Go Clown - #AccheDin for Comedy!
By Shatrugna Vadwlas
Review By Ila Garg
Go Clown - #AccheDin for Comedy!, a novel by Shatrugna Vadwlas, is published by himself in association with AuthorsUpfront. The cover seems quite unusual at first glance! How can you ever relate this picture with comedy? And then there is a game board spread near his feet, which majorly looks out of place. But as you go about reading the book, it starts making sense.
Shatrugna Vadwlas is a Software architect based in the US, with an American Masters in Engineering and an undergraduate degree from the National Institute of Technology (NIT), India. He is a contributor to the Times of India, Huffington Post, Faking News and other Media Portals. He has completed a writer's course at the Writers Center in Washington DC.
His Comedy Novel Go Clown - #AccheDin for Comedy! has created quite a buzz in the Social Media with over 8,00,000 engagements, 2,50,000 views for the trailer on Facebook & YouTube, 5000 hits for the sample excerpt at GoClown.com, on the 1st day itself!The blurb reads as, “When Baby Kiriti arrived in this world, he was like a lost butterfly in a sea of white. A baby who is born and thrust into the huge sea of humanity called India, rides and steers his destiny ship, as he constantly grapples with the Clown inside him, who meanwhile brings out his own set of funny oars in these troubled waters.
The Clown’s journey continues on from a Karma-Guru to a trader of special water from Europe (thanks to his Made-in-China friend!), and from a music director (the Bad-Boy theme!) to the founder of a school, and a dirty sock to a sex-crazed, horny bunch of young fellas. The colors of the Clown’s comedy are different but he always plays to the circus of life. As Kiriti encounters a wide array of characters from the length and breadth of India, a land as rich as its flavours, the carefree years full of joy and young hopes come to an end, with the sweet smell of Ganja still lingering under the starry nights. The philosophy of Meaning is preached, after a session of holy smokes, on the sides of a dusty highway which sees blood and grime daily.
And finally with the Mystical Game which casts a shadow on Kiriti’s life having been won, everything is laid to rest under a blanket of white, only to be stumbled upon by a Sherpa on the peaks of the mighty Himalayas that wakes up something inside of his adorable son!
Is it a Thief, his Dream or the Clown?”
It’s been long since I read a good piece on magic realism. This book is a humourous account of the life of an Indian student. No, before you start making any judgments, I must say this book doesn’t offer regular humour; it is a book with intelligent humour. It targets almost every aspect of life – paid media, education, caste, creed, hypocrisy of NRIs, etc. From fun to family, Ganga to ganja, Shiva to seclusion, technology to temperament and from the epic tale of the Go Game and the strategies and plans that revolve around it – this book has it all to make it a memorable ride for you!
The use of satire is the USP of the book.
The author has laced out the incidents so beautifully in humourous details. It’s not easy for an author or anybody for that matter to make someone laugh. However, this book easily manages to do that while picking common issues that we all see but choose to ignore in the humdrum of life.
Comedy, Laughter, Clown, A game, Strategy involved, Some splash of colours, Then some more laughter, Discovering inner-self before dissolving in more comedy – this book is nothing short of marvellous! It manages to bring together almost every flavour of India and leaves you laughing like crazy – definitely acche din for comedy.
The language is simple and easy to comprehend. However, I did find some serious grammatical errors, but in the light of a good plot they can be ignored. I found it quite engaging overall. The subject is tackled intricately by the skillful author.
How India is declining on the political front, the double standards of the society we live in, how the house helpers can sometimes be arrogant, are we living in reality or in dream (basically is our life a magic realism after all) are some of the many reasons why you will keep turning the pages to find out what happens in Go Clown - #AccheDin for Comedy!
Further, this 340-page book is good enough to expose the reality and the dreams that we tend to mix. We all have a clown inside us that keeps our thoughts clouded and doesn’t let us know our real self. It’s a light read and overall a compelling book.
Ratings: 4.25/5
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