Book review by Businessworld

BOOK REVIEW: Indian By Choice
Another Eastside Story
Chetna Mehra
Indian By Choice;By Amit Dasgupta; Wisdom TreePages: 93 ; Price: Rs 395Buy Borrow AvoidIf you have already seen a number of Indian English flicks based on American Indians or America Born Confused Desis, then the plot in Indian By Choice, written by a diplomat Amit Dasgupta, is nothing new to you. In fact, it's not even half as intriguing as these flicks are. With a clichéd story idea, the only fresh perspective of the book is its art work by Neelabh Banerjee, the national arts and illustrations editor of Times of India, which makes it a little less predictable. The story revolves around a second generation American Indian Mandy who visits India for the first time and gets a second chance to revive his preconceived notions about India after staying in the country for a brief period of time. Mandy comes to India to attend a cousin's wedding and finds himself flooded with facts about India, which comes to his notice only after meeting people from diverse backgrounds. The chain of events convince him to re-visit his Indian roots. As is the nature of graphic novels, a recent trend in book publishing, you will carry on reading Indian By Choice simply to rediscover the joy of reading a book with pictures. The book can be a sound read for those coming down to India for the first time and looking for a crash course on the country. With a stereo-typical story line replete with scenes from Bollywood flicks targeted at NRI crowd, the book is not meant for serious reading.