Breathless in Bombay: A Review

How do you describe a city like Bombay (now Mumbai) which exists on so many different levels? How do you bring to life the many different facets of life in this teeming metropolis, each one so different from the other? How do you portray the passion and the pathos, the struggle and the survival instinct, all intrinsic to this bustling and crowded, commercial behemoth? You write a collection of fourteen short stories and you bundle them into a book. And the collection brings to life this incredible city like nothing else can.

Breathless in Bombay is Murzban Shroff’s debut short story collection. After spending sixteen years in advertising, suddenly, being a Creative Director wasn’t enough and he left it all behind to go back to his first love – writing. The short stories flowed and were published in some of the best literary journals in the U.S. – the Gettysburg Review, the Minnesota Review, the Louisville Review, the Southwest Review, and Triquarterly. Then came the awards – the John Gilgun Fiction Award and three nominations for the Pushcart Prize. Being nominated for this prestigious award in the U.S. is no mean feat.

The collection of short stories, Breathless in Bombay, was published by St. Martin’s Press, U.S. in February 2008 and the reviews say it all. Who would have thought that fourteen short stories could portray Bombay the way nothing else could? Different people, different emotions, different circumstances and yet, they walk to the beat of the city. They feel its pulse whether they are down and out or dreaming, whether they are filled with hope or drowning in hopeless despair, whether they are laughing, loving or crying. The city sends out its message of survival – against all odds and at some deep level, each character responds – or tries to.

The beauty of the book is that the stories are not mere words. Each story paints a picture that is lifelike and real. Each picture forms a facet of the city and when the last one is read, it all comes together like a huge jigsaw puzzle that pulsates with life. And no one was surprised when the book was short listed for the 2009 Commonwealth Writers’ Prize in the best first book category. These are stories that shouldn’t really be read on the go in one sitting. Rather, each story must be savoured for its richness of detail, for its evocative style and for its sharp and yet wide perspective.

That Murzban Shroff loves his city is never in any doubt and maybe that is why he handles each story, which to him is a small slice of this diverse, multicultural city, with such care. The characters, their struggle, their feelings, their beliefs, their dreams, they are all woven delicately and expertly into one large tapestry that can only be Bombay. Does it leave you breathless? It does if you allow yourself to be sucked into the stories and feel, rather than judge.

A collection like this cannot but have anything but rave reviews. You can read them all here.