I am Om

"Veena Damle has performed two sorts of miracles in this, her premier novel: first, she blended East and West; second, she has blended realism with fairy tale. The vehicle she has chosen to accomplish her task is the Hindu epic, the Mahabharata-or Mahabharat, in Damle's Bombay dialect. As young Manju's grandfather, Azoba, relates the never-ending struggle of Mahabharat, a similar struggle is developing in the Sathe household as Manju's mother yearns for fame and the attention of a prominent surgeon. Manju's father, aware of the entanglements his wife is creating, wrestles with understanding…