But I wanted the Tai Tai fissss...” cries Moulshree Dutta in the opening dream sequence of Sandy Kundra Verma’s debut novel, Burnt Toast. Moulshree, one of the three heroines of the book, is an IIM graduate, disillusioned with the corporate world. The beauty of the story, Kanika Anand, leads a charmed life but seems to have it out for Moulshree. And then there’s Lajja Mehta-Kapur, not-so-happily married and trapped in domesticity.
As the three lives entangle, the author, Sandy Kundra Verma explores love after the happily ever after and life, after all the careful planning has come to pass. The author, like her character, also gave up a cushy corporate job to explore the world of cliches and catchphrases in advertising.
As Moulshree finds her way through the world, we relive ads familiar to us, laugh at the creative frustrations and sigh at Arjun Desai — the playboy. Moulshree is torn between two worlds professionally and emotionally, while Lajja tries to bring back the spark in her four year marriage to Vishaal. The discovery is not so much how to make the romance work, but how to remember what made them sparkle as individuals.
As Moulshree finds her way through the world, we relive ads familiar to us, laugh at the creative frustrations and sigh at Arjun Desai — the playboy. Moulshree is torn between two worlds professionally and emotionally, while Lajja tries to bring back the spark in her four year marriage to Vishaal. The discovery is not so much how to make the romance work, but how to remember what made them sparkle as individuals.
Light and frothy, the Burnt Toast is true blue chicklit. Pick it up for a quick read after a hard day’s work. There are some glitches, but the book like it’s title is burnt toast — “you scrape off the edges and ...enjoy the taste”.
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