When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon – Book Review

Merry Christmas, everyone. I hope we are all enjoying the holidays. It has been a crazy year for me. I started blogging this year, and it has been good. Thanks to all my followers and the people currently reading this. You guys are awesome. So here’s a review of When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon.

BOOK DETAILS

“Hello, future wife,” he said, his voice bubbling with glee. “I can’t wait to get started on the rest of our lives!”

REVIEW

This is the first book I’ve read with Indian main characters. To be honest, when I found this book on Goodreads, the first thing that came to my mind was a Bollywood movie (I totally love those by the way). Well, there was dancing in this but it was for a competition so it doesn’t count 😆.

I enjoyed reading this book. I like how we were given a peek into Indian culture through the food, clothes, Bollywood film references and the Hindi spoken in the book at some points. I really felt like drinking Haldi Doodh (turmeric milk) at some point while reading the book even though I had never heard of it before.

 

Dimple is a smart, spirited teenager who doesn’t have it all figured out and can be hardheaded at times. She wants to make her parents proud but she also wants to do things her own way. Celia her roommate is a very supportive friend, though she falls under the effects of bad company and peer pressure which has happened to a lot of us.

Rishi is a smart, nerdy boy who is a hopeless romantic with a deep love for his culture and drawing comics. As the book progresses, we see him grow and get enough courage to do what he wants. He is my favourite character and the most matured character in the book. It actually felt nice seeing the boy be the hopeless romantic instead of the girl as is the case in most romance novels. The way Dimple and Rishi met was hilarious.

The book captures perfectly some teenage years’ troubles: peer pressure, making plans for the future, and love problems.  In this book, they are put in an arranged marriage but its not a do-or-die affair which is actually refreshing. The parents in the end just wanted what they felt was best for their kids. I also like that it was narrated from both Rishi and Dimple’s perspectives.

DISLIKES

There wasn’t really any major conflict in the series apart from a little plot twist close to the end. It was a little predictable and I felt some parts of the plot weren’t really necessary. The way it ended was also pretty cliché.

I would have liked to see more of the activities at the summer camp and a more in-depth look into the development and programming of their app (cause I’m a nerd). It felt like most of the focus was on Rishi’s passion which was good but it would have been nice to see more about Dimple’s passion for programming.

FINAL THOUGHTS

I actually saw many bad reviews about the book on Goodreads but I’m glad I went ahead to read it. I think that’s what happens when a book is overhyped, It’s happened to me several times so now I just read books without expectations or looking at the amount of hype they have and I’ve stumbled upon so many great books that way. That’s just my opinion though.

The writing was smooth and the way things and emotions were described was really good and it also had some hilarious parts. This book makes you want to fall in love, chase your dreams and be goofy but nothing more. So I’m giving this book 3 stars.

If you’re looking for a fun rom-com novel with a simple plot, this is your book but if you looking for something a bit more serious or with more substance, action and plot twists, this might not be for you.

QUOTES:

“I love it”, Dimple breathed, the lenses of her glasses reflecting the lights as she swiveled her head to look at every corner. She walked to a painted horse head and stroked its opalescent mane. “Amazing”

Dimple recognised the song just as he elevator doors slid open on the first floor.

Hum tum, ek kamre mein bandh ho, aur chaaui kho jaaye… It was a popular hindi song about a couple who are shut away in a room when the keys go missing. Dimple slapped rishi on his upper arm as they walked towards the door. “Very funny”

My favourite quote in this book is the one by Jenny Lindt, a web developer Dimple looks up to.

“You’re going to see a lot of it. People getting ahead unfairly because of the category into which they were born: male or white or straight or rich. I’m in a few of those categories myself, which is why I make it a point to reach out and help those who aren’t, those who might not necessarily be seen if I didn’t make the effort. We need to shake this field up, you know? We need more people with different points of view and experiences and thought processes so we can keep innovating and moving ahead.”

Chat time. Have you read the book? If you have what are your thoughts on it? Are you into comics or programming? (let’s be nerdy together). Happy holidays everyone.