Flight of the Hilsa

by Amit Shankar

Alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here

What is happiness? A by-product of success or a state of mind? Flight of the Hilsa explores and demystifies the same while tracing the story of Avantika Sengupta. As a creative soul—restless and opinionated—life to her has been unkind, even in her chosen career, painting. A chanced encounter with a boat owner; some twenty years her senior, changes everything. With a new found 'success mantra' and the 'boat guy' by her side, she starts striding towards her long-cherished notion of happiness—of being a rich and famous painter. But will the Hilsa discover her true calling and happiness? A gripping tale till the end.

335 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

loner, drifter, coffee lover, great cook, an avid music buff who is inspired by classic rock, blues, metal and jazz. loves to strum his guitar.

Reviews

[Linda]

"the ostentatious setting of the background, it appeared to me as if infested with adjectives. It appeared as fillers and you could have very well controlled the length of your work. There were chapters where scene and setting have been over emphasized than the characters... not bad, atleast different from CB and DD"

[Amal]

I am a bag of conflicting emotions after reading this. I give this a 3.5 rating. I was critical of the author's setting and characters in the beginning but later, they all seemed to have some or the other life lessons up their sleeve. That made this tolerable and also, this was far more better than a Chetan Bhaghat read.(No offence CB. I just don't feel your books.)

[Inderpreet Kaur Uppal]

What a deep & thoughtful analogy.
This is the second book by that I have read by Amit Shankar and I like his writing style more and more. The ideas he has expressed through the struggle, rise and fall of Avantika are indeed deep and thought provoking. The character and flaws of Avi, her self-absorption, her denial, her struggle and liberation are all worded expertly with a taut narration.

At all times we are trying to fit in, shine and succeed. All the trivial yet paradoxically hyped things we humans yearn for. We have love, we want more. We have money, we want more. We have fame, we want more. Life for all of us is searching and yearning for that little bit extra. Slowly but surely the writing and story grows upon the reader. Involving and absorbing us. Making us realize that all of us have a little bit of Avantika, a little bit of Sunny and Captain within us.

Amit Shankar has done a remarkable job of expressing all our angst and yearning of youth through Avantika, she is the Hilsa, her journey is like that of a Hilsa, her story is reminiscent of the trials and tribulations faced by many an artist. The author has explored all the facets of an artist’s struggle as well as the losses in personal life. How she is equated to the Hilsa? You have to read the book to find the analogy / comparison. I found it very relevant and well expressed.

I found the loss of so many loved ones and family members dying a bit sad and felt that one odd member could have lived! Too much negative came with so many deaths but it worked for the book so Amit knew what he was writing. That Avantika came from a broken home only added to the sympathy she generated for me as a reader. I found the almost orphan like status so heart wrenching, especially at times when a mother’s touch or wise word might have made all the difference. Such are the harsh truths of life, not all of us are fortunate enough to have it all.

The simile of a love being like the two pillars of a temple was so well written in the book, at the right time and explained in the right way along with the beautiful poem. The book has some really good moments especially when the Captain is shining through!

In spite of being disadvantaged at many fronts Avantika managed to not only survive but leave a mark is what really worked for me in the story. The relationships as well as the sexual relations have all being handled so maturely and with finesse. There is nothing vulgar and trashy written just to create hype because she is in a relationship. If anything I found the exploration and awareness of Avantika in her personal and professional life very well written.

The transformation of Avantika is like a phoenix; from her ashes she rose majestically. If you enjoy a survivor’s story you will love this one with its twists and turns.

The style and language is of The Flight of the Hilsa is one that will appeal to the masses and everyday youth of our country; after this book talks about their angst and ambitions!

[Divya Nambiar]

First of all I would like to congratulate Sanya Shankar for such a bright and creative cover design with a bookmark that complements it well. It works wonders when giving the reader a fair idea about Avantika Sengupta, the artist whose story is traced in this book.

It sets tone to the events that unfold step by step. The author has managed to aptly show both sides of success, fame, money and power. It also describes the bond of friendship in a seemingly spiritual, genuine way. The matured writing only reflects the fact that Amit has tapped well into the world of advertising when he dabbled in that field. It has given him a plethora of 'gyaan' that he manages to infuse in each of his books. Having been a student of advertising myself, I always manage to find the source of that 'gyaan' in the unlikeliest bit and smile thinking about what certain professions can do to us!

The tale manages to stay with the reader long after it has been narrated.It also re-affirms one's faith that endings are sometimes just new beginnings and not always does one have the privilege to lead a life that one has planned to. Instead, life throws open its plan infront of us,reminding me Bollywood actor Rajesh Khanna's quote from the movie Anand, - 'Hum sab to rangmanch ki kathputliyan hai jinki dor upar waale ki ungliyon mein bandhi hai' (we are all puppets whose strings are within the control of God).

-Divya Nambiar

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[Joyce Yarrow]

I live in the Pacific Northwest, where the perseverance and spirit of the Salmon are celebrated in much the same way as the Hilsa’s courage is appreciated in India. For this reason, I knew at once I would relate to this book. Amit Shankar has used the metaphor of a fish swimming upstream to reach its original source in this bittersweet story, tracing Avantika Sengupta’s painful yet joyous journey to fulfillment as a woman and an artist. Although vividly set in Delhi and Kerala, the themes in this book are universal – the struggle for identity amidst peer pressure to conform, the need to discover the nature of love through experience rather than philosophy, the power of forgiveness – both of ourselves and others – just to name a few. My favorite character, the Captain, gives voice to our quest for a higher sensibility and at the same time gains our empathy as a man with vulnerability at the core of his strength.

As the Captain tells Avantika, “..it’s not the destination but the journey which is most cherished. Unlike the destination, which is bereft of any story, the journey has its own sweet-tender moments, infallable charm, a zillion memories and excitement at every nook and corner. Therefore, a sane soul would choose to be a traveler over refusing to arrive.” This reader was sad to reach the end of this book and looks forward to continuing along with the author to enjoy many more.

[Meenakshi Singh]

A satiating and beautiful read with the hangover.
Flight of Hilsa evokes the Hilsa within the reader in pursuit of purpose and happiness in one’s life.
Bringing forward the truth about love, be it with a lover, parents, friend or with life, weaved beautifully through the journey of Avantika, the protagonist , reader is compelled to introspect. “It’s easy to be Kabir than Buddha” pushed me to think and the “basis of love is Faith” is so reassuring.
Also it’s a story of an artist who faces the dilemma of choosing the path of heart or what the world preaches, to get tamed, a conflict between the idealism and materialism. Any artist can resonate and relate to the life story of Avantika and it builds the belief on staying true to the heart and earning love than sheer material.
Loved the mystic, romantic and philosophic exchange between the Captain and the woman.
How the story builds the bias strongly about a community and then towards the end breaks it too like a natural phenomenon, very interesting. Like one grows in life with prejudices and then how these melt with experience.
I started the book on Jan 6, and had to the cancel all the engagements for the day, for the book is an unputdownable one and I kept glued till I journeyed with the protagonist Avantika till 2:00 am. Author’s writing is very descriptive and almost poetic when it comes to describing the splendor and beauty in a context. The most remarkable thing is how a man is able to successfully depict the struggle, the inner turmoil from a girl’s point of view. Amazing ability. Especially the satire and depth in Amit Shankar’s writing is commendable and I have become an admirer all the more of his pen. The poem by Gibran was aptly put and justified the dilemma. A satiating and beautiful read with the hangover. I really look forward to reading more of his work. Thanks.
- Meenakshi M Singh #1BookRead #100BooksPact2016 #FlightofHilsa

[Ammu Nair]

judging from the cover is a sea n fish is taking its leap i wasnt aware of the meaning hilsa which at begining only author states its meaning and importance.
the story revolves around avi and her passion for painting its all about her ups and down in life n relationship taking its turn.the book is the first one the author wrote.basically its divided in three portions the first half is lil dragging but when it enters the second stage it vanishes d first part.the strong point of the book is relation between sunny's mom n avi and den replationship betweenn shweta and avi
the downpart if the book is the dragging first half which will bore the reader to some extent till d second parts comes up.
overall a good read :)

[Megha]

You might heard of choosing your interest as a career is the best option to collect the creeper of progress in your success garden. To do what you love will drive you to the path of success as interest and love for your work is necessary to detangle the knots of your success rope. But what if even after trying hard at your work you are unable to locate the success and achievements? The story is portrayed to answer this question and is based on the theme of acquiring success and erasing the tints of failure.
Read full review here : http://madhyapradesh.johntext.de/revi...

[Arpita Ganguly]

Hard to believe that this book is written by a man! A bit predictable, it however touches the emotional cord between two strangers who become soulmates. The characters have various shades of grey.. Answer to the Quest for happiness is laid out in a simple uncomplicated manner. The book is hard to keep once you start reading it. Looking forward to more from the author.

[Rashi Gaur]

one of the most powerful fiction of recent times. it captures the inner turmoil of a woman so beautifully. i love how the author has portrayed and deciphered happiness from a woman’s perspective. loved every word.

[Chandana Tyagi]

It's a waste of time. Highly confused and unnecessarily complicated book with just a couple of quotable quotes or moments where you feel, the author has grasped the deep emotions in life.

[Abhay Juneja]

good read for a peaceful bus journey.