Journey through heart

Book Review: The Reverse Journey
Author: Vivek Kumar Singh
Format: Paperback/Fiction/New Age
Pages: 122, Price: RS.95, Publishers: Frog Books/2011
This is Vivek’s debut novel; short is size, very lucid in narratives and crisp in plotting the events. Altogether these specialities give the book a fascinating touch and enable readers a pleasant read. The Reverse Journey is a kind of book, normally written with the real life experiences and to a great extant, reveals the inner world of its author. Same is true here; author himself is in the centre as an IIT grad heading for the new resilient professional world in India and finally abroad in U.S. Here protagonist reached to the desired level of professional ladder in working at top consultancy firm, but it’s the heart which overpowers the mind and further journey begins for home. Story is simply crafted but the protagonist’s state of mind aptly signifies the complexity of Indian expatriates…for whom working overseas falls in dream coming true slot but once they land in alien location, suddenly a cultural emptiness keeping them awake towards the newly found existence. This in most cases resulted with better compatibility to his/her motherland and a sort of only formal dwelling with the working foreign land. So, at some level, differences started getting visible between the reality and perception.

I will reprise again and again that, such literary writing from the professionals is a healthy trend and quite deserves to get the appropriate attention of both readers and critics. This wave of newly found writers marks the unprecedented height of Indian writing in Queens own language. Even with their frugal lingual strength, the new genre of professional turned writers will be keep floating high in the sea of literature as some of them have honest feelings to tell and those feelings are essentially in need by the modern humankind. Vivek has such keenness for observing/practicing the human acts…that’s obvious in the way, his protagonist chose the motherland full with systemic shortcomings over a furnished international location known for living in material dreams. Not a dualist mind can imagine such pious favour for heart led decision…

Author himself shown that, it’s averseness to struggle that causing most of the lust related complications. Here, he leaves a grand message to the Indian middle class standing on the verge of complete myopia for listening their inner calls, which may be closer to the rational choices. Profession or any discipline of working can’t be blamed for big mess around everywhere…afterall, that’s the flawed policy maneuvering which sizes up the make or mar from exotic corporate culture. Afterall, isn’t it panic to hear living in Bangalore being coded as “Bangalored” or the dialectism of bad human resource management, when an IIT grad without knowing the software programming being exported to the U.S? In the same way, India exports the Basmati rice or Darjeeling’s best tea because some Tom, Peter or Frank likes these stuffs being consumed in daily life?

In no manner, it should be confused as India’s triumph with its questionable overtures with the open global trade…like the protagonist of this novel; the new professional working class must be stand with their basic rights and without ever fearing the potential sabotage of their career, as the industries can never afford losing them with valuable expertise.

Vivek is himself grew up in Bihar/Jharkhand studied at IIT Kanpur {Civil Engineering}before leaving in to the swiftly emerging IT sector in mid 1990’s…he also Banagalored before becoming a frequent visitor to Hudson bay, where the “Statue of Liberty “has presence but alas in desperate passivity! So, his views and pointing of complexities must be taken in serious contexts, why and how, he thought another parallel world of professionals getting hammered under the profit driven industrial norms? Any longer, avoidance of this affluent working class’s alienation will be caused for a big mismatch in the capitalist agenda of growth…and neither talking of Marx nor his egalitarian Communism will be in out of fashion for long! Time is to rationalize the policies in favour of working class, either affluent or unskilled…afterall; too much casual bearing of top management may disorient the long term perspectives of organised business. The Reverse Journey will sure make forward a good message of ethical moving in the professional world, target can’t be total but its substantial effects can’t be ruled out either. Hoping, Vivek’s literary voyage will be similarly engaged with the real life issues…that will be more essential than getting activated with the deviating “street activism”, the way its alarmingly grooming among the ex City bankers etc!
Atul Kumar Thakur
September 19, 2011, Monday
Email: summertickets@gmail.com