No one is demonised – Bhagat’s express aim is to bring about unity in modern India rather than discord – and we’re shown how both sides make assumptions and conform to stereotypes (South Indians are considered to be cold and obsessed with money Punjabis always shouting and obessed with food, and indeed both families do this, hilariously, at each other). But the book is certainly not just a dry learning experience – there is much to cheer on and admire, and giggle at, in the machinations that Krish and Ananya engate in in order to bring their highly suspicious family members together after working hard to win them over themselves (poor Krish comes off very badly in this, leaving his “chummery” lodgings at goodness knows what time in the morning to tutor Ananya’s younger brother). It was absolutely fascinating to read about student and working life in modern India – not something I’ve read a huge amount about although I’ve read many novels set there over the years. I like a culture clash novel very much, usually the clash arising from some sort of expatriatism, or at very least inter-religion issue, but here we have a protagonist and his girlfriend who are both from what is supposed to be a uniform culture in India – but he’s from the Punjab via Delhi and she’s from South India, with her family in Chennai, and these cultures are VERY different and mutually suspicious, with stressful and sometimes hilarious issues ensuing when they try to keep their university love match going as they grow up and move away from education. Chetan Bhagat – “Two States: The Story of my Marriage” I read Bhagat’s “ One Night The Call Centre” back in 2006 (Matthew read it, too) and absolutely loved it, but hadn’t seen his books here in the UK – I did manage to buy a load of them in a Kindle sale a year or two ago but I was thrilled to find this copy in a local charity shop, published in India and somehow arriving in South Birmingham.
Here I’m picking off a more recent acquisition from the TBR (although I’ve realised this is outside my “get my TBR read” challenge as I bought it this year, oops) as I couldn’t wait to read it.
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