Book Review- Urban Shots: Bright Lights

  

ISBN 978-93-81626-41-2

Genre- Fiction

Edited By- Paritosh Uttam

Publishers- Grey Oak in association with Westland

Price- Rs. 199/-

Urban Shots- Bright Lights can be considered synonymous to a breath of fresh air. It is a perfect book to lighten your mood, read with a cup of coffee, or travel with. The book encompasses 29 stories by 21 writers, each of a different genre and taking you through life in urban India.

Being a short stories compilation you never have to worry about how and when you read the book. Everyday issues are dealt with in a fascinating manner which keeps the readers engrossed. As the foreword rightly says, it is necessary to give some breathing space between two stories, to capture the true essence of the book.

The very first story- ‘Amul’ written by Arvind Chandrasekhar, is brilliantly narrated from a terminally ill ten year old’s point of view. The story uncovers the grave realities and hardships of her life with subtle innocence. It is one of the finest stories in this book which leaves one with a heavy heart. Kudos to the author for delivering such an amazing piece!

‘Across The Seas’ by Ahmed Faiyaz, tells the story of a mother who yearns for her child in an era where there were no telephones. It brings out the love and care of a mother who’s away from her child.

‘Double Mixed’ by Namita V Nair, is a story of infidelity with a humorous edge toward the end. It talks of how people complicate relationships by seeking love outside their homes, while the child already knows of the parents extra-marital affair.

One of my favorite reads was ‘Father Of My Son’ written by Roshan Radhakrishnan. BRILLIANT would be an understatement for this lovely piece of work. It is a beautifully narrated tale with comical dialogues and is a fun read, especially for couples with young kids. I must commend the author on his comic timing and the innocence that the kid exudes, is quite cute.

Some other stories I enjoyed reading were- ‘You Eternal Beauty’ by Naman Saraiya. Crisp and fresh narration. I felt the story was straight out of the movies where you can visualize every bit. ‘The Pig In A Poke’ by Mydhili Varma is a story everyone MUST read. Remember the bulk mails we get, guaranteeing us huge sums of money. Well this story is a take on that and how the main character Vinay replies to those mails thinking he would get rich overnight. ‘The Weeping Girl’ by Kunal Dhabalia, which talks of rackets conning people, ‘Hot Pants’ by Arefa Tehsin, of a late night encounter and 'Maami Menace' by Pradeep D. Raj, which talks about an uninvited pesky guest (Maami) who shoves her opinion everywhere make up for amusing reads with funny ends.

While the above were fun reads, I thought that ‘Things That Could Happen In a Park’ by Gagan Narula, ‘P.K. Koshy’s Daily Routine’ by John Matthew and ‘Good Morning Nikhil’ by Ahmed Faiyaz could have definitely been better. These stories were definitely not short or interesting. Simply put, I lost interest after reading for a while. I thought ‘Silk’ by Salil Chaturvedi, a take on infidelity and its consequences had a good storyline and build up, but towards the end he seemed to have put in too much effort which was disappointing.

To be honest, a major downside of this book is that, some stories are too long which can eat away the readers interest. But having said there are a lot of stories which will remain etched in your mind forever. Some humorous, some emotional, this book is an absolute roller-coaster ride of emotions.

Simply put, the collection of stories is lovely and the book is treat to the readers. There is a certain freshness in the writing style having been written by different authors and will keep the readers wanting for more.

This book is definitely a good grab!

Rating- 3/5

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