“What are
you doing here?”
There is a
passage in the book that really defines the protagonist’s two worlds problem
that he struggles to overcome throughout the story. It’s when he enters a
finance course thinking he will succeed with his expertise and after initial
success, finds himself lost in the barrage of questions that seem to be far
removed from his work life.
The sobering
experience that academics and your work are very far apart come out even as
Samrat finds out that his financial acumen is no match for the bookish
expertise his compatriots have.
Meet Samrat Ratan
– tired of his life at Goldman Sachs, he comes to India to do an MBA course at
IIM Bangalore hoping to find something that will make his life meaningful
again.
One of the
biggest strengths of this book is the protagonist. He embodies what happens
when you start to look beyond just doing things for the sake of doing things.
It isn’t glamorous following what you feel is right – sometimes it leads to
difficulties and struggles. The rat race that MBA encourages hides the other
things it provides – like compatriots, new friends and new connections.
But this
book struggles a lot to escape clichés. While I wouldn’t be the first to do it,
but comparisons to Chetan Bhagat’s ‘Five Point Someone’ seem apt. The language
and plot are coarser in that book, but it is undeniably a spiritual compatriot.
Both cover flawed individuals who struggle with defining their existence in
college. And get into outrageous events that are poorly fleshed out.
And that is
the core theme here – why? Why would someone do an MBA? It haunts Samrat the
most – but it is a demon faced by almost everyone he meets. Some like Kunal,
who has been an excellent academician all thoughout his life, struggles to
adapt to the new learning style and takes fatal steps. And is then forgotten.
Others like Vinod are doing it to escape a mundane life that would have been
his if not for MBA – despite a love for the life before in the army.
Karan covers
a lot of MBA events pretty well – including group projects where ego and
personalities clash, summer placements and something always infront and centre,
smoking up. It’s a physical metaphor used for letting go of the worries that
plague most of the characters throughout the story. Despite having no dangers
of an unstable future with a Goldman Sachs offers to cushion him, Samrat is
continuously confused as to what his purpose is.
The biggest
evil of this book is sadly one given tremendous spotlight. Mr ‘Shiny’ Sarkar.
Spouting philosophical ramblings that are superficial at best, he is also an
IIT-ian and a topper in class being wasted almost every day. The writer most
probably understands the caricature he is creating and after an ‘enlightment’
trip with the protagonist, gets more dimensional in nature. He is revealed to
be in the shadow of his father, a business giant. Instead of continuing on and
becoming a gold medallist – he suffers a downward spiral in academics and comes
to terms with continuing his father’s business instead of a glamorous life far
removed from India and him. But the damage is done and Sarkar represents
everything wrong with the book.
Rest of the
characters like Nandini and Chetan play very peripheral roles – being plot
devices to serve the others. Nandini by herself could have been an intriguing
character for exploration but sadly the author gives us only morsels that
delight but not a full meal. A group project interaction reveals a little of
her but that’s all we get after initially seeming to be a pivotal character in
Samrat’s story.
Chetan is
the “ghissu” character, someone too busy trying to define himself by academics
that he lets go of everything else. Not much is given of his motivations beyond
the clichéd money and fame, and thus he remains superficially involved
throughout.
Being an MBA
student myself in the twilight of his time on campus, there’s some relatable
issues here. Most people I’ve met are here searching for purpose – caught between
worlds. Some dream of swanky offices and large numbers in their banks while
others just want more than what they have in their jobs. Others just want to
experience college life once more before the mundanity of the work place
swallows them whole.
Just like Samrat,
we all need to search for what makes us happy. It can be anything – as long as
it’s real, you can try to achieve it. Maybe it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea.
It doesn’t have to be.
Do right by
you. Then only can you do right by others.
So, I give
it 5.5 out of 10.
+Flawed and three-dimensional
protagonist
+Covers a
lot of MBA related events well
-Most of the
characters remain plot devices throughout the story
-Events seem
to happen to suit the characters and don’t feel organic
-One of the
major characters remains a caricature before a sudden heel turn at the end
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