A Hundred Little Flames by Preeti Shenoy 👴
A Hundred Little Flames is an enthralling story on family relationship and friendship in the context of modern India. The story takes place in a village called Poongavanam, situated in Kerala where a young man Ayan unravels mysteries surrounding the life of his grandfather Gopal Shanker.
The story revolves around relationship between father and a son across two generations. Ayan loses his job in Pune and is sent to the village by his father Jairaj Shanker to look after his lonely grandfather. During his stay, Ayan finds out the sad truth about Gopal Shanker’s past life and is determined to bring back the lost love.
The story has quite a few interesting characters but there are four main characters which constitute the main plot of the book. Gopal Shanker, an elderly person, is a retired bank employee who suffers from schizophrenia. He lives with Velu, who is the housekeeper of Thekke Madom. Ayan is a young man who is on the pursuit of finding himself. Rohini is passionate about conducting cultural camps around the country. She is also Gopal’s friend when they were growing up together in Poongavanam. Jairaj Shanker is Ayan’s father, whose sole purpose in life is wealth accumulation. He is quite adamant about selling the house Thekke Madom and admitting Gopal Shanker to a mental asylum.
The author described the places incredibly well. She brought the charming scenes of nature into her writing. The village reminded me of the time I had spent with my best friend in a village situated in Tadepalli, Telangana. Part of the story also takes places in Pondicherry describing about events which occurred in Gopal’s life during his middle adulthood. I would love to visit the place some time in the future. There is also mention of Hyderabad which is my home city. 😄
The story teaches handful of lessons about friendship and pure love. It reveals sad reality of many old people who are left to stay in old-age homes and mental asylums.
This book is a great pick if you have not read many Indian authors. It would definitely encourage you to pay a visit to your ancestral homes and re-unite with old friends.
Thanks for reading!
Thanks for reading Writers Guild — A Smedian publication
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