Book Review: Dabi Aas by Shaikh Sarafat Ali

Dabi Aas (Diary) is Shaikh Sarafat Ali's debut novel written in Hindi. The subjective theme of the novel takes a dig at the emphatic feelings on lost love, swaying friendship, and self-expectations in the course of life. The story follows the flashback technique to list out a chronicle of youthful expectations and emotional turmoil through its central characters that are intertwined in the ambience.

Like a Bollywood college driven kind of movie, the novel’s storyline mostly is about young characters that have yet to take the course of life. As we read, we get to know Harsh Godbole, John, and Ishita in the mainstream narrative. The novel is back staged against Goa and central India region. As Harsh being an engineer struggles and jolts for jobs in plants, the geography of the area inevitably gets painted along the canvas of the storyline. John takes the center stage in the novel. Harsh and he are college friends pursuing engineering with tensions building related to their placement. In particular engineering colleges, campus place for jobs is seen as emotionally draining aspect…a lot goes on stake for students. Though John and Harsh get grinned underneath it, but with time they manage to carve out their own careers. Yet the dramatics that ensue in the college makes up for story’s backdrop.

As the narrative chugs ahead, the author delicately yet vividly lays out the college-days life and its allied nuances. It sounded so real as if the author himself was present there with those young hearts. John's love affairs and failures will capture readers’ attention for intense reading. John's characterization is fragile and full of hope. He grows with hope and loss with an equal panache. However, he meets heart-breaking fate in most of the affairs. His first affair with Tina, a girl from his locality, did not see happy ending.

As career and peer pressure intensifies, John finds it tough to manage his emotional strength. Being young and too much expectant in love is a hard choice. Ishita in the later part of the novel feels for John as during their youth they could not get through their relationship. However that was like a sting to John and as a result he lost control of his mental stability. From pragmatic point of view, the novel is contemporary in its nature. Urging youth of our country to be mindful in love and be focused towards career choice.

The author has delivered such a heavy topic of love and loss with other themes with minimum drama. The novel is an impactful read...anyone can pick it up any time in search of a good story.

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