#sirojini pande

[diaryofabookgirl]

Book review: Battle For Bittora by Anuja Chauhan

Blurb: Twenty-five-year-old Jinni lives in Mumbai, works in a hip animation studio and is perfectly happy with her carefree and independent existence. Until her bossy grandmother shows up and announces that it is Jinni’s 'duty' to drop everything and come and contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from their sleepy hometown, Bittora. Of course, Jinni swears she won't. But she soon ends up swathed in cotton saris and frumpy blouses, battling prickly heat, corruption, and accusations of nymphomania as candidate Sarojini Pande, a daughter of the illustrious Pande dynasty of Pavit Pradesh. And if life isn’t fun enough already, her main opposition turns out to be Bittora ex-royal, Zain Altaf Khan – an irritatingly idealistic though undeniably lustworthy individual with whom Jinni shares a complicated history. . . [Goodreads]

Review: Jinni's family-free life is about to change when suddenly her grandmother shows up at her workplace. This isn't some sweet old woman but the great Sushma Pande, a respected politician in their hometown Bittora. With the Lok Sabha (House of the People) election coming up Sushma Pande wants Jinni home. Not to support her but to run her own campaign on behalf of their party, PP. Jinni plays along, not really taking anything of this seriously (politics is her grandmother's thing), until she comes eye to eye with her old friend Zain Altaf Khan, her competition. 

After dragging me into cricket (The Zoya Factor) Anuja Chauhan has managed to grab my attention with a story about Indian politics. Jinni is your modern-day girl. She made a life of her own in the city, regularly talks to her mom on the phone, and wants more but doesn't know what. For a good portion of the book, Jinni just plays along with whatever her grandmother wants. She gets into the most bizarre situations and meets a lot of interesting characters - kleptomaniac Gudia aunty has to be my favorite. 

Now, let's talk about Zain Altaf Khan. Where does Anuja Chauhan come up with men like Zain and Nikhil Khoda? Just like the captain of the cricket team, Zain is confident, perhaps also a little arrogant. He knows what he wants and isn't shy about going for it. I really liked the personal and professional dynamic between Jinni and Zain, their pushing and pulling. I also appreciated the subject of interfaith romance, which I've often seen in Bollywood movies, but rarely get to read about in books.