On Dilip D Souza's Roadrunner

In 2009, two travelogues - Nine Lives: In Search Of The Sacred In Modern India by William Dalrymple and My Friend The Fanatic by Sadanand Dhume - came in for high praise from a lot of quarters. Although both of them explored different themes, the one common thread between them was the beauty of their prose - sweeping, engaging, descriptive and engrossing. Of these, Dilip D'Souza'sRoadrunner succeeds in only being descriptive. I'm not even trying to compare Roadrunner with either William's or Sadanand's books but just trying to underline a few features which were missing from Roadrunner. But that isn't to state that D'Souza's American sojourn falls flat on its face. Instead, it offers very interesting insights into American culture and asks some though-provoking questions 

D'Souza, who spent a decade in America before returning to India in 1992, goes on this road trip primarily to understand the idea of patriotism in a country which has been divided along several lines ever since 9/11. This road trip - or "quest"- according to D'Souza, is also to see the changes which have taken place in America since the 80's. It is also a quest to look beyond stereotypical constructions of the average American citizen.  Ultimately, while most of the questions thrown up by D'Souza's observations and commentary are slightly cliched, they assume a different meaning when looked at with an American perspective 

For instance, How would an Indian audience react if an American were to sing Vande Mataram in a Mumbai restaurant? Should Indian Muslims proves their patriotism by singing this one song? Why do some Americans go Asalaam-Waleikum whenever they see a brown-skinned man? These are just a few of the many questions that the book throws up.

But just when you think that this travelogue would be a riveting read, the book starts to disappoint; even though D'Souza uses conversation as a narrative tool. 

It is an excruciatingly slow read and you'll probably find yourself yawning after a 100 odd pages. Statistical figures and movie song lyrics are interspersed with the prose to validate arguments but they're really not needed. D'Souza's prose maybe slow but it is descriptive enough for the reader to do without lyrics from Lage Raho Munnabhai. More often than not, D'Souza goes into a ramble about his American journey and you start wondering why the editors of the book never bothered to cut out the flab. Roadrunner is a little over 300 pages but its languid pace and poorly edited prose make it seem like a 600-page magnum opus which refuses to end. 

Despite Dilip D'Souza's descriptive writing and quirky observations, Roadrunner is a promising book but one that fails to keep the reader engaged. Yes, D'Souza possesses an observant eye, has a very descriptive writing style and even tries to be conversational but sadly, it just doesn't work.

A slightly different version of this piece appears in this week's Open magazine