If I just go around and ask this question to my friends, it would be incredibly difficult for each of them to give a clear answer, because everyone is busy reading classics, science fiction, Victorian fiction, and so on. On the contrary, if you ask me the question, it will be easy for me, as I read only two or three authors when I am immensely bored.
I was almost sixteen when I first got introduced to Durjoy Datta. One day, when I was sitting on a ledge in my classroom, I caught sight of my friend holding a two- hundred page book which had a red jacket. The title of the book astonished me. The book which was titled “She broke up, I didn’t” made me laugh for a while. Or was it the subtitle “I just kissed someone else” that made me laugh out? I do not remember exactly.
Since something about the title and the author’s name attracted me, I immediately asked if I could borrow it. And, that was my first experience with Datta. Unfortunately, he couldn’t please me that time. Over description, unattractive Indian names and a stupid plot really annoyed me initially, and I decided never to read Datta again.
However, as I grew older, I encountered another work of the same author. In fact, my best experience with Durjoy Datta was this one titled “Someone like you”. Have you ever heard of the term “one night read?” Well, this is one. The book which tells a story of a simple Delhi girl will surely capture your heart for an entire lifetime. With three main characters named Karthik, Niharika and Piya, this is one such book which will make you laugh and weep at the same time. The book is a simple love story between two college students. If we look closely, there is nothing relevant in this book at all. However, the authors have made it a point that people enjoy the purity of friendship between Piya and Niharika, the initial awkwardness and hatred between Karthik and Niharika, and the everlasting bond between two siblings.
Surprisingly, the bond between Durjoy Datta and Nikita Singh was such that their collaborations always turned out to be huge successes. “If it is not forever, it is not love” was my next attempt. After reading every work written by Datta, I can say one thing: this author really takes an effort to make his characters and storyline more interesting each time. This novel which is slightly bigger than the first one is a heavy read. If Datta’s books like “She broke up…” and “Our impossible love” are about superficial romances, this one is different in every aspect. As the novel begins, we are introduced to a bomb blast scene the protagonist Deb is involved in. This work which has a main plot and a parallel plot is a tough read for the emotional ones. Even though I am a very realistic reader, I was close to tears by the end of this book. To make it simple, the story is about a journalist who recovers a diary from the bomb blast scene. As he reads the diary entries of a young man, he discovers the most wonderful love story ever. The rest of the story is about how he travels with his fiancée to find this man and the one he loves.
I noticed something similar in two books of Datta- “If it is not forever… ” and “Till the last breath.” The latter is the book which really acquainted me with ALS and how fatal it can be. These two works revolve around the theme of death and loss. Durjoy Datta always give us happy endings, but he doesn’t make it a habit. There are times when he gives his readers a sudden shock with the protagonist’s unexpected death or suicide.
It is true that I love his writings. This doesn’t mean that I have never disliked any of his styles. There are two books called “World’s best boyfriend” and “Our impossible love”. People in Amazon and Goodreads, with their positive reviews compelled me to give these a read. Even though people declare that love isn’t determined by age, weight, height and profession, this isn’t true when considered from an Indian view point. Datta has put in a student counselor who is above twenty years of age along with a girl who is hardly seventeen into his book, “Our impossible love”. Like all the other books authored by him, the guy and the girl fall in love with each other after three encounters. Does this happen in any school in India? Surprisingly, the girl’s parents are also happy about the fact that their daughter is seeing her teacher. Can he be more absurd? Notwithstanding the fact that there are elements of humor, love and friendship in the novel, the relationship between Ayesha and Danish really popped my eyes out.
Coming to “World’s best boyfriend”! How many of you consider a girl’s outer appearance or external beauty before loving her or taking her out on a date? If I take a survey on that, I will be getting very obvious responses, right? Datta aims to break stereotypes through this work. Like his early works, he still plays with the love at first sight aspect; but, he makes it clear that beauty isn’t always a primary condition for a person to fall in love. While creative an aggressive hero and a nerdy girl, he forgot to do one thing- to be realistic. After all, the children are still studying in a school, and there are things in the novel that cannot be accepted by normal readers.
As I have mentioned above, it is a dream of every author to get better with each attempt. As soon as his book “The girl of my dreams” appeared in the bookstores, I grabbed a copy and started reading like a maniac. His experimentation with human psyche didn’t leave me disappointed. Since I was tired of his love stories that contained no depth and hollow characters, the character of Shreyasi got my attention with her intense personality, obsession for Daman (the protagonist) and a self- destructive attitude. This novel with twists and surprises, element of horror, different settings and grasping language is one of Datta’s best attempts so far.
“The boy who loved” is again a teenage romantic tale, but told in a different style. Now, what is the style? I am not going to spoil this wonderful book for those who haven’t read this yet.
Even though these sort of books aren’t supposed to be read by a Literature student like me, I still do read them. Have you ever understood how Indian families really are? If you haven’t understood that yet, give his novels like “Our impossible love” and “The boy who loved” a good read. Even though there are silly sequences in these books, I can assure you of one thing as a reader: these books will never leave you bored and tired. Behind his simple language, interesting characters and every- day stories is something only those who really read his books, setting aside the serious literature for a while will understand.
Advertisements Share this:
