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The Mad Tibetan: Stories from Then and Now
This is the maiden anthology by deepti naval, the critically acclaimed actor, painter, director and poet each story in this anthology carries a visual and emotional impact and vivacity of a film while thulli draws you deep into the sordid and bleak life of a prostitute in kamathipura in mumbai, the piano tuner gently tugs at the heart with music ruth mayberry inspires with her never-say-die spirit, yet grapples with loneliness the morning after, the mad tibetan, premonition, sisters, birds are all facets of life itself - each speaks in a voice that is resonant of hope, love and joy of another day
159 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2011
About the author
Deepti Naval
10 books17 followersDeepti Naval is an Indian actress, director, and writer, predominantly active in Hindi cinema. Her major contribution has been in the area of art cinema, winning critical acclaim for her sensitive and 'close to life' characters that emphasized the changing roles of women in India.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 1, 2022
It is evident that Ms Naval has an observant eye and a love for storytelling. The Mad Tibetan was a lovely story- sensory, mystical, heart warming - and by far the best of the lot.
But the book stops way short of its potential because the publisher has been flippant about it. (Is Manjul Publishing House a self-publishing concern? I don't know.)
The book has either not been edited, or a very bad job has been done of it. The language is as it probably came to the author's head, punctuation is atrocious, and there is SO MUCH fluff, so much explaining and telling that the subtlety of the narrative gets overshadowed. At quite a few junctures, the book really infuriated me, and I think the publisher is to blame for that.
But the book stops way short of its potential because the publisher has been flippant about it. (Is Manjul Publishing House a self-publishing concern? I don't know.)
The book has either not been edited, or a very bad job has been done of it. The language is as it probably came to the author's head, punctuation is atrocious, and there is SO MUCH fluff, so much explaining and telling that the subtlety of the narrative gets overshadowed. At quite a few junctures, the book really infuriated me, and I think the publisher is to blame for that.
February 5, 2021
The stories are a little dark and unsettling. They cast a detached and unflinching eye at the sad despair of old age, financial crises, loneliness, loss, bereavement and living on the edges of "respectable" society. When I put the book down and thought about why it was so disquieting, I realised it was because every character in the book had made peace with their situation. They were not fighting it or aiming for a different reality. This was their life.
February 9, 2019
The book didn't start off well for me as I had high expectations from the author. But as it proceeded, I think the author warmed up to writing and the story writing improved. Light read, but would give it a pass if there's other books on your list.
December 30, 2018
Fantastic read. Short stories about varied life experiences. Some fiction. Some inspired from the real life.
August 2, 2020
I am a huge fan of hers in general. But this book was underwhelming
June 14, 2013
Over the years, Deepti Naval has remained one of my favorite actors - simple, subtle, down to earth and totally classy. Her short stories are also more or less like her. Drawn from real life, characters that we might have seen somewhere along the way and set in scenarios that many of us are familiar with, the stories are told in a straight from the heart, no frills style.
'The Piano Tuner' leaves us with a sense of melancholy while 'Sisters' transfers the pain of their helplessness to us. 'Premonition' left me a little confused as to what it meant , while 'Birds' again ends in a sad note. 'Bombay Central' shows us the strange turns that life can take and 'The Morning After' is a tale of hope.
The next four stories are more of memoirs and I loved these the best. 'D' is about how she meets a childhood friend and a situation that many of us would be familiar with, the difference is in the fact that the author here is a celebrity. The title story 'The Mad Tibetan' is about someone whom we would have met in the bustling streets of any city as well as the calm bylanes of a village. She meets this mad man in a far off , almost deserted place in Ladakh. The scenery is captured beautifully in her words.
'Thulli,' in my opinion is the best of the lot. Deepti drags her friends one night to the infamous streets of Kamathipura and she sees that intriguing face of the protagonist Thulli at a window. Her story , in Thulli's own words, told in a very matter of fact way, catches you by the throat. She and her girls are so resigned to their fates and they accept it stoically. The place and the people would remain with the author for a long time. Their life is so well summed up in Thulli's own words,
"they make sound all the time, but we don't hear anything anymore. "
'Balraj Sahni is about how she meets the great actor for the first time and 'Ruth Mayberry' about a screen writer who has been writing that one screen play for seventeen long years and how the wait ends.
The overall feeling of the stories is a little melancholic. I thought it reflected the t shades of emotions that we see in the author's eyes - a tinge of sadness and that feeling that she is somewhere far away.
Verdict : Not a 'must read', for sure. You can pick it up as a light read and finish it in less than a day.
3.5/5
'The Piano Tuner' leaves us with a sense of melancholy while 'Sisters' transfers the pain of their helplessness to us. 'Premonition' left me a little confused as to what it meant , while 'Birds' again ends in a sad note. 'Bombay Central' shows us the strange turns that life can take and 'The Morning After' is a tale of hope.
The next four stories are more of memoirs and I loved these the best. 'D' is about how she meets a childhood friend and a situation that many of us would be familiar with, the difference is in the fact that the author here is a celebrity. The title story 'The Mad Tibetan' is about someone whom we would have met in the bustling streets of any city as well as the calm bylanes of a village. She meets this mad man in a far off , almost deserted place in Ladakh. The scenery is captured beautifully in her words.
'Thulli,' in my opinion is the best of the lot. Deepti drags her friends one night to the infamous streets of Kamathipura and she sees that intriguing face of the protagonist Thulli at a window. Her story , in Thulli's own words, told in a very matter of fact way, catches you by the throat. She and her girls are so resigned to their fates and they accept it stoically. The place and the people would remain with the author for a long time. Their life is so well summed up in Thulli's own words,
"they make sound all the time, but we don't hear anything anymore. "
'Balraj Sahni is about how she meets the great actor for the first time and 'Ruth Mayberry' about a screen writer who has been writing that one screen play for seventeen long years and how the wait ends.
The overall feeling of the stories is a little melancholic. I thought it reflected the t shades of emotions that we see in the author's eyes - a tinge of sadness and that feeling that she is somewhere far away.
Verdict : Not a 'must read', for sure. You can pick it up as a light read and finish it in less than a day.
3.5/5
January 28, 2022
The two stars are purely for the 5 stories in the second half of this book.
I picked up this book because I love Deepti Naval! A very fine actress and a woman who came across as intense and intelligent when I heard her speak. I learnt through this book that she’s a keen photographer and painter. The book cover is a painting done by her as are the thumbnails at the beginning of each story.
Alas, her writing skills are nowhere near as polished. The first stories all had promise but were poorly written, and by this I mean repetitive word usage, grammatical errors, randomly changing from second to third person etc. very annoying and unexpected from an educated author! Often I felt I was reading a book thought out in one language but written in another; and I don’t mean the hinglish words she uses. The writing just felt off.
It improved considerably however when she wrote first person autobiographical accounts in The Mad Tibetan, D, Thulli and Balraj Sahni. I wish the entire book had been vignettes from her life - a proper memoir. Now that I would have read with interest.
The fiction first half was awfully written although the premises were good. Themes of loneliness, abandonment, coming of age were attempted but tackled so superficially as to leave no permanent impressions. Characters changed their personalities instantly and casually without any evidence of deeper motivations. It all felt random and meaningless.
I don’t know if she’s written anything else but in my opinion she should stick to acting, painting and photography unless she writes her Memoir!
I picked up this book because I love Deepti Naval! A very fine actress and a woman who came across as intense and intelligent when I heard her speak. I learnt through this book that she’s a keen photographer and painter. The book cover is a painting done by her as are the thumbnails at the beginning of each story.
Alas, her writing skills are nowhere near as polished. The first stories all had promise but were poorly written, and by this I mean repetitive word usage, grammatical errors, randomly changing from second to third person etc. very annoying and unexpected from an educated author! Often I felt I was reading a book thought out in one language but written in another; and I don’t mean the hinglish words she uses. The writing just felt off.
It improved considerably however when she wrote first person autobiographical accounts in The Mad Tibetan, D, Thulli and Balraj Sahni. I wish the entire book had been vignettes from her life - a proper memoir. Now that I would have read with interest.
The fiction first half was awfully written although the premises were good. Themes of loneliness, abandonment, coming of age were attempted but tackled so superficially as to leave no permanent impressions. Characters changed their personalities instantly and casually without any evidence of deeper motivations. It all felt random and meaningless.
I don’t know if she’s written anything else but in my opinion she should stick to acting, painting and photography unless she writes her Memoir!
December 4, 2013
While I applaud Deepti Naval for writing these short stories, her book was not very impressive.
Her stories felt like the writer in her was testing the waters, and was treading softly.
So I will just hope that she will not try to be so restrained as a writer, and will write with a fury and passion, all those stories that lie locked within her.
Some of the stories were better than others, Thulli, Bombay Central, Birds and the Piano Tuner, being the ones I liked.
Yet it feels harsh to criticize Deepti, for she seems such a gentle soul and has been one of my favorite actresses.
Her stories felt like the writer in her was testing the waters, and was treading softly.
So I will just hope that she will not try to be so restrained as a writer, and will write with a fury and passion, all those stories that lie locked within her.
Some of the stories were better than others, Thulli, Bombay Central, Birds and the Piano Tuner, being the ones I liked.
Yet it feels harsh to criticize Deepti, for she seems such a gentle soul and has been one of my favorite actresses.
February 28, 2012
Well I was really curious about this book for Dipti Naval has been a favorite actor all the time but as writer I had no clue. The stories are heart warming and well written. but feels like the book has been wrapped up in a hurry. The last 3 stories are not fiction per se but they are experiences of Dipti Naval the actress. I am not saying they are not good but they should be part of another book not this. Ideally two and half stars.
April 4, 2013
expected soooo much more considering it's deepti naval who has written it . But still ok for an one time read.
April 28, 2013
treatment is nice...few stories are really good ...simple and elegant
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews