No Man's Land written by Nilesh Shrivastava is an interesting fiction story that unravels slowly as you go by the pages and gradually invokes an engrossing interest in the story. While you read and turn each next page you reach a level, somewhere in the middle of the book that you inquisitively start asking yourself - what next? The story in a way connects you with various characters while getting into their pains, fights and sorrows; but without getting too intense or disturbed, or losing interest in the story.
No Man's Land is a story of generations. There are three generations that pass through a number of consequences and changes happening within and outside. The story begins with Ramdev who is a small time shopkeeper engaged in selling paints. Gradually when his son, Agastya, takes the reigns of business, he turns it around into a bigger horizon by opening various branches in various cities. Agastya falls out for a girl, Shailja, who is 8 years elder to him or probably it is the girl who falls for him first. Both stay in neighborhood and Shailja's father works for Agastya's father, Ramdev. Gradually Agastya crosses his school and college days and reaches to a marriageable stage where he is forced by his father to tie up knots with some decent girl. Shailja, who has already got married, on the wishes of her father, is still in contact with Agastya.
Agastya, though having certain long term commitment towards Shailja, even though they are not together, decides to marry Shubhangi, one of the many proposals brought to him by his father Ramdev. Ramdev probably knew about the untold and undisclosed relationship between Agastya and Shailja. The third generation comes with the two step brothers - Pranay and Karan with two binding forces between them - one coming from their grandfather's time - Shaswat and a girl Shreya.
But so far I have not mentioned anything about the land though the title says No Man's Land. Well, the land is there - 50 acres of land in one of the villages in Gurgaon that was bought by Ramdev at a time when it had no value. When a dispute grows during the well running business, betwen Ramev, Agastya and Agastya's brother-in-law; Agastya decides to call it off and requests his father to give him that barren, no value, isolated land to him.
There is a lot more about this land that turns its faces from an unwanted barren land to a land that becomes a desire of many people to acquire or grab. Overall No Man's Land by Nilesh Shirvastava is an interesting read to go for...
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