Review
Writing
a novel, especially the first one, is like embarking on a mission and
once it is published, the writer experiences a boost of confidence.
Uday
Mane’s debut novel ‘Helpline’ deals with a complex theme: teenage suicide.
Samir is hopelessly in love with Riya and is devastated when she chooses to
leave him and go abroad for further studies. Heartbroken, he takes to alcohol,
drugs and writing, in no particular order.
Uday
scores a plus at many points in the novel. The nightmare in the beginning is
intriguing and clearly shows that he has a grip on the art of writing. A
suicide helpline is a unique contribution to our ever-changing society matrices
and it’s a clever move to use this tool. Suicides have become so common that
the people not directly involved with the victims see it as an indicator of
their individual weaknesses rather than the growing insecurities heaped on
unsuspecting minds by social pulls and pressures.
Of
all the subplots Uday has excelled in weaving a beautiful
brother-sister relationship between Riya and Siddharth. Both are motherless
children but Siddharth suffers from Down’s syndrome. Riya looks after Siddharth
as if she were his mother. Very subtly we come to know that Riya has tied
herself inextricably with Siddharth’s well-being. She doesn’t say so, but
anyone who tries to be close to her cannot do so unless he accepts that
wherever she goes, Siddharth goes. Samir’s love for Riya encompasses Siddharth
and that is one big reason that he carves a place for himself in her heart.
Nana, Samir’s grandfather, is
thoroughly likeable, and has a considerable influence on Samir in his
childhood. Samir’s father makes brief appearances and is responsible for
pressurizing Samir into studying engineering even though he doesn’t want to.
That will ring a bell with most young people as they are subjected to the same
emotional torture when choosing a career path, especially in the Indian
subcontinent. Yours truly was also a victim of the same parental bullying.
But there are other angles which remain unexplored. Neha
is Samir’s good friend and tries her best to keep up his spirits while he is
drowning in other kind of spirits. Neha loves a Muslim boy and there is a conflict between their families when they decide to get married.
Though it is a reality, there seems to be no worthwhile connection between her
story and Samir’s life.
Rajesh
is a street-smart guy who is shaped by circumstances around him. His story is
tragic yet he never loses his positivity. I loved the way a boy from a poor
Bihari family works for a year to save money for his education, then completes
a year of engineering, then again goes to work to save for the next year. I
think Rajesh’s story is an inspiration, as well as a guiding force for students
who have high ambitions but low finances.
There
are some awesome points in the story. The one I liked most was when Samir &
Riya jump into the water from a bridge somewhere outside Mumbai just before
sunrise. It was a thrilling moment and gave me goosebumps. This is one place
where Uday has excelled in his narrative skills. I could visualize the two
teenagers jumping from the bridge and them coming to the surface to watch the
sun rise from behind the arches. I would love to copy that act but I’m afraid
of heights. BTW I think I know exactly where the bridge is.
In
totality, however, the novel fails to create an impact. There is no ‘magic’
connection with the reader which is so important for a writer. An analysis of
the novel becomes an exercise in futility as the printed word is already out
and cannot be changed.
The
pivot of the story which throws Samir into 'Mode Depression' comes basically
out of his own weakness. Long-distance relationships have been in vogue for
millenia, even when there was no electricity and no steam engine, let alone
petrol engines and the world wide web. So when a teenager claims to be head
over heels in love with a girl and doesn't have the patience to wait for her to
return (or follow her to wherever she goes) then he is an extremely shallow-minded person
who deserves no sympathy.
Samir’s
character-arc remains a straight line, he doesn’t grow as a person. He sticks to his own inhibitions till the end. He comes across
as an introvert, submissive, unable to create a rapport with anybody around
him. One way of underlining a person’s downgradation is to show how his
equations with people around him deteriorate. Samir is not shown to share his
problems with anyone – not Riya, not Neha, not his father, not Rajesh. He
doesn’t confide in anyone. So he is left alone to grapple with the breakup in
the latter part of the novel. Neither has the writer highlighted the fact that it
is inability to connect with the people around him that propels him towards
self-doom.
The
story falls flat because it reads more like a diary. The writer has used the
flashback technique but as there is no rhythm to the back-and-forth movement,
it fails to create a symphony.
The
biggest negative factor is the language. With all due respect to the writer,
his knowledge of the English language is meagre.
While
one can understand a first-timer to be less endowed in the craft of storytelling, not being proficient in language cannot be condoned. People
who read books read them because they either want to enjoy good prose
or to improve their own prose. Helpline is completely helpless in both cases.
The following lines highlight the writer’s ignorance of the language:
I tilt my view full degrees on both sides.
The walls are white and glowing in such exuberance; it feels like a needle piercing my eyes.
I take careful steps towards her, seeking a glance at her face. (glimpse of)
A waiter passes by with a jar of water.
(jug – jar is used
to store pickles, NEVER to store water)
She submits her body to the ground.
(You want to say ‘she
falls’? Say she falls.)
My neckline seems to be sinking further inside; for as long
as it can hold my head in place, I do merry.
(neckline is a fashion term – the lower
the neckline, the more a woman’s cleavage shows.)
The flesh in my body has decimated, and it has reduced me to
skin and bones.
…the lyrics made no sense, but the melody caught my earworm. Earworm???
A
question that arises naturally is, ‘What was the editor doing?’ It is part of
his job to advise the writer to improve his prose, and to correct grammatical
errors.
Anyone
can become a writer. And I’m not being sarcastic here. But shouldn’t you have
some respect for the craft you want people to appreciate? This novel is full of
grammatical errors, major major mistakes in usage. I shudder to think what
would happen if this novel is read by an American or Briton or anyone whose
native language is English. It would put a question mark on Indian writers’
abilities and that’s not a welcome thought. It takes years to establish one’s
credentials and seconds to break them.
A
story is like gold ore. The dirt needs to be brushed away, the
metal needs to be polished, shaped and studded with precious stones if you want
someone to fall in love with it and buy it. Take some trouble to learn the
craft. Writing your first novel and getting it published is a noble beginning.
Once you pass that hurdle, what remains is to hone your talents to become
better and better in your profession.
"If
a writer is not sure about his own story, the readers always fail to understand
it."
This
sentence from the novel sums it all up. Helpline has a great blurb and a
promising premise but a novel needs more than just that to make a mark.
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