Love in times of conflict
Ahmed Faiyaz’s second novel is not a sequel to his first, but in its content, Another Chance takes off from where Love, Life and All That Jazz left. If the latter was about a bunch of youngsters trying to find their feet in the world and dealing with relationships at the same time, the former is about people settled in their lives and careers, but still trying to cope with the complex nature of relationships.
Another Chance is essentially the story of Ruheen, a beautiful young woman, who seems to have the knack of either getting involved with the wrong type of man, or if she does find a more suitable man, the relationship does not last for long. The other principal character in the novel is Aditya, who is selfless in his love for Ruheen, but because he takes his career too seriously, fails to stand by her when she needs him the most. This pushes Ruheen into the arms of Varun, Ruheen’s first ever crush, who has turned over a new leaf and impresses her with his care and affection. The second half of the novel is mainly about Ruheen being torn between the love of the two men who matter to her most, and how she chooses between them; this is also where the novel is at its most exciting. There are other minor characters too, such as Rohan, Ruheen’s abusive husband at one point, and Ruheen’s affectionate grandfather, who come in handy in advancing the plot.
Relationships today are not simple boy-meets-girl and both live happily ever after affair. Even where there are no obvious villains, other practical factors such as the pressures of modern life, career, distances, families, all come into play. Another Chance captures this reality of relationships set in fast moving modern day urban India, London and Amsterdam. Love is not simply won or lost, but is also regained and then lost again mirroring the frailties of the human mind and heart. The novel also asks the question, whether they would be willing to give life, and the things that they value the most, another chance, even if it quite does not make logical sense. Ruheen, Aditya and Varun are faced with this question time and again.
Faiyaz is very clear about his readers. He wants them to be able to identify with the characters, their stories, the difficult choices they face, and the decisions they make. The writing does not pretend to be literary. It is simple and does the job of getting the reader’s attention hooked to the story.
Such a reader, who is looking forward to a realistic take on how relationships work (or don’t) in contemporary India, in simple, relatable prose, would do well if he picks up a copy of Another Chance.
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