A tense thriller of child abduction set in LONDON
Novel set in 1970s BOMBAY
26th November 2024
What Will People Think? by Vedashree Khambete-Sharma, novel set in 1970s BOMBAY.
To start, the book cover is a really eye catching design and before you even pick it up, you have a sense of where it might be set. It is indeed set in India and very specifically Bombay and is very redolent of time and place. And, as you read of the trials and tribulations of the Bendre sisters, you might also feel a degree of familiarity with the story of the Bennett sisters (Bendre / Bennett?) and you would be correct. This is a (relatively) modern-day imagining of Jane Austin’s Pride and Prejudice.
The Maharashtrian middle class is firmly ensconced in the Vile Parle district of the city and Ila is a young woman who wants to push the boundaries. She is one of four sisters (not 5 as in Pride and Prejudice), who is battling for her place in society. She doesn’t want to be married off, she wants to continue her studies but her mother’s main aim in life is to get her girls settled and she will go to many convoluted lengths to find someone suitable (anyone, really, to be honest).
The girls are a spirited set of siblings, and there is a good level of banter. They are all quite distinct personalities who deal with various machinations in different ways. But then Ila’s younger sister takes things into her own hands and the trajectory of convenient marriages may be turned on its head. The equilibrium of the family is teetering.
This is an easy-to-read novel, full of light chit chat and (mostly) fun, with a good dose of humour and ingenuity. It is peppered with Footnotes which the author exhorts the reader to glance at, and for sure there is quite some interesting learning to be had about local customs and culture (with occasional slightly silly observations). Does it work? To some extent but it does fracture the reading momentum, which at times is OK (interesting, even) and other times proves a touch irritating.
An enjoyable read that offers insight coupled with a jaunty pace. If you like The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff (set in Uttar Pradesh), then you will, in all likelihood, enjoy this novel.
Tina for the TripFiction Team
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