The Patiala Quartet

by Neel Kamal Puri

A new series of handpicked classics from the world's most renowned short fiction writers. The Masterpieces of World Fiction series brings together the best loved short stories by the great masters of the genre - from Chekov and Maupassant, Kipling and Wilde, to O. Henry and Saki and Tolstoy and Conrad. Thoughtfully compiled by the bestselling author Terry O' Brien, this series is a great way for readers to revisit old favourites and for introducing literary masterpieces to newer, younger readers.

Genres: Fiction

174 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Neel Kamal Puri was born in Ludhiana, Punjab. She teaches English literature and media studies at Chandigarhs Post Graduate Government College for Girls. Her published works include a novel, The Patiala Quartet.

Reviews

[Avishek Bhattacharjee · Rating 3 out of 5]

This could have been a much better book if those strong characters did justice to the story.It felt like disjoint sets and a desperate attempt to make it work,though by bits and pieces it provided the desi-English novel (so deeply rooted to Punjab,etiquette,food habits,mannerism and detailing of the torrid times) flavor.I still feel the relationship showed here between the four characters are naive and could have been better if it was not an 180 pages book.That hurried ending somehow killed the substance which the author really wanted to depict through her words,events and era.The narrative has a satisfyingly unsentimental tone and thereby in event of terrible things the surprising amount of humor and hope was out of the blue.The sharp and intelligent feminist tadka and anti-feudal fire has provided some spark but not enough for a Patiala peg :P

[Swapna Sanand · Rating 1 out of 5]

Several bloggers recommended this book on their blog as a must-read glimpse of life from Patiala. Curious to get a real life feel of the story, I had great expectations from the book and the first few chapters brought forth some memorable and strong characters, with sentences that lingered thanks to the apt usage of humour. Then suddenly the narrative became disjointed beyond redemption. I persuaded myself to keep trudgling along to read what happens next because the characters had really captivated me. This is one of the few rarest of the rare books that I gave up on and could not bring myself to keep reading. Some interesting twists, better sketched characters and a real-life narrative of Patiala would have been fun to read.

[Fadillah · Rating 3 out of 5]

“But Karuna was quite sure that she was not going to marry Croaky. She had cowered under many an angry deluge, ducking into the darkness under the staircase. She knew that life did continue afterwards. She was not going to let the anger, now directed against her, lay the rules of her existence”.
- The Patiala Quartet by Neel Kamal Puri.
.
.
I almost DNF this book but i just dont want to break my clean record this year hence i decided to keep persevering and that moment came when Karuna decided to cancel her wedding once she knew that Croaky has demanded Car from Karuna’s parent as part of his dowry. This reminded me of one scene in the “Made in Heaven” series when the bride says to the groom once she got to know that her husband to be demanded dowry from her parents. She said with calm demenour “i’m not gonna pay anyone to marry me” then walked out from her wedding like a boss she is. (If anyone never watch this series, i would highly recommend it). Okay back to the review. The second moment, when Karuna outsmarted her father and decided to just leave her house to live her own life knowing by staying at Patiala she will not be treated right by her and forgotten by her mother. This is a short book with a vision to be an interesting but fell short in execution. I like Karuna and Minnie’s chapters but as a whole book, it does not work well. The writing is disjointed as we jumped POV from one character to one another and ended up following 2 major characters which is Karuna and Micheal. Minnie and Monty were introduced much earlier in the book but only to narrate the relations that Monty, Minnie, Micheal, Karuna have with each other and how Croaky came into the picture. All of them grew up in Patiala. Monty is Minnie’s brother, Micheal is Karuna’s brother while Monty and Micheal are cousins. As most Indian usually lives in a very close knit family, this book pretty much a reflection on the tradition which family often required to be within a close proximity. Hence, rumors, arguments, scandals and expectations often finds away to embed themselves adding turmoil in the relation. The character that i would like to know more which is Aunty Veer faded right away after her arguments with Karuna ended. The book has its enjoyable moment but sadly, not many. A subtle hint of. domestic violence and marital rape happened in Micheal and Karuna’s parents marriage is disturbing. It is interesting to note that while Micheal never perceived or felt that his mother endured marital rape whenever his father forced it. Suicide and Severe Depression was also part of the story but rather than finding the right way to deal with it, the author showed us how typical society resolve it. Some blame the calamity on the stubborn daughter, some pushed the sister to take responsibility on it - rather than going to therapy. Overall, this is a typical tale of upper middle class Punjab family that still has a connection to their royal family lineage. We can see that when the author describe the lands, properties, titles and inheritance. The prospect of marriage also pointed out that equal class and status is a much needed requirements before one can be accepted in the family. We also saw Croaky decided to make Karuna his mission so that he could be part of the family. Croaky realized he will be amount to nobody if he does not married Karuna as his family does not have the royal blood or property compared to Karuna. The class differences is apparent and it was majorly shown in Karuna and Croaky chapter. Honestly, if the book decided to just focus on Karuna and Minnie escaping Patiala to chase their dream and gain their own freedom, this would have better book. I was so tired reading about 2 spoiled sons *cough *Monty *cough *Micheal, being dotted by their mother , being the pride of their father but only to be shown at the end of the day, their sisters surpassed them in all levels and they end up amount to nothing.

[Ruby Jusoh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confusing and disjointed. The Patiala Quartet is a thin yet draggy book. The plot is actually interesting but the narration is very jumpy. I did not enjoy the second half of the book at all. Not sure if this is my struggle with Indian fiction.
.
The story is about four cousins who hailed from upper class and middle class families during the 1980. The setting is Punjab and one could feel the decline of the old ways. The female cousins, Karuna and Minnie, experienced more drawbacks due to familial pressure - marriage, dowries, stalkers and parental control. In the end, they had to run away to live independently. The male cousins were pretty messed-up too, they had neither clear vision nor purpose.
.
Hopelessness is what I get from reading the story. Hopeless of youth? Is that relatable? I am not sure. Always a dilemma when a story is interesting BUT the writing does not engross you at all. Overall, an underwhelming read.
.

[Baljit · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting novella set in the turbulent 1980s of Punjab, with an array of interconnected colorful characters.

[Nabeela · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Patiala Quartet was a random pick from the confines of my college’s library this month, the subtle charm of a bustling old street on the cover was what caught my attention. The simple yet intricately built characters only led me to steadily turn pages in fascination on my rides back home. Neel Kamal Puri has woven a delicate tale with two pairs of emotionally battered siblings trying to find solace in different avenues, trying to exist in the tempestuous town that Patiala was then. Michael with his bike, Monty with his books, Minnie and her quest to leave behind Patiala and Karuna’s subsequent scandals.

After reading other reviews, I’d have to agree on the fact that in some places the scenes were oddly placed, and instead of extensive information on characters that had nothing much to do with the plot I’d have appreciated more insight into the male characters’ thoughts instead. But the vulnerabilities of the four characters still managed to evoke a strange feeling within me. Perhaps, it was Monty’s silence that echoed beyond the pages of the book and maybe that proved to be a decent compensation.

All in all, this book is a good enough read, one with fragile issues sprinkled in the background, yet not overpowering enough to bore one away. Witty, hilarious and tumultuous at the same time is what I’d describe it to be, and definitely one of my favorite reads this year!

[Keval · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think this book could have been a little longer to develop the characters a little better. It felt a little rushed in parts. I wasn't exactly sure how to feel for the characters. Either that, or I was expecting a bit more about the militancy which held Punjab hostage during that decade.