YO newuser ra Subhashish KSHETRI ko kura oostai oostai parecha. NOT A CLASSIC, STILL WORTH A READ ?Palpasa Caf? starts promisingly on a light, romantic note and shifts focus towards Nepal?s civil war and the attendant tragedies along the way, tightening its grip on the reader. However, it falters towards the end. BY SUBHASHISH KSHETRI If you used to enjoy Narayan Wagle?s ?Coffee Guff,? you are likely to relish his first novel too. After all, in terms of style, Palpasa Caf? is an extended version of ?Coffee Guff.? Just like ?Coffee Guff,? the novel is rich in masterfully crafted, engrossing conversations; it?s evident that the writer?s ?Coffee Guff? touch has rubbed off on the novel too. Barring the last fifty pages or so, the novel is an interesting read. Its breadth is impressive: it spans Nepal?s war-torn countryside as well as globalizing, semi-cosmopolitan Kathmandu, and effectively captures a variety of human emotions and experiences ? romance, idealism, struggles, hope, angst, frustration, desperation and pathos. Yet, it lacks the aura of a literary masterpiece. In terms of literary merit, it does not match up to Dhanush Chandra Gotame?s Gham Ka Pailaharu or Parijat?s Shirish Ko Phool, both of which had earlier won the prestigious ?Madan Puraskar?. Drishya ? the novel?s central character ? is a hybrid product of Nepal?s rustic hills and Kathmandu?s semi-cosmopolitan ambience. A Kathmandu-based artist born and brought up in Nepal?s rural west, he heads to Goa for a Christmas vacation; romances a US-returned Nepali girl (Palpasa) and, later, a Dutch art connoisseur (Christina); dreams of studying in Paris; travels to the civil war-ravaged countryside on the insistence of a college-friend-turned-Maoist-leader (Siddhartha); nurtures the ambition of building a magnificent resort at his village. Potentially quite a colourful and interesting character, this. Yet, sadly enough, Drishya?s character is not properly etched out and adequately developed, neither is that of Palpasa ? the novel?s female protagonist. The same could be said of Phoolan (Drishya?s secretary) and Christina. The most clearly delineated character is arguably that of Siddhartha, but his character development also leaves a lot to be desired. Besides the inadequacy in terms of character development, Palpasa Caf? also suffers from another glaring flaw: like a B-grade Bollywood potboiler, it depends on too many coincidences to take the narrative forward. In what can be considered an extreme version of this phenomenon, Drishya finds none other than Palpasa sitting next to him on his way back to Kathmandu from the countryside! Hmmm, destiny! Despite the aforementioned drawbacks, the novel manages to grab the reader?s attention for the most part, thanks to the vivid and poignant portrayal of violence-affected rural Nepal and a plethora of enchanting conversations. The witty and juicy one-liners that Drishya and Palpasa liberally throw at each other during their first few trysts are particularly fun to read. Drishya?s conversations with Palpasa?s grandmother in Kathmandu and different folks in rural Nepal also enhance the novel?s appeal. Siddhartha?s verbal, ideological duel with Drishya is not only gripping but also insightful in that it helps the reader understand the mindset of an ultra-leftist ideologue hell-bent on destroying the old order and ushering in a utopian society. The novel?s charm generally nosedives whenever Wagle switches from conversations to descriptions and jarring long letters, including rather clich?d love-letters. The events that unfold in western Nepal during Drishya?s trip to the countryside are the strongest parts of the novel. Wagle paints a profoundly moving and realistic portrait of war-ravaged rural Nepal, sucking the reader effortlessly into the narrative. By depicting Maoist cadres in a sympathetic light without supporting their means, he also achieves considerable success in humanizing them. The novel also has a pacifist, optimistic message, which Drishya?s outlook essentially embodies. An individualist and pacifist to the core, Drishya is opposed to both the belligerent sides in Nepal?s civil war and epitomizes the middle path; he seems to be Wagle?s medium for advocating the third way. On the whole, Palpasa Caf? starts promisingly on a light, romantic note and shifts focus towards Nepal?s civil war and the attendant tragedies along the way, tightening its grip on the reader. However, it falters towards the end. After Drishya returns to Kathmandu from his tour of the countryside, the novel loses its charm. The last three chapters of the novel are anti-climactic and redundant. Palpasa Caf? is definitely not a classic. Still, it is worth a read, for a glimpse of the war-torn rural Nepal and Wagle?s masterful use of witty conversations, if not for anything else.