"Mi Changez boltoy (मी चंगेझ बोलतोय)" by Mohsin Hamid (मोहसीन हमीद), translated in Marathi by Hemangi Naniwdekar (हेमांगी नानीवडेकर). This book is published by Penguin India in 2008 and has 186 pages. Mohsin Hamid is a well known Pakistani writer. His original English novel is titled 'Reluctant fundamentalist'.
A Pakistani man meets an American in a restaurant in Lahore. They start talking or rather the Pakistani starts talking about a number of things.
What do they talk? Who is the Pakistani? Why does he want to talk?
This book highlights the transitions that happened in American view of Muslims after the demolition of twin towers and how it affected the innocent Muslims living in America, how a general Pakistani perceives American attitude and what happens when a Pakistani loves an American, who can not forget her first love.
The book is interesting in patches and boring in otherwise. Readers do not get the drift of where it is headed. Initially I thought it will cover the post 9/11 impact but then it inclined towards the love story and at the very end it leaned towards anti American protests in Pakistan.
I had a feeling that this book could have had more literary value. Author could have made it more profound and meaningful. But the opportunity was lost.
Although this book is a discussion between two men, it's written as a monologue. Would it have been more effective as a dialogue? Well, the author must have pondered on this before making a decision. However it is not clear why the Pakistani guy tells the story of his life to an American stranger who may or may not be a secret agent and why the American listens to it.
Translation of the book, though accurate, does not always convert the crux of the matter. Rather than translating word by word (example अरे गुराख्या for o cowboy), the translator should have tried to translate the matter of the soul to convey the meaning.
Not a must read. Give it a miss.
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