Ebook314 pages3 hours
The Last Dance: A Novel
By Anmol Arora
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
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About this ebook
In The Last Dance, Anmol Arora explores themes of identity, love and ambition in a compelling debut novel that carries the reader along with it till the end.
The year is 1991. The Kurdish-Turkey conflict is at its peak, and eleven-year-old Ayla’s family is caught in the crosshairs. When her father is accused of anti-national activities, they are forced to flee their homeland and take refuge in Delhi.
Here, a chance prediction by a pavement fortune-teller convinces Ayla’s mother that her daughter’s future lies in dance. She enrols Ayla in a Pratistha, a dance school run by Guru Chandrashekhar. Ayla develops a fascination for Bharatnatyam, and sets her sights on fame and success as a dancer.
Ayla is keen to perform her arangetram, a dancer’s first solo performance, but Chandrashekhar, traditional in his ways, refuses to let her do so until he is sure she is ready. Ayla’s frustration leads to an abrupt and unceremonious falling out and she joins Studio Anubhooti, a rival dance school run by Guru Ranmohan.
What follows is a tragedy: Ranmohan promises Ayla an arangetram, but rapes her on the eve of her performance. Traumatised and disillusioned, Ayla gives up on her dreams and returns to Mardin.
Destiny reunites her with Chandrashekhar years later. The ensuing journey transforms them both in fundamental ways. They begin to question their beliefs, their life-choices and assumptions, and in turn discover new possibilities. Finally, Ayla performs her arangetram – in a way she could never have imagined.
About the Author
Anmol Arora was born in Jaipur and has studied history, journalism, climate change and international development. He is a recipient of the British Council GREAT scholarship and is currently pursuing an MSc degree in climate change and international development at the University of East Anglia in England. The Last Dance is his first novel.
The year is 1991. The Kurdish-Turkey conflict is at its peak, and eleven-year-old Ayla’s family is caught in the crosshairs. When her father is accused of anti-national activities, they are forced to flee their homeland and take refuge in Delhi.
Here, a chance prediction by a pavement fortune-teller convinces Ayla’s mother that her daughter’s future lies in dance. She enrols Ayla in a Pratistha, a dance school run by Guru Chandrashekhar. Ayla develops a fascination for Bharatnatyam, and sets her sights on fame and success as a dancer.
Ayla is keen to perform her arangetram, a dancer’s first solo performance, but Chandrashekhar, traditional in his ways, refuses to let her do so until he is sure she is ready. Ayla’s frustration leads to an abrupt and unceremonious falling out and she joins Studio Anubhooti, a rival dance school run by Guru Ranmohan.
What follows is a tragedy: Ranmohan promises Ayla an arangetram, but rapes her on the eve of her performance. Traumatised and disillusioned, Ayla gives up on her dreams and returns to Mardin.
Destiny reunites her with Chandrashekhar years later. The ensuing journey transforms them both in fundamental ways. They begin to question their beliefs, their life-choices and assumptions, and in turn discover new possibilities. Finally, Ayla performs her arangetram – in a way she could never have imagined.
About the Author
Anmol Arora was born in Jaipur and has studied history, journalism, climate change and international development. He is a recipient of the British Council GREAT scholarship and is currently pursuing an MSc degree in climate change and international development at the University of East Anglia in England. The Last Dance is his first novel.
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Reviews for The Last Dance
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
5/5
1 rating1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5BOOK REVIEW BY GITI TYAGI, KARNAL, INDIA (EDITOR, CREATIVE ARTIST, WRITER, POETESS, REVIEWER)
‘The Last Dance’, Anmol Arora’s debut novel, resonates with his idea of a dream come true as he reminisces:
“It takes years to realise- dreams that we harbour in the hidden corners of our heart. They question everything, even our faith. Mine did. But on rare occasion they come true - like a full moon on a cloudless night sky.
This story, The Last Dance, has been my dream for the past decade.”
The novel consists of thirty four chapters arrayed in five parts, a well framed prologue and a concluding epilogue adding fervor to the main story. The prologue, usually depicts the backstory related to the main events, but Anmol has subtly manoeuvred the prologue to give a clear vivid picture of the sequence of events in the main character’s, Ayla’s life, that ultimately prove to be the turning point of all the upcoming twists and turns which she was to face in the impending future.
Anmol, a student of history, a travel enthusiast and an explorer at heart opines:
‘Travel has little to do with the destination, if at all. It’s about discovering something unique, hidden about yourself.’
Utilizing his travelling experiences to the fullest, Anmol has put forth a well researched novel with Turkish vocabulary and reliable knowledge related to the Turkish culture, cuisine, festivals and dance forms.
‘The Last Dance’ commences in the backdrop of the ongoing cultural, political and social scenario in Turkey in the mid-1990s. The continuous suppression of the intelligentsia, religious leaders and suspension of political and economic rights of the Kurds lays the foundation of the story that unfurls in the engrasping turn of events.
Eclipsing affliction reduces the impact, perhaps making life safer and worth living for a refugee. Acceptance of fate, the only option for Ayla and her family, who with a heavy heart settled down in the new home, giving a voice to all the refugees residing in various parts of the globe : ’Memories of the past became hazy as the door of our motherland was shut on us.’ (14)
The alternate storylines of Ayla and Guru Chandrashekhar bring together the contemporariness in their lives who, though in the beginning, were miles apart, living in the same era, are acknowledged by the readers who eagerly await the meeting of the two main characters.
‘When it arrived, the announcer introduced me as the son of the great Ayla’s story isn’t just that of a refugee girl but that of a child’s dreams: ’My talent would draw applause from all over the world.’ (24) The flight of the child’s desires, continuous efforts to reach out to the skies, plummeting down nosedive, rising again finally giving wings to the crestfallen aspirations…that defines the story of a girl whose heart denied to be shattered even by the most gruesome of human behaviours. ‘Life is going from one discomfort zone to another without losing hope.’ (231)
The author does not believe in elevating the characters and presenting them as divinely and flawless. On the contrary, he adds a pinch of vice and virtue alongside in each character, making them as vulnerable as any human being. ‘The Last Dance’ portrays the rise and fall of emotions as the tides in the ocean- love and hatred, anguish and hopefulness, anger and solace, respect and defiance, fear and courage- defining the human nature in its most acceptable form!
‘Purity of thoughts and action lead to the Divine form of creativity.’
Anmol Arora’s wish to ‘create stories, not for entertainment, but to inspire the world’ seems to have been fulfilled in his debut novel.
Anmol Arora’s simplistic lucid style succeeds in striking the right chords and creates an everlasting impression on the readers’ minds with Ayla’s and Guru Chandrashekhar’s characters occupying a special place in their hearts- sometimes empathizing, at times simply falling in love with their passion for perfection.
Anmol’s debut novel ‘The Last Dance’ presents a flawless story amalgamated with easily comprehensible free flowing stream of words wallowing the readers in the well knit web of events, making their journey through the book uninterruptedly enjoyable from start to the finish.
BOOK REVIEW BY:
GITI TYAGI
EDITOR, CREATIVE ARTIST, WRITER, POETESS, REVIEWER
FORMER SENIOR LECTURER
MM UNIVERSITY, AMBALA, INDIA
EDUCATIONAL CONSULTANT
KARNAL, INDIA
Book preview
The Last Dance - Anmol Arora
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