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Hot Tea Across India

Author : Hema Blog :TELL A STORY - MY WAY Date: 1/17/2012 2:21:00 AM

Happy (belated) Pongal/Shankaranthi Wishes to everyone. In case you are wondering why I am late, my son decided to break the laptop on last Thursday and we couldn't get it repaired at the service center before Saturday. By the time we went on Saturday it was still lying there untouched and we took the matter in our hands and finally salvaged it yesterday night (believe me you cannot find a single shop open during the pongal holidays). Anyway, its time for yet another book review. So lets get started

The book was sent to me at the starting of last week by Blogadda as a part of the book review program. The book, Hot Tea Across India, is a travelogue written by Rishad Saam Mehta. The book captures many of his adventures on the roads of India with a cup of chai. Rishad says, be it Kashmir or Kanyakumari, there can be no place where there is no tea. His experiences, however funny or dangerous, have always associated with this sweet brown liquid,which not only quenches his thirst or hunger for food, also associates with memories equally funny or dangerous.

This chai can be the bribe, it could make him more friends on the way to a secluded place, or could be the kindhearted expression of a watchman who comforts the drenched author on his stormy afternoon. There are a lot of funny experiences yet associated with tea, like the one which upsets his stomach and gets him in trouble with the dabba wala, or the Kargil experience where he was almost compelled to sell his bike and many more. Then there was this bonding with the army man so far from home, which helped him get across the restricted pass at a restricted hour

His descriptions not only for Tea but also for the food are lovely. He arranges for food in the remote areas by cooking for himself or hiring a help from a neighbouring state or village. Yet sometimes he find the locals offering to help him cook like the Shepard he found in Kashmir. In one chapter the author writes about his experience with cars (other than the Bullet, which is his loyal companion). He makes it an interesting monologue as to how his first car describes his master's driving experience. Evidently Rishad has painted the city red with his ride. Each chapter is very interesting and cries for attention. The fact that these are true incidents than mere fiction makes it much more interesting.

A few things I thought could have been there: A picture of the places he visited, and a more picturesque details of the places would have been fine. And also that the places he visited are a more hard for normal people to visit, more insight on the way to travel would have been fine. Also he manages to find hotels and lodgings in the rarest of locations, an address would have helped those interested readers (that could be me, reading has whet my appetite for travel). The book is divided into short chapters meant to make it fast paced. But the names of the locations except for manali, leh, kargil and all places familiar, were difficult to remember (Yeah.. I am getting old, what with the those old Tibetian names), which meant before I read the next chapter after a break, I had to refer briefly to the previous chapters. Yet the whole book was laugh out loud hilarious.

I am sending this review to the A-Z book reading challenge. Also to the Mini challenge hosted this month by Babies, Books and Signs. Since my new year resolution is to cook more and revive my food blog I think this book qualifies for it (Tea is an integral part of the Beverages / food).

This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!