Slumdog Millionaire Book

I should mention that this 1-star review is not at all related to my opinion of the movie "Slumdog Millionaire" which I liked much better than the book. I am glad that the movie-makers smartly retained the only decent thing about this novel that is the game show plot device and tossed almost all of the rest into the trash because that's where this novel truly belongs. This book badly needs some editing or even better, a different author. I read in some review that "Slumdog Millionaire" feels like a juvenile's attempt at writing and I have to agree. It is not even L of literature. It does not take long to get tired of the flat narration.

Anyway, writing style is perhaps not the biggest problem with this novel. The story is so full of cliches. Every episode in the life of the protagonist seems as if it is pulled out of some cheap bollywood masala movie (the episodes in the movie Slumdog are way better). Swarup took all the vices and social issues he could think of and stitched it all together into a story. Child abuse, murder, suicide, incest, prostitution, theft, robbery, corruption, eve-teasing, poverty, riots, religious squabbles, underworld, India-Pak war it's all there. Homophobia and pedophilia is way overdone. Such is the cheap drivel Swarup is selling in the name of realism. He has played out the religion card too and named the hero 'Ram Mohammed Thomas'. With this selling recipe in place Mr.Swarup perhaps didn't think there was any need put an effort into the actual writing anymore.

These are a few snippets of this book's review from Amazon by people outside India:


"Despite heartrending descriptions of sexual abuse, racism, poverty, homeless and much, much, more in modern India, this is an utterly enjoyable picaresque adventure that is one of the best reads of the year."

"..this is an easy and entertaining story that captures much of the essence of this fascinating country. "

"It offers a very good look at several different societies and life-styles in India."

"...an exciting and fascinating glimpse into the life in modern India. Well written and full of both common day-life and historical facts about the densely populated peninsula,..."

"Gives some overview of reality in India."

"...that gives you enough of the misery that exists in India.."

"It is well-written and describes India, as it is today."


Oh, Puhleeze! This ain't modern India (or even India in the older times for that matter). None of the episodes in the book has even a faint resemblance to the life of a common man in India. A common man doesn't spend all his life amidst every imaginable crime and misery. Swarup is pandering to the western audience by giving an impression that abuse, poverty, misery and what not is all there is to Indian way of life. And that too from a person like Vikas Swarup who is an India diplomat and is supposed to represent India to the world outside. At least I think it was pretty clear in the movie that it was just a story of an orphan boy from slums.The depiction of Bombay slum life as a backdrop was perhaps much closer to reality in the movie than Swarup's novel. The movie never seemed to claim that that was the essence of life in India. Swarup, on the other hand, draws his characters from different economic classes, different religions, people ranging from movie stars to diplomats, priests, businessmen, middle-class, slum-dwellers and all. And he presents every possible way of life in India with just a dark side to it.

Swarup himself does not even live in India. And even during his visits to India I am sure he has only experienced the life of rich upper class who form only a small fraction of our population. It is not a surprise that he is completely out of the touch of the reality of common life in India. Someone please tell him that watching a bunch of bollywood movies is not how you get an experience of Indian life.