Just Another Bookaholic: #BookReview ; The Brown Sahebs by Anupam Srivastava

THE BROWN SAHEBS

ANUPAM SRIVASTAVA

Blurb

The Raja of Teekra, a dusty and forgotten kingdom near Lucknow, gets lucky when the British Resident visits him but also brings with him a leading revolutionary. The Raja enters India's struggle for freedom and is rewarded with a berth in the cabinet of free India. He is shocked to see the ministers and officers living and operating like their imperial masters but is suitably rewarded for his silence. As he begins to enjoy the good life of Lutyens' Delhi, the British capital which India's freedom fighters abhorred, he faces only one adversary in his plans—his journalist son Pratap. A novel that will blow you away with its depiction of love, passion, intrigue and betrayal.

The Brown Sahebs is a historical fiction written by Anupam Srivastava & published by Vitasta publishing house. It is the debut work of the author who used to work as a journalist for The Times of India hence his connection with one of the character was obvious who too is a journalist.

The story starts around the time when India was struggling to get freedom from British rule with one of the main character the Raja of Teekra, a kingdom near Lucknow. The story describes how he befriends freedom fighter Vidhya Babu & how this sudden friendship happens to be the game changer for his future. While the Raja gets a berth in the cabinet of free India he can’t help but had to compromise for his morals. The Raja’s son Pratap is a journalist & wants the people to know the political-social reality of free India but will he be able to do that? Will people realize the truth?

This book is a mirror of the political situation of not just the time of post freedom but also stands true for the present scenario. It has been written with immense hard work & the way the author has described each character is commendable. It deserves to be in everyone’s shelves that’s for sure.

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About the Author

Anupam Srivastava was born in Lucknow, India, where his novel, The Brown Saheb's first part is set. However, he never lived there as his father and mother, Ashok and Veena Srivastava, lived in different parts of India. However, Anupam spent some of his childhood and most of his vacations in Lucknow where he flew kites and learnt about the craft of pigeon-flying. He went to a boarding school near Delhi, the Motilal Nehru School of Sports, Rai, where he played cricket but earned his college colours at St Stephen's College, Delhi, in cross-country running. He studied English literature (BA Hons and MA), won the college annual poetry prize while pursuing his MA, and being sure his vocation was writing and journalism, became a journalist with The Times of India in 1993. In 1999, he was awarded the British Chevening scholarship by the British government.

In 1999, he left journalism to work with the United Nations Population Fund in India in communications. Subsequently, Anupam worked with Oxfam India Society, Unicef and other development agencies. The Brown Sahebs is his first novel and tells the story of India not taking off its colonial clothing even as it became a democracy.

Anupam is married to Radhika Srivastava, and they have two children who figure in his children's novel, A Family Secret.

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