Book Review – When Strangers meet

Though I had registered in GoodReads long before, I had not ever used it much. So when I was struggling to find some book recommendations from Facebook and Twitter for some light Indian fiction, but which is neither chicklit nor IIM romance, I stumbled upon two books. I ordered one of them through Flipkart, and reserved another in the queue. That is how I got to read the book, “When Strangers Meet”.

Apart from Chetan Bhagat and Preeti Shenoy, I was yet to find some author, whose book was so captivating and thrilling to the level of not putting it down before finishing. I started this book without any expectations, since the author was new, and not that quite popular. The ratings in the Goodreads was the only reason I bought it.

And I was not disappointed.

What happens when an irritating but lovable wise-cracking ‘Stranger’ called Iyer meets a frustrated and arrogant teenager, Jai, on a fateful day in a congested room at the metro station? Catastrophe!!!
Meanwhile, Pathan never had the pleasure of happiness in his life yet he thanked Allah for every second of it…
Abandoned by fate and friends, surrounded by responsibilities and poverty… This hard-coated man from the city of Delhi knew only thing and that was to keep faith in Allah… Now he is set on a journey to turn around his fate…

The tale from the Iyer’s past will change Pathan’s present and Jai’s future… And trust me…
Sometimes all it takes is a stranger’s tale to change the track of your life…

Three Men… One fateful day… and a Story of a Lifetime…

To describe it in one sentence, it was a beautifully written screenplay, in the suspense genre, perfect to be converted to a movie. The scenes were well described and detailed, but very crisp and also to the point. The story swings between various locations which can be bit confusing at first. Initially, the pace seems to be very low when we are introduced to Jai and Pathan, like that of a slow moving train. And then, when the story of Iyer unfolds, you get absorbed into it. The life of Iyer could take you back into old Tamil movies and I could so visualize Tamil movie stars playing the roles of young Iyer and his father.

“Maybe it’s time that you moved on. You know, I believe that someday things will change. Just like the seasons. A lively spring follows the harsh winter. Seasons change Padma, seasons change”

There is a sweet and cute unwritten love story between the young Iyer and his friend, which is not that different from the current generation. The twists and turns in their relationship is very realistic.
The innocence of young age, the dreams which makes us takes absurd decisions, and the bare truths of life sums it all.

Before he could complete his sentence, Jai realized what he was going to do that day! He was indeed in Iyer’s place. He was himself running away from home, away from his dictating father, away from a life dominated by mathematis. He was running towards his dream of becoming a Bollywood actor. His story until now was not very different from Iyer’s.

My rating: 4/5

K.Hari Kumar is the young author of the book, “When Strangers meet”.

He’s also an international award nominated Photographer and independent short-filmmaker who has worked in over twenty television commercials, directed 8 short films and two documentaries. He can be reached on Facebook and Twitter.

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Day 4 – Festival of Words at WriteTribe – Book Review