The White Tiger - Book Review

This year's Booker Prize winning novel, The White Tiger, by Indian writer Aravind Adiga, starts off in an unusual format - as a letter or series of letters from a small-time Indian entrepreneur, addressed to Wen Jiabao, the Premier of China. The premise is that Balram Halwai, the Bangalore-based entrepreneur, hears on the radio about the Premier's impending visit to India, to learn about how India produces so many entrepreneurs, the one thing in which China has not surpassed India, and he takes it upon himself to educate the Premier. Based on the mood and tone of the first few pages, you'd expect to read the story of how a person becomes one of the millions of successful entrepreneurs in India, who have propelled the country into being the second fastest growing economy in the world. A story narrated with wit, sarcasm and dark humor. And that is what you get.

But you also get more. You get an utterly realistic, ugly and depressing view of Indian society, through the eyes of one of its poorest sons as he goes through his life. From growing up in a remote North Indian village, attending a pathetic school, to being pulled out of school at the age of eight to work in a tea shop, to becoming the chaffeur for a rich family, to committing a heinous crime to the capital for her entrepreneurial venture, to becoming a successful, scrubbed entrepreneur running a cab company in India's tech capital, Bangalore. That's the entire story of the novel in one sentence. And no, it is not the story of the courage and heroism of an unfortunate person who rises up in life through honest hardwork and determination. And no, it is not an uplifting story by any stretch of the imagination. There is nothing to be proud of in the novel - not the country, not its society, not its economy, not the booming technology sector, not the upper classes, not the lower classes, not even the observant, determined, quick-learning, ultimately successful protagonist, Balram Halwai.

The author, Aravind Adiga, keeps the first person narration simple and straight-forward. There are no narcissistic attempts at showing off his literary skills. No self-indulgent prolonged critiques and philosophical narratives. The few places where the author attempts to explain concepts about Indian society - examples include the caste system and the 'Rooster Coop' (the coop in which hens to be slaughtered are packed tightly and where they remain quietly, unprotesting) metaphor for the Indian society with its quietly subjugated population - are handled with pithy simplicity.

The author exhibits a remarkable skill in observing and narrating the story through the eyes and heart of a servant. Quote from the book: "Do we loathe our masters behind a facade of love - or do we love them behind a facade of loathing?". He also shows a similar skill in the characterization of the people who fill the story. At one point, Balram Halwai, the servant-driver, says how he would never buy a t-shirt, like the one his master wears because it is mostly white with a small, simple design on the front. To get his money's worth, he would buy a very colorful shirt, filled with as much designs and patterns as possible. While the characterization is believable, the transformation of Balram from a suppressed servant to a ruthless criminal is somewhat abrupt and hard to accept. Despite the fact that he is portrayed to be different (a white tiger!) from the other boys and men his entire life. Perhaps, I'm simply used to reading and seeing heroes in most books and movies going through great misery and pain before they've had enough and decide to fight back.

There are some poignant moments in the story like the time Balram, the chaffeur, counsels and consoles his broken master on the side of a road, using his own home-brewed cocktail of morals and philosophies, some picked up in his childhood village and some made-up on the spot. At that point in the story, he compares himself to THE famous chaffeur from India - Lord Krishna Himself, who narrated the great Bhagavad Gita to a broken and self-doubting Arjuna. It is this kind of wit and humor from the protagonist, which keep the book from becoming a dark and depressing read. This is also the author's greatest strength. It makes the book very readable and keeps it moving at a steady clip. One could easily finish the book in one or two sittings.

I like that the author keeps things gritty and real without being too dramatic or preachy, without being moralistic or taking sides too obviously. I like that he does not seem to indulge in the cardinal sin of many Indian writers and movie directors - playing to the Western galleries with a mix of exaggerated and exotic portrayal of all things Indian. Unless you consider the entire novel to be one big play for the Westerners. I don't think it is. But I am a little disappointed because I did expect the novel to be representative of the story of a typical (tech) entrepreneur from Bangalore, a story that needs to be told, a story I'd love to read. I did not expect a story, which when described in one sentence, sounds like it is straight out of a typical Indian movie! Despite that, I do recommend this book. It is a valuable and realistic snapshot of the current state of Indian society, with all its class differences, misery and corruption, juxtaposed against the tech boom and economic growth. For that it's well worth a read - especially to my fellow, young Indians.