After a hectic week, I needed to unwind reading something which wasn't too serious,melancholic, mind numbingly dumb or added to the already soaring adrenaline levels of mine. So after a thorough scanning of the shelves at Starmark, I found this book.

When I read the synopsis, I realised this is the one. Something about the cover, I cannot put a finger on it, maybe the balance of it all, made me feel good about it.

Being a Bengali myself I could immediately relate to the summary and was eager to see what was between the covers.

A surprise was in tow as well 'cause when I opened the book I found the autograph of the author herself !!

Off to a good start then.

I devoured Creme Brulee in a day. I am choosing the word devoured because this book cannot be read in any other way. It goes on talking about food and the way it spins the story, you cannot possibly do anything else.

We have a lot of Bengali authors and some of them have written books on this breed but none have described it the way Ramona Sen has. She has given it the touch of reality and it is so easy to connect with what she has said, because this is what we see and do all the time. Others have always focused on different factors and been very obtuse about the true characteristic of us Bengalis. Agreed that we are lazy and afternoon siestas are a must or else we will end up having a throbbing temple by six in the evening and are, as some like to call us, pseudo-intellectuals at times. But there is more to us than that. And that is exactly what Ramona Sen has shown. She couldn't have described us any better.

The dialogues, the people, their nature, the locations, the emotions, everything about this book is an actual reflection of our families, of our lives. Bengalis are probably the most anglicised of the entire lot and are popularly known to snigger at others after they have flawlessly learned the tongue of the West.
Even if you aren't a Bengali by blood, being a Calcuttan will be enough to make you enjoy this read. Familiar names are strewn throughout the book and they definitely strike a chord with all Cal peeps, Bongs especially.
Food is an integral part of this book. So read it while munching on something or else you are bound to have hunger pangs.
The emotions have been dealt with very delicately and those who ponder on love matters should give this a read, as it deals with the common worries, such as how to face your ex, how to move on and how to profess your love. It talks about love, but not in a suffocating manner. It doesn't asphyxiate your brain with pointless eulogies on love and dejected poems from jilted wooers.
She hasn't belittled the Bongs, has very efficiently pointed out the flaws and fallacies and definitely has not overdone the good in us. She has shown the roshogolla like sweetness in us. :)

Most importantly she has brought forth an imperative aspect of the B-breed and that is liberality with an equilibrium.

The current trend, that we can see, rather sadly I must say, is of behaving in the extreme. There are some of us who wish to shed the tag of our culture and take after others and then there is another section who are downright orthodox and put their feet down when it comes to acceptance.
The former being more in number is alarming, as it is increasingly making our culture turn into a rarity and the latter are just making us visible enough to be sneered at.

But Creme Brulee brilliantly shows how to to have a broad outlook AND love our roots as well.
It continues to show the creativity Bong Brains have nurtured over generations.

It shows us how a Young and Kapoor can love a Mookerjee.
It shows us how we can love our unbeatable nolen gurer payesh and enjoy their creme brulee too.

If only people took to the best of both worlds.

Title : Creme Brulee

Author : Ramona Sen

SOC Rating : 5/5

Genre : Romance/Fiction

Publisher : Rupa

Publishing Year : 2016