[absynthguzzler]

" Aravind Adiga has won this year's Man Booker Prize with his debut novel The White Tiger.


Adiga beat favourite Sebastian Barry to take the accolade as well as the other contenders, Amitav Ghosh, Steve Toltz, Linda Grant and Philip Hensher.



The White Tiger, a tale of two Indias, tells the story of Balram, the son of a rickshaw puller in the heartlands, one of the "faceless" poor left behind by the country's recent economic boomIt charts his journey from working in a teashop to entrepreneurial success."Making it to the shortlist on a first novel is sort of like winning and anything beyond that is quite a bonus," Adiga said.He said the book was set in today's India and "revolves around the great divide between those Indians who have made it and those who have not".



"At the heart of the book it is something existential," he added. "It's a quest to break out of the circumstances you find yourself in - it's a quest for freedom."



The 33-year-old Indian-born writer was also the youngest author on the shortlist for the £50,000 prize."
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source : BBC News Website



A 33 yr old and a debut Novel, another one after Arundathi Roy. Hats off to him.Anyone's got hold of a copy?I'd love to know what the Indian perceptive to this is because the article says that Arvind actually portrays our country's "dark side" .

[yzfrj]

Three cheers for Aravind Adiga
India Yeah...!

I'm not much of a reader, still proud to be an Indian.

[ajmat]

I considered buying the book some time back, now I need to pick up a copy

Well done Arvind but don't let the Booker turn you into an opinionated windbag like Arundathi!

[safari_lover]

Good news that another Indian wins the Booker.

Originally Posted by ajmat

Well done Arvind but don't let the Booker turn you into an opinionated windbag like Arundathi!

I wish the same!!

[Brabus E V12]

First of all I have not read this book(will be reading it now though). I have not started this thread to hurt anyone or to discuss the "Real India" but just to find out if anyone has read this book and what everyone thinks about it. I will post a review after I read it. I have started this thread based on what I read about the book in this article.

Man Booker Prize winner Aravind Adiga lays bare the truth of India's poverty - Telegraph

This 'India Bashing' article on the Telegraph (one of UK's leading newspapers) about the "Real India". The article goes on and on about how poor we actually are and some quite stupid things which clearly shows that the writer has not put a good amount of research in it.

What really got me incensed was this:

Today, India's super-rich have swapped palanquins for chauffeur-driven Porsche Cayennes (India's roads still aren't really smooth enough for a 911), which can be seen idling at the lights in Delhi and Mumbai, their occupants studiously ignoring the beggars tapping on the tinted windows.
Maybe they need to visit TBHP for the 911s in India!!

Getting on it says that this new Booker Prize winning book shows the real state of India. I have not read this book(but will be buying a copy now). Has anyone read this book?

These are the last lines of the article:

Amid all the celebration of India's progress, Adiga's novel will perhaps provide a reminder to the wider world of how far India still has to come.

[Rudra Sen]

Note from mods: thread merged.

[esteem_lover]

Originally Posted by Brabus E V12

These are the last lines of the article:

Amid all the celebration of India's progress, Adiga's novel will perhaps provide a reminder to the wider world of how far India still has to come.

I do not find anything wrong in that line. We still have a long long way to go.

[Rotorhead]

I really did not find anything wrong in what was written in the Telegraph. Its just stating the truth as it is. We must admit that we do have both extremes living side by side in current india. The infant mortality, the malnutirition statistics may be exaggerated considering the size of the population and the demographics in the countries used for comparison, but then it still is the truth that we do have poverty, we do have issues with hygene, the poor do have difficulties in getting support for health, education , employment. And it is true that the divide between the rich and the poor is wide and is ever increasing by the day.

[spadival]

Originally Posted by ajmat

Well done Arvind but don't let the Booker turn you into an opinionated windbag like Arundathi!

I guess you haven't read his interview after winning. He said he is already well on his way writing a second book, unlike a certain Mrs Roy who never wrote another book after winning.

PS: He was my school class mate for a short while .

[bblost]

Just finished this book.

Its a very well written book and I could not keep it down.
I read in the night.
Started on Monday night.
Kept reading till my wife threatened to kick me out.
Finished it on Tuesday night.

The story traces the life of the White Tiger.
Munna has no name. He comes from a small village. His father a rickshaw puller.
The book starts with him writing a letter to the visiting Chinese Premier.
The story is narrated thru that letter.
His mother dies when he is young and his description of the cremation is a little vivid.
The character observes and reports life as it moves about him.

Since there is not much of a career available to him he becomes a driver.
Gets employment in the local zamindars house.
Serves as a loyal employee till one day he breaks out of the rooster.

Decides that its his life and he does what he feels he needs to do to break free.
If he able to do it.
Will he kill his master and run away with the money.

The following quote is from the book

Like eunuchs discussing the Kama Sutra, the voters discuss the elections in Laxmangarh.

[Nikhilb2008]

It's an ok book. Nothing great. Not worth the Booker prize or anything.

Didnt think it was worth the hype or worth the 200 bucks I paid for it.