What do you think?
Rate this book
Bombay Talkie
Sabah, a young American woman of Indian heritage, sets out to discover her identity in India, only to stumble into a decadent, upper-class demi-monde. Ameena Meer presents a portrait of a generation of young Indians as confused by Westernization as they are tied to tradition and family.
- GenresFiction
274 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
2 people are currently reading
33 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
September 5, 2018
A few good moments scattered through the slog. The one percent have problems!
May 12, 2015
Bombay Talkie is, quite honestly, one of the most hard hitting pieces about Indian woman and Indian culture in general.
Though the writing is subpar, Meer gets the point across that woman are still belittled in India. This book struck me because I'm an Indian born in America. My parents have given me the freedom to make my own decisions and how I should carry on in my life.
Maybe because this book is around 20 years old, and times have changed, but the absolute horror of what Indian woman have to go through everyday is tough. It's just sad to think that these women--independent, intelligent, and out spoken-- are shamed. The idea of a women in India is still in prehistoric times, even though we're trying to get better. But this idea is explored thoroughly in the book, and I commend Meer for writing about the harsh truth.
As for the culture, I was quite shocked to learn of things that were new to me. Some things I just can't unread... :P
I would suggest this book to anyone who feels strongly about woman rights or just likes reading novels about finding yourself.
Though the writing is subpar, Meer gets the point across that woman are still belittled in India. This book struck me because I'm an Indian born in America. My parents have given me the freedom to make my own decisions and how I should carry on in my life.
Maybe because this book is around 20 years old, and times have changed, but the absolute horror of what Indian woman have to go through everyday is tough. It's just sad to think that these women--independent, intelligent, and out spoken-- are shamed. The idea of a women in India is still in prehistoric times, even though we're trying to get better. But this idea is explored thoroughly in the book, and I commend Meer for writing about the harsh truth.
As for the culture, I was quite shocked to learn of things that were new to me. Some things I just can't unread... :P
I would suggest this book to anyone who feels strongly about woman rights or just likes reading novels about finding yourself.
October 5, 2013
This was an interesting collection of "bits" but didn't come together for me as a novel. And how much am I supposed to empathize with these wealthy and spoiled characters? Privileged Indian society is made to seem like a hateful gossip fest. And maybe it is. I sensed there might be something captured here for the strangeness of people of Indian decent moving between the sub-continent, Europe and the US, but it didn't do much for me. It felt like a half-baked first effort, not a proper novel.
March 21, 2008
I read this long ago, but I remember being shocked by the way it portrayed women's roles in India. It was one of those first "Oh...things are not like they are here everywhere."
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews