Everglow: A Romance

by Nandita Bose

When her father’s unexpected death renders Disha homeless, she is brought to Kolkata by her father’s best friend, to live with them. Home is now a rambling joint family where there are more young men than Disha has even known in all her life. A far cry from the simplicity of her life back in Hamirpur, Disha sets about trying to fit in with the rhythms of this household and its members.
And then she meets the second son and star of the family—Siddhant. Sid is the lead guitarist of the rock band, Derozio Dreams, and when he discovers that Disha is a classically trained vocalist, he brings her to his band to enhance their fusion repertoire. Music becomes their meeting ground and with Sid involving himself in her initiation into the band, they draw closer, to the chagrin of some family members, especially his mother, who thinks Disha, the outsider, has transgressed.
When Disha’s elder sister wants her to come back to Hamirpur to be seen as a prospective bride for her husband’s cousin, Disha’s fate hangs by a slender thread. Will the promise of love and the music that Disha and Sid make together triumph over all odds?

240 pages, Paperback

Published July 1, 2019

Reviews

[A · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘You are an artist, a musician. You play Western classical and Western current music that owes it genesis to church music, hymns, choirs and the need to go beyond them. You live in India and you have been influenced by Indian classical traditions, part of which are also rooted in temples and prayers. You have the dervishes and the entire Sufi tradition of transcendental mysticism. You can identify with all of this. The only god here is beauty and creation. Art and music are by essence secular.’


Such a beautifully written book, overflowing with love for classic, carnatic and rock music. Such a real portrayal of modern Indian families, their struggles and romances. I enjoyed every page and flew through it!

[Sudeepa Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A smooth read, this novel flows like a symphony. As someone who enjoys music, I wonder why I haven’t picked up music-based stories before. I particularly liked how the author managed to build strong flesh and blood characters without expending too many words and paragraphs. Thus, making sure that you are never too far from the journey of the two protagonists, Disha and Sid.

An orphaned girl navigates the tumultuous changes in her life as she finds a place in a new household, a musical band, and the world.

[Arti · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I read the blurb, I felt that it would be about a little girl brought to Kolkata from Hamirpur by her father’s friend and she grows up in the household and then Sid comes back from his college or from where he stays and works.
The cover is so beautiful, that I was drawn into the book from there itself. The story has been written beautifully in first person from the point of view of Disha. The past and the present have been woven well and not once did I get confused. The characters, plenty of them, all the cousins, the uncles and aunts and the fellow members of the band have been developed in a way that I could find them relatable. As the story moves back and forth between the past and the present, the characters also start developing and some back stories of the characters are visible. Though, I would have loved to know more about both Disha and Sid’s pasts and also how the band came to be.
The joint family system has been portrayed in detail and shows the ups and downs that actually come with it, and at the end, a family is always a family. I could understand Sid’s mother’s insecurity. The relationship between Sid and his sister Nina has been described beautifully. She has portrayed the relationship between Disha and Sid delicately and the conversations between them are so natural and real. I was rooting for Disha and Sid through the story. The easy camaraderie and understanding between all the friends/ band members has been captured beautifully.
The language is simple and the story just flows from one page to another. Once I got into the third chapter of the story, I was hooked as to what would happen next. The author knowledge of music, comes out beautifully in the book and also how she takes us into behind-the-scenes of a rock band and a rock show. She has even subtly mentioned a few social issues. Each chapter, including the name of the book, is the name of a rock song.
A must read for everyone, whether you love music or not. This is one book that I will cherish and there are some portions in the book which will read again and again.
An excellent read. I really loved this book and finished reading it and completing the review in four hours flat.

[Natasha · Rating 5 out of 5]

When news of destruction is assaulting you from every side, what you need is a well crafted novel with characters you can relate to. This fit the bill perfectly.
Recommend it to everyone who loves a good story well told. And if you live in a house of music (even if you are tone deaf yourself), this is certainly for you.

[Gaurav Lakhi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I shall begin by complimenting the author's impeccable knowledge of music. A couple of years back, I read ‘RASIA’ by Koral Dasgupta that taught me so much about dance and now this book enlightens me about the numerous ragas. I envy these Bangla women. Two things I know best about are –Cricket and Mathematics. Almost everyone is an expert in the former and hardly anyone wants to know about the latter. SIGH.
We had Music as a compulsory vocational subject in class ten. We had all but one period a week and they used to give us grades that went in our mark sheet. It was only the third week when my teacher told me not to come to her class ever. I had learnt Arohan and Awrohan by then and can sing it even today in my hoarse voice. Reading this book, I regretted to have missed the opportunity to learn music a bit more.

Besides Music, the joint family, Sid-the protagonist is a part of, impresses me. They disagree on almost everything but they dwell together. It would have made no difference to the story if the author showcased it as a nuclear family but I am glad, she chooses a joint family. Joint families yield so much just at the cost of a little bit of patience and tolerance. Often, authors make such choices instinctively and tend to find a justification afterwards same as she chooses a British woman as the protagonist's mother who plays an undertone villain and despite her veneer of refinement, she does no good except imparting her complexion to her kids and English nicknames to every kid of the family.

Then comes the band -Derozio Dreams. Read the book and I vouch, you would long to be a part of a Rock band yourself or at least yearn to watch a Rock concert live. I do.

There are two remarkable aspects of this book- Music and Writing.
'EVERGLOW' would have been a passable and flat love story but for the chapters involving Music and concerts. The story appears more lively and cheerful when the band-crew comes into the narration. Music has a magical aura to enrich, enliven and buoy up everything.
The disciplined 'Point of View' in the first-person-narrative is commendable. Often, authors infiltrate the boundaries while telling a story in the first person. The author restrained herself and didn't hesitate to introduce new names and characters of the protagonist's family even in the second half as and when the narrator is introduced to them.
The prose of Nandita Bose always has the tone of poetry which coaxes the reader to go on and on even though the first twenty pages were unfathomable. Even as she peruses the glorious but enigmatic equations of relationships, her mind cannot escape the horrors of religion and homosexuality.
Her authority over the language and rich vocabulary are enviable. The adjectives are not clichéd. Dialogues are piercing. And, to top that, her understanding of Man-Woman dynamics is subtle and though you may not accept the psychology she imparts to her characters, you will feel curious to know what they do next.

Sid outshines all other characters. He is depicted as a star and appears so. He is spontaneous, flexible, responsible, dutiful and caring. There are almost a dozen other male characters but no one comes close to him. Nandita Bose certainly portrays male characters better than their counterparts.

Disha annoys me. She acts more than her age. She is indecisive, uncertain, and hence vulnerable. Although she is from a small town where even mobile phones do not work and she also confesses that her new home has more young men she has ever known in all her life, she is easy-going with boys and allows them to touch her, cuddle her, and embrace her without inhibitions. She aspires so much but surrenders easily, allowing others to decide every dawn of her life. I feel she is fortunate to have met Sid, whom she calls annoying and intolerable. To me, she appears like the nightingale in Vikram Seth's famous poem 'The Frog and the Nightingale'. She performs with great panache on stage but her talent hardly makes her confident otherwise. I will not call it characterization-glitch but, I feel sorry for her.
‘EVERGLOW’ is a brilliant read for the lovers of music and literature.

[Meenakshi Singh · Rating 5 out of 5]

A riveting and gripping book on love with subtle, beautiful, poetic writing of the author. Loved the finesse and the depth in her writing. It was unputdownable as I read it in 4 hours , curious to know what happens to the girl from a humble background with talent. The nuisances and setting of a musical band in India is well portrayed and the unease felt by mother is so unnerving. It's so vivid that it seems like a movie. Really devoured upon Everglow.

[Sujata Parashar · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read all of Nandita's books...and like her prev ones, this one too stole my heart. Also, mildly surprised by her deep knowledge of Hindustani classical music.