Nikita Lalwani

Book Title: 2 Day Down
Author: Dr. Nikita Lalwani
Format: Paper Back

Book Title:
The title of the book is ‘2 Day Down’ is unique and relatable

Book Cover:
The cover of the book is a digital painting of a woman’s silhouette in purple stains. A flying bird is shadowed in her mind.

Plot:
The most uncomfortable and difficult time in a woman’s life is during the menstruation period. The second day of every cycle is considered to be exasperating and painful.

Coming to the plot, it is the story of five women of different ages. The five stories will explain Pain/Staining/Sexual Inhibition/PMS/Taboo and how they journeyed through this uncomfortable time.
The stories will move the reader and make awareness through its essence.

What are the different stories and what message did the author convey in her book?
Well, read this book ‘2 Day Down’ by Dr. Nikita Lalawani

What I like:
The stories with different problems projected in the story will make the reader understand the stress and pain that woman take during the periods.

What I didn’t like:
All the information mentioned in the book is useful and there are no negative points observed in the same.

Narration:
The narration of each and every story will move the reader and make us feel the pain of the characters

Language & Grammar:
A clear language with neat and uncomplicated grammar is used in the book

My Final Verdict:
The book with great information and breaks various myths which people usually think about the periods. It is an eye-opener and especially for the teenagers and the elderly.

Book Title: 3/5
Book Cover:3/5
Plot: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Narration: 3/5
Language & Grammar: 3/5
Final Rating: 3/5… (más)

This novel is part of a burgeoning literature of the Indian diaspora in the West, ambitious, bright intellectuals struggling with their ancient roots in a new and different world. It is not one of the better works.

I expected to like this book. I had read promising reviews, and the premise sounded - and is - interesting. However, I felt it was let down by the writing, which I found muddled and long-winded.
When I read, I like to be involved with at least one character in the book. I don't always have to like them or approve of what they do, but I need to care about what happens to them. I admired how Lalwani shows us Rumi's view of the world (everything is a math equation). Still, I didn't particularly care about any of these characters, and I actively disliked the father. The book felt disjointed as if Lalwani was trying to cover too many bases. Also, the writing alternated between the present and past tense for reasons that I could not understand.… (más)

In Nikita Lalwani’s second novel, The Village, a three-member BBC film crew arrives in Northern India to make a documentary about a unique and fascinating social experiment: Ashwer is not a traditional village but an “open prison,” where those serving time for murder live with their families and support them with jobs in the outside community. Ray Bhullar (a 27-year-old woman of Indian descent) is the director, Serena the producer, and Nathan the on-screen presenter. The project is Ray’s idea: she convinced the BBC to fund it and she approaches her director’s role as an investigative journalist might, with both eyes open and in honest pursuit of an unbiased portrait of individuals living productive lives while making the best of a very strange situation. She wants her film to tell a compelling story while capturing in a respectful manner the hopes and fears of the inmates and their families. Unfortunately for Ray, Serena and Nathan have other agendas. Serena, as producer, is responsible for obtaining a marketable product for her employer and making sure their money is well spent. And Nathan, an arrogant minor film personality whose past includes time served for armed robbery, is working on a series of television presentations about prison systems and sees his participation in Ray’s film as an opportunity to enhance his celebrity status and perhaps get laid in the process. Inevitably Serena and Ray clash over their respective conceptions of what the final film should look like. Ray gets so close to her subjects—the people who agree to let themselves be interviewed—that her desire to protect their feelings and privacy interferes with her objectivity as a filmmaker. Serena, who regards Ray’s attitude as naïve and unhelpful, is willing to pursue high drama at any cost: blood-letting, emotional collapse … nothing is ruled out. As long as it looks authentic, her BBC colleagues will be satisfied, and the money will keep flowing. After a disastrous filming episode, Ray finally realizes that serving as the moral conscience of a film project is no fun, especially when nobody appreciates or respects her efforts. Lalwani’s novel is most successful when Ray is exploring the prison, making discoveries about life inside and getting to know the inhabitants. Admittedly, there is a certain gruesome fascination in learning about individual crimes and circumstances that led to incarceration. But the story is told from Ray’s perspective and as the action proceeds her crisis of conscience grows more acute, and the narrative occasionally bogs down while she agonizes over her failure to control the project and the harm it is causing the villagers. To be sure, The Village can be gripping, especially when the tensions among the film crew are at their most palpable. Lalwani’s writing is detailed, evocative and luminous. Ray Bhullar is easy to like, and we sympathize with the moral dilemma in which she finds herself. But her behaviour often comes across as emotional and impulsive—on more than one occasion she seems to act against her own best interests. So, while we can sympathize with her, we don’t always understand her. Unfortunately, this does not make her alluringly enigmatic, merely puzzling, with the result that it’s possible readers will finish The Village with as many questions as answers.… (más)