Book Review

Bombay Duck is a Fish
Kanika Dhillon
Westland
Rs. 195

If someone told me I’d be reading a book titled Bombay Duck is a Fish, I’d probably have looked at them, convinced they were delusional. But it seems that the universe has a funny sense of humour. Well for one thing, I did end up reading the book and for another, I found myself pleasantly surprised.

The story revolves around a girl Neki Brar, an aspiring film-maker trying to make it in Bollywood. Now, the plot doesn’t scream “prize winning novel” but then again, let’s not be hasty whilst judging. Keeping aside the clichéd story line, what drew me to keep reading was the simple fact that this book, though fictitious, might still be privy to what really lies behind all the glamour and make-up of a film set.

And Dhillon delivers. Slowly but tactfully she snakes her way right to the belly of the beast, where all the dirty, dark secrets of film-making lie. It does help that the author has first-hand experience since she worked her way up the ladder, having started as an assistant director and is now a screenwriter. Although, I wonder where the autobiographical elements of the story end… the protagonist hails from Amritsar, so does Dhillon. Neki managed to bad an AD position in a on a Fiza Kareem movie in the story while Dhillon assisted Farah Khan on Om Shanti Om… it wouldn’t take a genius to figure out the inspirations for her characters but the piercing question is how much of Neki’s life ties in with Dhillon’s rags to riches story. But that’s beside the point.

Dhillon’s characters have quite a bit of bite to them. Every detail she spent in spinning the story only makes you sink deeper into the journey Neki makes. From a naïve young girl to someone who manages to find her place, make an impression but then sink into an abyss of irrevocable desolation – ultimately leading to her ruin. The book has many colours to it, serving as an American dream of sorts (here more like the Indian equivalent of the American dream) to an example of how too much of a good thing can sometimes be bad.

Nearing the end of the story and completely caught up in Neki’s life by this time, you really don’t know what to expect. I have to be honest, the way Dhillon chose to end the story left me a bit confused. I don’t know if Neki goes through with what she sets out to at the beginning of the story or if she just fades into nothingness as most people who enter the film fraternity do. All I know is that it left me wondering about what really happened.

My take 

Though not ground breaking, Bombay Duck is a Fish is gripping and will have you glued till you’ve read it cover to cover. Steer clear if you want to make it in Bollywood though…

By Charlene Flanagan