The name sake

                                                                                                       By jhumpa lahiri

For someone who doesn’t read a lot of Indian authors, this book was quite a surprise for the extremely interesting read it was. And it did not contain vampires or wizards or any blood thirsty murderers. It is a simple yet so beautifully told story of an Indian guy living in USA. His outlook on life his homeland , how time changes him and  his family. For better or for worse that is to be found out after reading. But the book will leave you with a little smile of satisfaction. That is truly the mark of a great book.

The author herself needs no introduction. She has a booker prize and is very well renowned Indian author. Her other very popular compilation of short stories “the interpreter of maladies” for which she won the booker prize. The book begins describing the life of a housewife an Indian woman, her life in the foreign land. Her longing for her home land. Just when we begin to think of the husband as a mean, insensitive guy. His past moves us. His trauma, his ambition and his desires are something we can all relate to. But the book is not about them. It is about their son, named Gogol. Gogol represents everything American yet so beautifully fits the role of an Indian. Initially traumatised by his name, he vows to change it and he does too but later on towards the end of the book he realises the significance of the name and that a name is not just something used to call somebody. It’s much more than just syllables.it has meaning and importance. We see Gogol in mainly 3 phases of his life. His rebellious childhood, his latter teenage years and finally we meet a matured Nikhil or should I say Gogol. His various love affairs how they change him. With Gogol we grow, learning acceptance and what actually matters in life. The part where Gogol understands that his father is not just someone who sucks away all the fun in his life. He has a story too.  The whole book is like a family portrait. Its intimate it’s emotional and at last lahiris personal style of writing makes this book highly endearing. It’s not one of those books which are so gripping adventurous and makes you wonder what’s going to happen next. This is more of a feel good book. The depiction of the characters, the changes they undergo and at last what happens of them. This is exactly why family sagas are still so popular. The part of the book that made me sit up was when Gogol’s father died. The reaction to his death from his family was completely different from one another. His wife simply refused to accept his death whereas Gogol was more of taking the responsibility. His reaction was subtle yet so powerful. Coming to terms with the death of the man who had given him this humiliating name, the man who had loved him more than anything…despite everything Gogol had done or perhaps not done for his father. The last few lines when Gogol understands his father, the things he has been through changes Gogol for the better. He understands there are some things more important in life than money. And so do us.

This book was released way back in 2003, I read it just now. This is probably my first Indian author other than certain highly popular author. And it was simply elegant and very refreshing from all those stereotypical movies and books I spend most of my time on. Name sake. Definitely worth the name.

This book was adapted into a movie by Mira Nair starring Irfan khan and kal penn. For those of you who find paper backs boring…. This is one book adaptation that lives up to the quality of the book.