Last year a friend of mine came back from India with 495 Rupee book called Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. I read the first few paragraphs and had trouble putting it down, because it was so good. But after nearly 75 pages, other things got in the way, and just recently I have allowed myself to rediscover the book.

Let me share with you the first paragraph:
“It took me a long time and most of the world to learn what I know about love and fate and the choices we make, but the heart of it came to me in an instant, while I as chained to a wall and being tortured. I realised, somehow, through the screaming in my mind, that even in that shackled, bloody helplessness, I was still free: Free to hate the men who were torturing me, or to forgive them. It doesn’t sound like much, I know. But in the flinch and bite of the chain, when it’s all you’ve got, that freedom is a universe of possibility. And the choice you make, between hating and forgiving, can become the story of your life.”

It is a powerful personal story. It is also a vivid and convincing description about many parts of India that we will probably never know first hand.

I have shared two other passages on recent episodes of the Learn Hindi Daily Show:

Observations about the difference in behavior when boarding a train vs. riding on it:

http://www.ispeakhindi.com/2011/05/31/learn-hindi-daily-show-i-like-hindi-what-last-of-the-clever-crow-story/

Interpretation of the famous Indian head wiggle:

http://www.ispeakhindi.com/2011/06/01/learn-hindi-daily-show-fun-with-the-future-tense/

There are many other parts that I would like to share and discuss about.

I would be very interested in knowing what people who have in India think about the book. Which parts seem correct, and which parts seem completely off?

If you have read the book or are reading the book, please leave a comment in this forum.

If you are looking to experience India without leaving your house (and for less than $20), then I would recommend this book.

रमेश जी,

Where are you currently in the book? What are some of the parts you best like? Which parts do you dislike? Which parts seem “real”? And which seem far fetch?

I had my doubts about the standing babas. I found a wikipedia article on it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standing_Baba but it references Shantaram as a source. But I found this YouTube video that is educational, entertaining, and convincing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojeR1fOKv_A

I really liked the bear hug part. Just to share with others, I think I want to quote a little of the book. This is the setup for the part that you are at..
—–
P. 213:
An hour later, Abdullah parked his bike near the World Trade Centre. We stood together for a moment, and then he reached out impulsively and enclosed me in a warm, bearish hug. I laughed as we came apart, and he frowned at me, clearly puzzled.
‘Is it funny?’ he asked.
‘No,’ I reassured him. ‘I just wasn’t expecting a bear hug, that’s all.’
‘Bare? Do you mean it is naked?’
‘No, no, we call that a bear hug,’ I explained, gesturing with my hands, as if they were claws. ‘Bears, you know, the furry animals that eat honey and sleep in caves. When you hold someone like that, we say you’re giving them a bear hug.’
‘Caves? Sleeping in caves?’
‘It’s okay. Don’t worry about it. I liked it. It was … good friendship. It was what friends do in my country, giving a bear hug like that.’
—–

And then I shouldn’t quote the part you are at, because it is a truly delightful event…

Regarding the drugs & harshish smoking, I have no idea either. When I visited India in 2005, I did not see any evidence of it. Of course, I wasn’t an escaped convict living in the underworld with a previous experience of using drugs & harshish. Similarly, I’m told such things are very common hear in American cities, but I have no first hand experience of them either. Or for that matter second or third hand experience. A city of a million people probably has more than a million sides to it.

Which parts of India to you plan to visit?

Have you read some other books that you really like about India?