Anupa Mehta

 Waiting Room          The two words   remind us of or journey’s, some beautiful, some memorable, some forgettable, they also remind us of tension filled moments before an interview, they might also remind us of doctors but to the Protagonist of this novel it is associated with a Sea, a jest to find herself, a jest to recover herself & a place where she lost herself…..  This book is a disturbing tale of Maya who was written off as an overtly emotional, narcissistic and a failed writer. This is the story of child abuse and the effects it has on the mind of a kid and how it affects her actions all her life. The story starts with Maya’s death and is narrated by Aniket her friend. He goes through Maya’s diary and tries to understand what was going through her mind. He tries to unravel the puzzle named Maya. She has had a troublesome childhood and to get over it she seeks the help of a psychiatrist and her life changes forever. The waiting room is that of the doctor….The following line from the novel describes the place…. ….…Whoever planned the seating arrangement for the waiting room had done so very carefully. It was an arrangement that work insidiously to calm & unarm the visitor; it left a fragile mind fertile and impressionable for what was to follow……  We have a run through, through her married life and her efforts to solve the puzzle of her life. How she does it forms the rest of the story.   I am a very quick reader and this book has 156 odd pages so as per my track record I should have completed this one in less than 1 & ½ hrs but it took me three days. Why? ~~ It’s a disturbing book and leaves so many questions unanswered and leaves it on the reader to guess and interpret. ~~ The book basically addresses child abuse & its serious repercussions. The lady in question leads a disturbed life forever. She looses her marriage & her sanity. And the worst part is that she is unable to overcome it. She isn’t even able to save her daughter from the same abuse (despite knowing about it) because she busy fighting with her own demons.    In her quest to find Real love Maya losses life & her sanity. ~~ The book addresses an issue about which we avoid talking.                Mothers see their girls being abused sexually but ignore it. Why?               - They don’t want to spoil the future of their girl child.               - They are not ready to believe their Pati Parmeshwar can do this.               - They know that if they take a stand against it they will be crushed.               - The kid is too scared to accept that something like this is happening with her.   Though the book brings up these issues but they are not in the forefront it’s on us to think about them. The author very beautifully destroys Maya’s life and leaves us wondering were the choices made by Maya right?  Having lived a sheltered life I am unable to connect with her choices but yes the book opens my mind to a reality which eixsts. We turn blind eyes to such issues or talk in hush hush tones about them but the fact is these things happen and spoil lives.I can conclude that life throws us into many incidents and repercussions. After the initial incidents which life chooses for us It’s on us that we choose which path later, we can either overcome (I know it’s easy to say) or let our life spiral down. But yes sometimes we don’t have these choices also.   The Book is an easy read (but keeps you thinking) and the author has very haunting way of handling the situations. As I said earlier she narrates an incident and leaves the conclusion on you. And Trust me this story needed this kind of narration only.   Just as I have never made an effort to read books which show a happy world and too good to be true characters, I have also never made an effort to choose sad books. But yes whenever I lay my hand on such books they keep me thinking….and that is the very reason that I am recommending this book as it shows a life which exists, however sad it might be but is as real as you & me.    … (más)