Complete / Convenient by Ketan Bhagat - A Review

Complete / Convenient: There Is More To Men Than Bromance is a beautiful, heartfelt story of a young and excited Kabir, who is newly married and settled in Sydney.

Summary Of The Book –

Complete / Convenient: There Is More To Men Than Bromance depicts a very strange contrast between India and other countries. It talks of developed countries, where the worries of everyday life like the chaotic traffic, the rush to complete work, the suffocating corruption and red tapism are virtually absent. A land where life is simpler, faster and gives one time for other luxuries.

The author explores the plot in the backdrop of the charming story of Kabir. Kabir has earned a promotion with great perseverance and care, one that takes him to Sydney. Kabir and his new wife enjoy the scintillating life Sydney has to offer. Ketan Bhagat describes the beautiful city well and carves the adventures of the lead character in detail. He details how Kabir leads a kingly life punctuated regularly with the relaxing experience of spending time on beaches. Bhagat describes the sweet romance, bitter office issues, and the picturesque landscape that dots the horizon.

The author quite subtly goes into the stage when Kabir starts missing his homeland, its nitty gritties and the slight unease of its crowded streets. Despite all the professional success and the new friends, he cannot let go of the memory of his homeland. Complete / Convenient: There Is More To Men Than Bromance compares the emotions of the NRIs and the Indians who reside in India. He points out the contrast in the way each section leads their life and how they envy each other because of that.

Now, Review Time –

When I read the blurb, I found it different and it helped me to build my expectations to read instantly.  And when I end up reading the book, I was happy as the story lives up to the expectations made by the blurb. I will not talk about the plot of the book here because the blurb is self-explanatory. And I don’t want to be the spoiler here. 

The main problem with book is its length. Book could have been summed up in 250 pages. Sometimes it seems like it has been stretched and that kills the flow. At some places, story went very slow which disappoints a bit. It seems boring at places as it fails to hold your attention for long. But over all, it keeps you hooked. The turn of events were gripping and amusing. Justice is done with the climax.  

And It makes no sense for me why every author nowadays is using Hindi words in every second book. I Guess author should write books in Hindi instead of English. English books should be entirely in English. Isn’t it? There are instances in the novel which reflect that the author has been very much inspired and influenced by Bollywood movies.

I just loved the way he has described every scene. The reader feels connected to it. The book is not at all predictable, and this is a plus point. His novel is very well-researched. The story has fresh concept and it’s well plotted. The book has a few editing mistakes but they can be ignored as you’ll find yourself highly engrossed in book but somewhere it kills the flow. No more such flaws can be seen as it is written is in simple and neat English. 

I loved Ketan’s writing style. It is full of wit, humour, emotions, family drama and somewhere it seems realistic. 

I didn’t cover much. It seems dull. It could have been much better and it doesn’t go according to plot of novel.

Verdict –

I would like it give it 3.5/5. It worths a read. If you are looking for a fresh read, you can give it a try. You’ll like it. For anyone who has been an NRI, the story of Kabir and Myra makes complete sense. They should read it for sure as it will reflect their life.

“Fast moving story with lots of drama and middle-class ideologies."