Book Review:
A Marriage, an Affair and a Friendship

 An Unconventional Take on Conventions 

Book: A Marriage, an Affair, and a Friendship
Author: Sabarna Roy
Publisher: One Point Six Technologies Pvt Ltd
Price: Rs 299 ; 

Pages: 93

It would be pertinent to remark that if Literature is a luxury; fiction is a necessity. Catering to this very basic human necessity, Sabarna Roy, an eminent Indian author of several books has painstakingly and meticulously created one of the finest novels with the title ‘A Marriage, an Affair’ which sheds an ample amount of light on a set of several subtle human relations with an exploration of their new dynamics. Meeting the benchmark of a quality novel, the book dwells on the conglomeration of several astonishing ideas and unorthodox social concepts. We are doubtlessly residing in such an age where things are falling apart and falconer cannot control the falcon. ‘The centre cannot hold and anarchy is loosed upon the world.’ In this modern era of mere anarchy, our human relations are also in a great jeopardy in a sort of making and breaking state. Thus, keeping the prevalent scenario and this tectonic shift in mind, the novelist sincerely strives to demolish the old, ossified dogmas and worn-out beliefs. Therefore, the book contains quite an innovative plot with an unconventional backdrop which revisits the norms of Indian marriages and views the nuptial ties through a set of new spectacles. Enriched with well elaborate nineteen finely crafted chapters, the book can be appropriately described as an apt encomium which is deeply dedicated to contemporary relationships, their newly drawn boundaries, changing contours and bold dynamics.

 When we analyse the thematic aspect of the narrative, we get fully absorbed in its aesthetically conceived story line. Plot, Aristotle remarks, is the soul of a narrative, thus adhering to the idea of the Greek master, the book has an engaging and engrossing plot as it depicts   a crisp and fast-paced cocktail of varied perspectives pertaining to an open marriage.

Delving deeper into the subconscious and subterranean layers of his artistically carved out characters, the author successfully manages to forge a strong bond with his readers as for him characters are more than just devices to be moved about for bringing the desired effects. Belonging to the clan of living human beings, they have their own foils and foibles. Thus, most of the characters have been delineated with consummate care and are fully loaded with the Aristotelian idea of probability. It would not be erroneous to say that leavened with the element of probability, the characters fully resonate with the readers and hand hold them through their own catharsis.

‘A writer creates a character as a way to reveal and emphasize consciousness- to extend the pitch of human possibility,’ so when we have our rendezvous with the central characters, Rahul, Paromita, Suroma, and Samaresh, they all attract us with a sort of irresistible pull .   

Rahul and Paromita are blessed with a joyful and prosperous life.  The story becomes more captivating   when they decide to dismantle their social bondage and intersect the boundaries of marriage, affair, and friendship. Here, the author must be applauded for casting aspersions on our conservative and parochial mindset which he does so elegantly by spinning a yarn that mesmerizingly expatiates on the inner crevices of the post-modern notion of open marriages and everlasting friendship. As the tale unfolds, we latch on to the fact that Rahul possesses a deeply contemplative mind whereas Paromita is a happy-go-luck person who prefers to live in the present and is least bothered about intense brooding and deep contemplation.

When we attempt to do some stylistic analysis of the novel, we delightfully draw our conclusion that the author has a special knack for fixing all loose ends, together with the linguistic devices of cohesion and cohesiveness. The lucidity with which the complex and seemingly baffling ideas are put forth elevate the novelist to a higher notch. So succinctly speaking, the book is a must read for the aficionados of the genre of fiction.  

It would be pertinent to remark that if Literature is a luxury; fiction is a necessity. Catering to this very basic human necessity, Sabarna Roy, an eminent Indian author of several books has painstakingly and meticulously created one of the finest novels with the title ‘A Marriage, an Affair’ which sheds an ample amount of light on a set of several subtle human relations with an exploration of their new dynamics. Meeting the benchmark of a quality novel, the book dwells on the conglomeration of several astonishing ideas and unorthodox social concepts. We are doubtlessly residing in such an age where things are falling apart and falconer cannot control the falcon. ‘The centre cannot hold and anarchy is loosed upon the world.’ In this modern era of mere anarchy, our human relations are also in a great jeopardy in a sort of making and breaking state. Thus, keeping the prevalent scenario and this tectonic shift in mind, the novelist sincerely strives to demolish the old, ossified dogmas and worn-out beliefs. Therefore, the book contains quite an innovative plot with an unconventional backdrop which revisits the norms of Indian marriages and views the nuptial ties through a set of new spectacles. Enriched with well elaborate nineteen finely crafted chapters, the book can be appropriately described as an apt encomium which is deeply dedicated to contemporary relationships, their newly drawn boundaries, changing contours and bold dynamics.

 When we analyse the thematic aspect of the narrative, we get fully absorbed in its aesthetically conceived story line. Plot, Aristotle remarks, is the soul of a narrative, thus adhering to the idea of the Greek master, the book has an engaging and engrossing plot as it depicts   a crisp and fast-paced cocktail of varied perspectives pertaining to an open marriage.

Delving deeper into the subconscious and subterranean layers of his artistically carved out characters, the author successfully manages to forge a strong bond with his readers as for him characters are more than just devices to be moved about for bringing the desired effects. Belonging to the clan of living human beings, they have their own foils and foibles. Thus, most of the characters have been delineated with consummate care and are fully loaded with the Aristotelian idea of probability. It would not be erroneous to say that leavened with the element of probability, the characters fully resonate with the readers and hand hold them through their own catharsis.

‘A writer creates a character as a way to reveal and emphasize consciousness- to extend the pitch of human possibility,’ so when we have our rendezvous with the central characters, Rahul, Paromita, Suroma, and Samaresh, they all attract us with a sort of irresistible pull .   

Rahul and Paromita are blessed with a joyful and prosperous life.  The story becomes more captivating   when they decide to dismantle their social bondage and intersect the boundaries of marriage, affair, and friendship. Here, the author must be applauded for casting aspersions on our conservative and parochial mindset which he does so elegantly by spinning a yarn that mesmerizingly expatiates on the inner crevices of the post-modern notion of open marriages and everlasting friendship. As the tale unfolds, we latch on to the fact that Rahul possesses a deeply contemplative mind whereas Paromita is a happy-go-luck person who prefers to live in the present and is least bothered about intense brooding and deep contemplation.

When we attempt to do some stylistic analysis of the novel, we delightfully draw our conclusion that the author has a special knack for fixing all loose ends, together with the linguistic devices of cohesion and cohesiveness. The lucidity with which the complex and seemingly baffling ideas are put forth elevate the novelist to a higher notch. So succinctly speaking, the book is a must read for the aficionados of the genre of fiction.