The Perfect Us

A little story before we dive into the review, Durjoy Datta was one of the first Authors to introduce me to the books and novels. I remember buying his book named "The boy who loved" it was my first book. So after immersing myself amid the plots and ending, I felt...

Unlike many other folks from our small community of Indian book reviewers, I have mostly enjoyed Durjoy Datta’s books. I have always loved reading his initial books; the ones that shot him into fame and stardom but, I did read the latest ones from his kitty including The Boy series and The Girl of My Dreams. They delivered far above my expectations and as a result, I promptly added Durjoy Datta to my list of favourite contemporary Indian authors. he story is of a married couple wanting to take the next step forward in their lives i.e. getting pregnant and having kids. It talks about the issues and struggles which would-be parents face. It also talks about the inevitable changes that creep in a marriage/relationship that has lasted 10 long years. Let’s talk about the storyline Avantika is a beautiful and talented investment banker who is as good at numbers as she is at drawing the male attention. She is quite successful at her job and is the epitome of beauty with brains. It is in college that she meets Deb and falls in love with him. Nobody ever thought that they’ll be a couple and yet they fell irrevocably in love with each other. Deb is a corporate professional turned failed writer turned script writer for saas-bahu serials. He isn’t much of a looker and his bank balance also doesn’t have much to boast of. The one thing that he is really good at is loving Avantika. And Avantika needs just that. Despite all odds, they have survived 10 long years of togetherness and have managed well so far. That is soon supposed to change, though. Of late, Avantika has been craving for kids while Deb just isn’t ready. He seems to think that the two are enough for each other and there is no space for anyone else. The Perfect Us is about two people preparing for the next step of their lives and gearing up for the challenges that come with it. While they plan and prepare, fate has something entirely different planned for them and soon all their plans will be thrown down the drain. How good were the characters? The characters in The Perfect Us are written well. Unlike protagonists of various other novels, they aren’t flawless and this makes them much more real and believable. They lead normal lives and their struggles and circumstances resonate with a large number of urban Indians. I like how the author has created a strong female protagonist and shown her as the bread-earner of the house. Since Deb is still struggling financially, it is Avantika who takes care of the bills. Each character has been developed well and they easily establish a connection with the reader. What about the author’s writing style? I like how Durjoy keeps trying his hand at different things. From dramas to romances to romantic thrillers, he has attempted various genres and done so really well. While The Perfect Us cannot be hailed as a conventional romance, it imparts some much needed practical lessons to couples in love. Often cheesy Bollywood movies and similar romances give us a happy ending when the couple is finally united. This book shows us the side of love that is real and believable. Marriage is not a destination but a journey and Durjoy Datta has done a really good job of portraying this journey through the story of Deb and Avantika. What I liked the most? The best part of The Perfect Us is how a major part of it seemed autobiographical. There is an unusual number of similarities between the protagonist Deb and the author himself. Moreover, even Deb’s love interest is named Avantika, which is also the name of author Durjoy Datta’s wife. Further, Deb is a writer who writes scripts for saas-bahu serials, which is also one of the many things that Durjoy Datta does. It seems that the frustration of Deb as an Indian television scriptwriter is a product of the author’s own experiences than just mere imagination. There are many such uncanny similarities between Deb and Durjoy which makes the book a little more interesting. And actually I can't even get on to it more because the climax got me crying hell out of my way and I just love Durjoy a little too much. The climax gave a befitting end to the story of Deb and Avantika. It was predictable yet it was satisfactory in the way it gave a decent conclusion to the story. I don’t want to disclose much for the fear of spilling some plot twists but it is safe to say that the book ended on a happy note.

The story is of a married couple Deb and ofcourse Avantika, wanting to take the next step forward in their lives i.e. getting pregnant and having kids. It talks about the issues and struggles which would-be parents face. It also talks about the inevitable changes that creep in a marriage/relationship that has lasted 10 long years. This story includes many other characters rather than the couple which makes it perfect to relate with one's life and circumstances.Shrey is the one character you enjoy no matter what. Everyone needs a friend like Shrey in their life. A brother like Tanmay makes the relationship of brother and sister perfect. The role of Vernita is much important in Deb's life. The caring of Deb's parents visualise every Indian parents. And the love for each character with other made this perfect. The part which attracts me the most in this novel is to define the pressure on writers of TV screenplay. We often saw a serial and say what are they writing without knowing the pressure they are holding to earn their livelihood. The line in novel that, ' They are trying to sell novels in a country which don't read. The publisher who want to change this tradition vain their efforts and end up on negative note. ' The last few pages were hard to read with emotions flowing and don't get me started on the last page of the last chapter my heart literally stopped. I can't even imagine what was did to Nayra but at end the epilogue clears all. But this is the thing which made Durjoy writing style amazing....... PS : You will surely fell in love with both the child Nayra and Augustya. These characters were so realistic that even whenever I read their names I felt them just near me with their cute smile and little and sharp body body. RATING : 7/10

Loved this book so much that I have read it atleast 5 times. In my view this book should be at the top of all the books written by Durjoy. It captures a wide range of topics and the basic human growth throughout the book. And it is all so natural and so relatable. Starting with the stage where Deb is not ready to be a dad, the jealousy of having to share Avantika with a new baby, to the evolution in him of desperately wanting to be a father is endearing. The experience with Augustya and the need to be positive for Nayra puts them in such a vulnerable state that it is heartbreaking. The end was so unexpected as well as a relief to find Nayra alive. The best part is it wasn’t painted rosy after all the struggles and challenges. They were given a rough path ahead with a baby having developmental delays and what not, but parents embraced it and would not trade anything for that future. It’s so realistic and humbling. Thank you for this masterpiece Durjoy!

"The Perfect Us" is yet another emotional rollercoaster ride by Durjoy datta. The story of his famous characters Deb and Avantika After 10 years of marriage, Deb and Avantika decides to take it to next level. A baby. And after Avantika get pregnant, everything just falls into and out of place every single day. With Shrey- who opposed the decision of couple having a baby, transforms into being a mother to unborn child, truly showed the way a baby can change someone. The story portrays the struggles of to-be parentas and the reactions and expressions of people around them. Careless uncles become loving second parents, grandparents showering extra love and care, and parents walking on egg shells to protect their baby from any harm. The protagonists in the book are written very well as the nervous and hesitating father to have a baby and an all into baby stuff mother who wants a kid badly. The best friends Shrey amd veVernita too are shown a complete opposite of each other in helping to make any decision. Tanmay's relationship with Avantika is shown as love-hate relationship which is relatable for almost all siblings out there. Even the urborn child played the perfect role and makes his/her presence felt without actuality being there. Cover of the book is simple yet attractive which makes the reader "judge a book" And read it. Title "The Perfect Us" is imperfectly perfect as the couple being imperfect, becomes perfect together. This book, like other of Durjoy's is filled with twists and turns at every page of story making it an interesting read and the emotions of being a parent can be truly felt by words. To sum up, a book to feel how becoming parents is amazing. And a must read for every to-be parents to learn about complications and struggles of being pregnant. Ratings: Title : 10/10 Cover: 9.5/10 Characters: 9.5/10 Story: 9/10 Overall:9.5/10

I don't feel that this book is written by the current Durjoy. Somehow I feel that Durjoy had gone 4-5 years back with his writing in this book. As I became his fan just by reading "Till the Last Breath", I bought all his books, and pre-ordered all the books since "Hold My Hand". And I feel that his writing has matured a lot from his past works. I find "Of Course I Love You" the worst book and "She Broke Up ...." the best till now in the Deb-Avantika series. But I like his works in "Our Impossible Love", "The Boy Who Loved", "The Boy With a Broken Heart", etc. But I feel that with "The Perfect Us" he had gone back a few years. This book will entertain you in the beginning but after sometime you will feel that it has lost the charm. The whole book revolves around a single decision which makes it dull. And another reason for me not liking this book might be that I tend to compare it to the real Durjoy-Avantika, and I find it difficult to digest what's written in the book.

The perfect us by Durjoy Datta is a heartwarming beautiful tale of Avantika and Deb. It is a story of a couple despite being at odds sometimes love each other unconditionally. The story starts with Avantika asking Deb to start their family by having a child and Deb declining her as he is too afraid to become a dad. He is supported in his decision by his best friend Shrey who cracks hideous jokes about having a child. But after some time he decides to go by her wife’s wish and they decide to extend their family. After so many struggles they finally get pregnant and their happiness knew no bound. They were not the only one who was overwhelmed by the news. Shrey who hated children until now suddenly started loving his best friend's child as if he were his own. His contribution in taking care of Avantika and selflessly loving the unborn child is what took my heart. I really loved his character and I hate the author for eliminating him from the end of the book without any reason. They were all happy in their small family and the twist occurs…. I really loved this book. At the end of the book, I almost cried and I had to read the whole climax twice to confirm what I read was right. The narration is pretty good and the plot of the story was amazing. I liked the story and the way the author has portrayed it. The cover is also fitting for the novel.

What a storyteller he is! The perfect us written in a simple language conveys a lot more. It has heart - wrenching tragedies to fun filled moments. At one moment even a tear or two dropped from my eyes feeling the pain the book characters were feeling. It gave an insight of lives of people who are desparately waiting their kids to be healthier and are ready to sacrifice anything for them. The immense patience, hope, optimism that parents carry in their hearts have been expressed commendably. Overall, this was a story entirely different from the author's earlier books and I definitely loved it!