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Kkrishnaa’s Konfessions |
Author : Smita Jain Publisher : Westland Cost : Indian Rupees 250 |
Take a single young professional, place her in Mumbai’s TV soap industry, throw in a murder and lots of (traffic-jammed) chase scenes, introduce a handsome ex-best-friend and voilá – you have a piece of desi chick-lit. If it sounds stodgily formulaic, rest assured that Smita Jain’s racy Kkrishnaa’s Konfessions is actually a toothsome devil’s food cupcake of a novel. The roguish streak running through this witty detective comedy is due to Jain’s irreverent indulgence in oddly specific stereotypes (creative directors are universally described thus: “short, fat, chain-smoking bitch”), unabashedly frequent instances of deviant behaviour and the feisty main character, Kkrishnaa herself.
Kkrishnaa, like her creator, is a scriptwriter for teleserials and an amateur student of psychology. She’s also brazenly competitive – to the point of suspecting fellow script-writer, closet existential novelist and sexy love interest Dev Trivedi of plagiarising her every line. While our heroine is secretly observing a swanky apartment block for source material, the two happen to witness a celebrity murder.
As the bickering pair try to stay a step ahead of the assassin, they hook up with a bumptious police inspector and a stuttering CBI agent and stumble into webs of conspiracy spun by hypocritical politicians, pimping swamis and adulterous housewives. Somewhere between dodging bullets and seducing her seniors, Kkrishnaa discovers that she still has feelings for former friend Dev, and that those feelings go beyond the merely Platonic.
Despite the broad strokes with which Jain paints her characters, this book is an engaging and offbeat caper. Like Kkrishnaa’s scripts, it’s “convoluted enough to guarantee viewer interest, but not to the extent of leaving them confused”. As the protagonist overcomes
a case of writer’s block by weaving the murder investigation into her serial, the reader also notes that the book’s characters are thinly veiled allusions to actual dons, gangsters and film stars. Jain liberally cartoonifies her characters, but Kkrishnaa has the right blend of wit, sex and twists to keep this reader interested – at least for a few hours. Sonal Shah
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Source : Time Out Mumbai ISSUE 23 Friday, July 11, 2008 |
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The Statesman
New Delhi 7 August 2008
The ‘K’ Factor
If you mix together loads of drama, romance, illicit relationships, hatreds, Ks, As and other emotions, you don’t just get a saah bahu saga but a book on the subject. Kkrishnaa’s Konfessions is the story of Kkrishnaa (actually Priya but numerologically Kkrishnaa) who is the successful scriptwriter of KSK – Kkangan Souten Ke, the top soap on SuperNova Channel. Young and ambitious, Kkrishnaa would do anything to maintain the number one slot. However, she has a writer’s block which threatens her job. She is all excited to chart out the next few episodes when she is politely asked by her boss Rajne to take a break….(more of the plot)…
With myriad plots and sub plots…Smita Jain’s writing is lucid and crisp. Having scripted numerous screenplays for films and television serial she ensures a racy read. The characters and plots are thrown in intelligently and are well connected with each other. The reader thus never feels lost. The plot of KSK also develops all this while. Kkrishnaa’s Konfessions, thus, has all the ingredients of a Bollywood masala film…
Here’s an excerpt from the book… (excerpt from Kkrishnaa’s Konfessions – Chapter One)
Read the First Chapter.
Hi Smita. This is Rinkie. I just finished reading your book today… I couldnt help, i just so badly wanted to know what’s gonna happen next and next and next!!! Its a brilliant book! Funny and a delight to read… It was exciting to travel on a journey of a dangerous, curious and exciting ride and feel the way Kris feels all the while. The book kept me captivated till the last page.. And the best part what i liked about the book is the way the end is… Most of the books disappoint at the end (sometimes) but that was not in this case.. And somewhere i felt there was a genuine approach towards writing it. It was very refreshing to read it. Kris’s effort to solve the case and be on her toes all the time, her ambitious streak, her love for the special someone, mixed emotions wit smart tactics.. everything seemed practical at the same time as well…
@ Rinkie..thank you so much…that’s one of the best praises i’ve had for the book. I’m so glad you enjoyed it. And thank you for writing 🙂
Hi Smita,
At the outset let me thank you for giving me a wonderful weekend. I did hear some nasty stuff from my wife for not being able to leave the book and spend time with her, but it was worth it
After a long time, I came across a book which has the all the necessary ingredients to be a best seller. The chases, the mystery and the climax were very thrilling while the mush scenes were a big turn on. All in all a big paisa vasool (VFM) in bollywood terms. I had my apprehensions of spending Rs 250 since I had just purchased and read another one the previous week for Rs 95 but it was worth it. I finished three novels in the last three weeks viz. three mistakes of my life, almost single and krishnaa’s confessions, while the other two were good, yours was the best.
I have already recommended this book to a number of my friends and colleagues and have even gifted the same to a couple of my team members.
I look forward to your next novel already and this one being made into a feature film.
I am already your big fan. It would be great to catch up if you are in Hyderabad sometime.
God bless and Hail Smita
@Saurabh…Wow! That’s some praise indeed. But I’m glad you enjoyed it. As you know writing is a slotary exercise with more than it’s fair share of pain. Apprecaition from readers and their coming away feeling satisfied makes the entire effort worthwhile. Thanks again!
Two day back only , i came across this blog and today 13-JAN-2009 , saw this book in best seller list of “The Hindu Metro Plus” … Wow … congratulation
Oh wow, that is good news indeed. I didn’t know that. Which edition of Hindu Metro Plus?
I join the growing list of fan club of Smita..