Book Review of 03:02 by Mainak Dhar

About the bookAt 03:02 on a Sunday morning, the world as we knew it came to an end. Mumbai suddenly went black — no electricity, no phones, no internet and no working cars. It was as if someone had turned off the master switch of our civilization, turning us back hundreds of years overnight. We learned that it was not just Mumbai, but much of the world that had been impacted. We also learned that it was no accident. A deadly enemy was behind it. An enemy that was now in our midst, seeking to conquer us and destroy our way of life. This is how our war for freedom began. A war that was to be waged not on the borders or by the Army, but in our homes and streets, with us as the soldiers. This is our story. '03:02 celebrates fictional heroes who fight for our freedom, but to give back to the real heroes who do so every day, for every copy sold, a contribution from author royalties will be made to the National Defence Fund, which takes voluntary contributions to help armed forces service members and their families.'
My Review
When I was in the last page and I had almost finished reading the last sentence all I could say was “WOW”. It is a captivating story, which speaks about the lives of people in situations where there is havoc and fears everywhere. All the laurels and titles are of no importance now and what reigns supreme is the basic survival skill that could help you and people around you to stay alive at times of crisis.
Life can change in a blink of an eye from a scenario where you are going to become the CEO of a company and the next moment you find that the world you live has been turned upside down. The world where you had all the luxuries and comfort at your finger tips are now replaced by bewilderment, about what has happened.
The protagonist of the story had all the luxuries and comfort of life along with the tag of becoming the next CEO of a MNC and was looking forward to the sun to rise, but everything turned upside down when the first signs of problems lingered in the society. The current was gone and every electrical instrument has stopped working and there was no idea of and when the current was going to be reinstated.
Now what followed next was how to get food and water and the basic necessities of life. Then havoc followed when there was a shortage of food and thieves started looting the societies. It seemed as if someone has opened a Pandora box.
The story speaks of the protagonist Aadi, who rises up to the occasion and does things that are way beyond his comfort zone. He tries to instil hope in people of the society that even though things seem to be difficult now they have to fight for their survival and stop complaining about things they had no control over.
It is a must read novel for it is not a story of fighting the enemies in our midst but about the enemies within us that says to fight not against each other in the survival of the fittest, but to work together for the betterment of each and every person. It is a story that says “United we stand and divided we fall” and how a small group of individuals formed “Azad Hind Fauj” and fought bravely against the terrorists who tried to take advantage of the worsening situations.
I just loved the plot of the story and how elegantly the author has tried to put all the elements of love, compassion, fear, uncertainty and hope in perfect blend.
I am looking for to his next book where he can amaze every one of us with his wonderful story telling skills.
About the AuthorAfter finishing his schooling at Modern School, Barakhamba Road and his under-graduation at Hindu College, Delhi, Mainak Dhar graduated from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad. He has spent two decades in the corporate sector starting with Procter & Gamble in India. He spent eighteen years with P&G, fifteen of them outside India across the Asia Pacific region. In 2014, he moved back to India as the CEO of the India operations of a major consumer products multinational. A self-described cubicle dweller by day and writer by night, Mainak is also the author of over a dozen books, some of which have been bestsellers in India and abroad. These books have been translated into Turkish, Vietnamese, Japanese, French, German and Portuguese. He lives in Mumbai with his wife, Puja and their son, Aaditya. When not at work or with his family, he can usually be found working on or thinking about his next book.Buy Links: Amazon
I was given this book by the author via Writers Melon in exchange of an honest review.