makasam… to a devadasi (courtesan) wanting to conduct the temple prayers because she is bored… to Sage Narada Muni!

Bibliophiles are urged to read the original Panchatantra (which Shiva Varma did consider including as an appendix), to truly appreciate the extent to which history gets distorted when it is made to explain itself. Historically, the appendix has been viewed as a vestigial organ with no real function. This is why Shiva Varma chose not to include it… or so he claims.

Cover Review: 

I DO NOT like the cover. I mean, there's nothing to the cover except some badly edited images. 

Book Review:

Panchatheertha has been loosely inspired from the classic panchatantra stories we used to read as kids, though this collection has a much more developed, modern form of those stories.

Though the narration reminded me of lores and classic writing style, the dialogues sometime reflected a modern time. Also, the mention of modern gadgets with kings and queens kinda confused me. The timeline of the stories was never clear. 

I liked the stories, but it wasn't something I enjoyed thoroughly. The stories were intriguing enough, but I guess they just weren't for me. 

Even so, it was a good enough read to make me want to finish it. If you enjoy folk/classic takes like the Panchatantra, you might enjoy this book!

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Review: Bestseller

Author: Ahmed Faiyaz.

Genre: Satire, Humour.

Rating: 🍫🍫🍫🍫

Blurb:

Akshay Saxena, an out of work editor of a defunct literary magazine in the UK, is told to move to India for a year to help shore up the value of Kalim, an ailing Indian publisher.

Akshay finds himself in a job where he has to do the impossible. Angus Lee, the new owner of Thomson Lee Books, wants at least five bestsellers in the coming year, failing which the business would be wound up.

He has to find a way of making a success out of books he would never publish or would never even read. To complicate things further, he has to contend with motley crew of has-beens and misfits working for the publishing house as well as wannabe writers, dealing with their follies and derisive tactics, and battle his own affections for Zorah Kalim, the impulsive daughter of his former boss.

Will he succeed in bringing out that one ‘bestseller’ from his publishing house? And what about his own life and love in office? Find out in this riveting read.

Cover Review:

The cover is simple, a tad intriguing, but not enough to make me want to pick the book up. 

Book Review:

Bestseller is the story of a guy who ends up in an almost dead publishing house in India after the magazine he used to work for in London shuts down. And to make matters worse, his boss dies on the first day of his job. 

Akshay's story was hilarious and at the same time it reflected everything that is true about the publishing industry in India as well as Bollywood. 

Bestseller was a light read, the kind of book you can read over tea or while you're looking for an easy book that doesn't demand much from you.

My favourite thing about the book was that the romance was only a subplot and that there were better and more important things at play. I also appreciated how the author casually introduced a queer character. 

My least favourite thing could be the fact that the book was so short, but then again, I think it was better this way. 

If you're looking for a peek into the publishing world in India, reading Bestseller would be a good idea. You should also read it if you're looking for a good laugh. 

All in all, Bestseller was witty, short and I'd definitely recommend you to check it out. 

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