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Fly, Hasina, Fly
Meet Hasina Mansoor, vending machine attendant at the Airport Departure Lounge. From her vantage point, Hasina watches the planes take off outside the glass doors and secretly dreams of being on (even piloting) one of them. While selling forty-rupee tea isn't getting her any closer to that, Hasina keeps her spirits up by making friends (and enemies) among the other airport staff, including the treacherous Cookie Lady, the know-it-all Coupon Man, the beautiful Natasha Singh and her tasbih-wielding boss, Haji Osman. Home is no less mine-filled, with a twin-sister who demands money constantly, a little brother who doesn't look like he's going to pass his fourth class and parents who are more concerned with the ongoing feud with the upstairs neighbours, Laila auntie's family. Hasina's secret love affair with her cousin, Eza, is a spark of joy in this homestead of constant worry and absurdity, but can she trust him completely? Previously published as Tales from a Vending Machine, Fly, Hasina, Fly is a darkly humorous, touching story, and its heroine will stay with readers long after their flight has landed.
232 pages, Paperback
Published January 5, 2020
54 people want to read
About the author
Anees Salim
21 books157 followersAnees Salim is an advertising professional and is employed with Draft FCB Ulka. He loves being invisible and lives with his wife and son in Kochi. Vanity Bagh is his second novel.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
August 9, 2021
Fun at times but not enough to ignore all that was wrong with this book.
July 12, 2021
Irritating! I finished the book and had to google if this book was Indeed written by Anees Salim - the author of the poignant "Small Town sea". Unfortunately yes - the only saving grace is it is built on his very first manuscript.
What starts out as an attempted 'comedy' of an airport vending machine operator's adventures ends up being a petty vengeful story of a self centered character. One of the characters tells the heroine that she is neither evil or dumb - just innocent!
Hasina Mansoor takes flights of imagination everyday at her job observing people and inventing their stories. She is supposed to be a fan of Bin-laden and saddam hussain and hence hates the 'juice' and Americans. But then she hides it to the world. At work, her idea of taking revenge on people she doesn't like (like her boss) is to mix moth balls in their tea or to make up rumours that are scandalous and try to spread them.
She lives with her parents, a twin sister and a Learning Disorder brother in a home that is disputed with her cousin's family. She falls in love with the said cousin and there again - she acts out of spite that has lasting implications.
I can appreciate a character who cannot be really liked - but then the whole name calling (monkey? Really?) and bad English gets on your nerves after the initial few pages. The attempted 'humor' is jarring and the pettyness galore a bit too much.
If the character was to review this book it would be - Fly, Hasina Fly and hope you crash
What starts out as an attempted 'comedy' of an airport vending machine operator's adventures ends up being a petty vengeful story of a self centered character. One of the characters tells the heroine that she is neither evil or dumb - just innocent!
Hasina Mansoor takes flights of imagination everyday at her job observing people and inventing their stories. She is supposed to be a fan of Bin-laden and saddam hussain and hence hates the 'juice' and Americans. But then she hides it to the world. At work, her idea of taking revenge on people she doesn't like (like her boss) is to mix moth balls in their tea or to make up rumours that are scandalous and try to spread them.
She lives with her parents, a twin sister and a Learning Disorder brother in a home that is disputed with her cousin's family. She falls in love with the said cousin and there again - she acts out of spite that has lasting implications.
I can appreciate a character who cannot be really liked - but then the whole name calling (monkey? Really?) and bad English gets on your nerves after the initial few pages. The attempted 'humor' is jarring and the pettyness galore a bit too much.
If the character was to review this book it would be - Fly, Hasina Fly and hope you crash
June 26, 2020
It's been a long time since I had read a book which had tickled all my senses. When I tumbled over the blurb of this book written by Anees Salim whose works I had been longing to pick, I was not at all hesitant to grab this.
✈️
Hasina Mansoor works at a vending machine at an International airport. She is a college drop out thanks to the continuous loss of her father's textile showroom. She supports her family by working and contributing her salary for the education of her twin sister Shamla and her little brother Ali.
✈️
I can't say I had laughed my guts out but I was chuckling and smiling all the while when reading her innocent thought process, her naive enmity towards America and Juice ( this the way she calls 'Jews' ☺️!!) , cursing people under her breath, her Googling experiences, petty mischievous deeds taking advantage of her twin sister, silly excuses to the owner of vending machine, and endless arguments with people at adjacent counters & air hostesses at airport.
✈️
If incase anyone gets on her nerves and pulls her leg testing her patience, she has her own way of taking revenge by diluting moth balls in the tea or coffee ordered 😁. My favourite of many such funny incidents strewn hilariously are her fancied reverie about WTC crash and her encounter with Pakistan cricketer Shaid Afridi😊. Also Hasina has a secret love with Eza, son of their disputed relatives living upstairs. The consequences of being in relation with Eza is something to be read and enjoyed.
✈️
Though she appears to be light spirited and at times dumb with easy going nature, to the core she nurses a mettle refraining from a few 'incidents' which toils her heart and resisting all kind of feelings that comes by her way. Among multiple shades of her quirk, there is also a pinch of selfishness too.
✈️
This is my first read by Anees Salim. Initially published as ' Tales from Vending Machine' later named and released as ' Fly Hasina Fly' is a kind of suprise read to me.This is because I have been blindly preparing myself to conceive some serious and poignant stories from Anees Salim as most of the reviews of his works here highlight his eloquoncy in articulating grief and loss. I was in complete awe of his writing mirroring genuine emotions of a teenager and dealing dark humour with sharp limitations. I highly recommend this as it's a perfect read in this trying times and makes us forget the happenings around us just atleast for a while.
✈️
Hasina Mansoor works at a vending machine at an International airport. She is a college drop out thanks to the continuous loss of her father's textile showroom. She supports her family by working and contributing her salary for the education of her twin sister Shamla and her little brother Ali.
✈️
I can't say I had laughed my guts out but I was chuckling and smiling all the while when reading her innocent thought process, her naive enmity towards America and Juice ( this the way she calls 'Jews' ☺️!!) , cursing people under her breath, her Googling experiences, petty mischievous deeds taking advantage of her twin sister, silly excuses to the owner of vending machine, and endless arguments with people at adjacent counters & air hostesses at airport.
✈️
If incase anyone gets on her nerves and pulls her leg testing her patience, she has her own way of taking revenge by diluting moth balls in the tea or coffee ordered 😁. My favourite of many such funny incidents strewn hilariously are her fancied reverie about WTC crash and her encounter with Pakistan cricketer Shaid Afridi😊. Also Hasina has a secret love with Eza, son of their disputed relatives living upstairs. The consequences of being in relation with Eza is something to be read and enjoyed.
✈️
Though she appears to be light spirited and at times dumb with easy going nature, to the core she nurses a mettle refraining from a few 'incidents' which toils her heart and resisting all kind of feelings that comes by her way. Among multiple shades of her quirk, there is also a pinch of selfishness too.
✈️
This is my first read by Anees Salim. Initially published as ' Tales from Vending Machine' later named and released as ' Fly Hasina Fly' is a kind of suprise read to me.This is because I have been blindly preparing myself to conceive some serious and poignant stories from Anees Salim as most of the reviews of his works here highlight his eloquoncy in articulating grief and loss. I was in complete awe of his writing mirroring genuine emotions of a teenager and dealing dark humour with sharp limitations. I highly recommend this as it's a perfect read in this trying times and makes us forget the happenings around us just atleast for a while.
July 15, 2021
3.75 stars rounded to 4
Chose this book as part of our 2 month Bibliophile challenge.
Most of my reading buddies hated it and hence started with trepidation.
But it was a good, fast paced read.
Haseena is not an angel , she's just a human being full of faults who is not averse to seizing opportunities for herself by hook or by crook.
She lives with her parents , an identical twin sister and a much younger brother in a partitioned house , the other portion occupied by her property feuding paternal aunt and family.
Haseena gives me a glimpse into her life and how the air terminus works on normal as well as unusual days.
Enjoyed the humor and sarcasm, though at times it went overboard.
Don't regret reading the book.
Chose this book as part of our 2 month Bibliophile challenge.
Most of my reading buddies hated it and hence started with trepidation.
But it was a good, fast paced read.
Haseena is not an angel , she's just a human being full of faults who is not averse to seizing opportunities for herself by hook or by crook.
She lives with her parents , an identical twin sister and a much younger brother in a partitioned house , the other portion occupied by her property feuding paternal aunt and family.
Haseena gives me a glimpse into her life and how the air terminus works on normal as well as unusual days.
Enjoyed the humor and sarcasm, though at times it went overboard.
Don't regret reading the book.
July 15, 2020
Fly Hasina Fly is all about Hasina Mansoor, her dreams, her thoughts, her realities. A salesgirl at a tea vending machine in an airport, Hasina always ponders over the things happening behind the boarding gates which are far beyond her reach.The factors which catalyse Hasina to move forward are intertwined among various emotions: Love, bondage, revenge, freedom. Hasina always attempts to find difference in her mundane life which as always drags her back into the absys of pain and sorrow. The brilliance of the writer lies in not confining the reader to either black or white but maintaining a shade of grey throughout the narration.
Death as always plays an intriguing role in this Anees Salim narrative.
Is it normal to be selfish, to escape the cages of reality and fly high towards one's dreams and desires.?
Death as always plays an intriguing role in this Anees Salim narrative.
Is it normal to be selfish, to escape the cages of reality and fly high towards one's dreams and desires.?
July 13, 2021
Not my kind of book.
July 4, 2021
Even though it was a good read overall, I didn't quite like the way it concluded. The author did well to build the characters in the story, and it is quite interesting how each character's development is connected to that of Hasina's. However, I felt that the climax lifted off too quickly and then landed in a non-conclusive manner.
September 13, 2023
A quick read which makes you love-hate the protagonist.A story which gives a twist to sibling rivalry often existing but never acknowledged.You definitely feel bad for the wronged but yet you cannot deny the courage it takes to accept your grey nature.
June 9, 2020
A hilarious novel where the protagonist is an ambitious young girl undeterred by her circumstances. She invents words to give expression to her frustrations, the epitome of which is the Google search episode.
The ending keeps you ruminating on whether she took the right step, but you cannot not be on her side specially considering the insight one gains into her life through the reading.
The ending keeps you ruminating on whether she took the right step, but you cannot not be on her side specially considering the insight one gains into her life through the reading.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews