back in 2005, i read jhumpa lahiri's novel called the namesake, and enjoyed it enough that i wrote a blog entry about her reflections on bi-culturalism.
tonight richard and i went to see the cinema interpretation, which interestingly is only showing in one local cinema, in nearby feltham, which has a large indian population and therefore shows lots of bollywood films. i always struggle a bit watching films after i have read and enjoyed books they're based on, but this movie was refreshing. the characters are very well developed, the relationships are believable and the commentary on family and culture are nearly as good as the book. the only sad part is that a movie doesn't allow you to "hear" lahiri's amazingly clear and clean writing style. if you saw and liked this movie, and are interested, i recommend you read the book, and pick up lahiri's book of short stories, interpreter of maladies, while you're at the bookstore.
I read both of Lahiri's books a few years ago and really did enjoy them. I've been looking forward to seeing the namesake on screen for a while....though, trying to imagine Kal Penn as anything but "Kumar" at Whitecastle will take a bit of work.
Posted by: Ravi | April 06, 2007 at 03:41 PM