Shantaram - Gregory David Roberts

Truth they say is stranger than fiction and this book is a true testimony to that. The escape from prison in Australia, the arrival in Bombay, the clinic in the slum, the stint with bollywood, the fight along with the Mujaheddins in Afghanistan and just the presence of this book is so extraordinary that it’s hard to believe the truth behind it all.

Shantaram is the true story of Gregory David Roberts, a convict who escapes from a prison in Australia and ends up in Bombay where he spends 8 long years before his re-capture in Germany and the extradition back to his home country.

The book is very interesting and one on the very few ones which I have truly cherished each and every word. Just the way he has put across things is so interesting and different that it makes you think and want to re-read the whole thing again and again. And there are these pieces of wisdom in the book that I have been using on my friends, like the one that says “News is what people do and gossip is how much they enjoyed doing it” or the one where Karla says “Luck is what happens to you when fate gets tired of waiting” and every single person I have mentioned it to have nodded their head in agreement.

A fascinating book and every bit worth reading.