Custody

The Manju Kapoor novel must have been very difficult to write. To juggle among so many characters, even the minor ones, with conflicting points of views, and then to present them unbiased as complex human beings, is a task indeed.

It is a monumental achievement. Yet as you finish the book, you wonder if the second half of the book still needed some work, when the narrative goes to every direction, without warning.

The basic story is simple. A Delhi couple separates after the beautiful wife falls in love with the husband’s boss. Apart from the couple’s ego, what makes the matter complicated is the two young children. Thus, begins the battle for custody.

Finally, in her telling of the legal tangles and emotional turmoil of her characters, Kapoor tries hard to be impartial and she almost succeeds. And, how she portrays Delhi!