The Other Side of the Corridor - Book Review

Title: The Other Side of the Corridor 

Author: Sujata Rajpal

Publisher: Mahaveer Publishers

ISBN: 9789350881019

Number of Pages: 238

Price: 150 [INR]

Genre: Fiction

The Blurb:

       When your dreams are tainted with lies and deceit, you have no other choice but to walk to the other end of the corridor.

       Leela has nothing extraordinary about her except the dream to become famous. Her desires take wings when she gets married to a handsome boy from a respectable family in Delhi. But her dreams are shattered even before they have a chance to take flight.

       She happens to meet two friends from a long forgotten past, which infuses hope and opens new avenues to realize her dormant aspirations. Leela delves into previously unexplored paths of deception and forbidden passions that only make her stronger.

       In an attempt to rediscover herself, she falls in love with life and with herself but her life takes a sudden turn again...

       No matter what, Leela will continue to chase her dreams.

Where does this journey take her?

My Review:

Characters:

      Leela is the central character of this novel, as one can predict from the blurb. Being Manglik, life was not easy for Leela. With parents who hate her for the death of her younger brother, an elder brother who treats her like a pariah, a husband who is mentally unstable and friends who are all leading a comfortable life, Leela's story has it all.  

Plot:

       Leela's sole aim in life is to become famous. She wants to earn fame so that she could make her parents proud. But when she is married off at an early age, her dreams of becoming an RJ is squished. Vishal, who seems to be a nice guy in the beginning, turns out to be insane; her mother-in-law who was so meticulous about everything, doesn't say anything about Vishal's behavior either. When things go wrong, it is Leela who is blamed for.

       In this gloomy life of her, she finds out an escape through Elaa. She leads an alternate life through Elaa's medium. She laps up on the praise Elaa gets from her Facebook friends. She loves the attention people give her. But everything changes when Jai, her secret admirer comes face to face with her. What will happen next? How does Leela manage to realize her dreams?

Things I Liked:

• The narration was pretty smooth.
• The story is a mix of so many different things. You name it and the story has it. Yet the author has managed to weave it all beautifully into a single story.
• I liked how Leela emerges as a strong woman in the end. If either of the men in her life had helped her, it wouldn't have been so much effective.

Things I Disliked:

• At places, the story did seem to drag on a little. But the pace is picked up before it gets too slow and the reader loses his interest.

Verdict:

       All in all, it was an interesting read. Would definitely recommend it.

My Rating:

Until the next review,

Keep Reading :)

Love,

Starry Eyed Reader :)