A Suitable Boy

[GCAcademic]

Just seen that this starts on 26 July on the Beeb.

I love, love, love the book. I read it during lockdown and wanted to start reading it again as soon as I finished it. Am hovering between excitement and apprehension in case the TV series is a let down.

Anyone else looking forward to this?

I watched it.
Couldn't really relate to any of the characters
It was ok but not really gripping
Was confused who everyone was to start with

I've not read the book but when I hear about it it reminds me of Wolf Hall with the length and the stupid amount of characters. And I hated Wolf Hall!

I thought Maan was gay too then he fell for the singer. It had me confused.
I haven't read the book and I know little of Indian politics so that is interesting.

Have only just found out that the sceen play is by Andrew Davies, at the author's request!

In the past he seemed to be able to manage subtlety and implication but as he got bored on costume dramas (or something) he always seemed to tip over into parody.

Wonder if the younger less jaded Davies might have done a better job.

Couldn't really relate to any of the characters

It definitely felt like we were getting a mere snapshot of each character. The book‘s main pleasure lies in its characterisation: we’re given a rich yet intimate picture of the characters’ lives and family relationships, and really get to know and root for them (well, most of them!). Interestingly, politics are handled in the same way, so that we get a sense of the panoramic sweep of post-Independence nation-building as well as the consequences of that on a very individual level. That’s completely lost here, but I think warmthanddepth is absolutely right, it would be impossible to translate that characterisation, built up over 1300 pages, into six hours of television. I still think that the script is very awkward, though. Too much of the dialogue is aimed very obviously at explaining stuff to the audience.

I got quite confused as to who everyone was, and how they were related! It's been years since I read the book, though I remember enjoying it at the time.

I liked the costumes and settings, though, much of it was very visually appealing. I wondered how elite the families were - they seemed extremely well off, but I wasn't sure if that was just typical of a professional family, or if they were higher than that - like government ministers here maybe, or even more upper/ruling class.

I forgot it was on last Sunday!

Just watching now and I LOVE IT! It's easy to follow too which I thought it might not be with the complicated families, etc. I recognise all the characters and it brings back very happy memories of the book I loved so much 20 years ago, and read twice. The cast is lovely.

Well done BBC.

I thought, a great adaptation, brought me chills remembering certain parts.

In fact I would recommend at least a twenty year gap between reading a book and any TV version.

@LadyEloise in the book Maan is portrayed as bisexual but mainly attracted to women.
I enjoyed the first episode, though I thought the script was clunky. Would have liked it to be closer to the book in some ways. In the book we are told that Mrs Mahesh Kapoor speaks Hindi to her husband and children and that her English is poor, a reflection of her more humble social background and lack of education, and that Maan and Saeeda Bai the singer speak Urdu together, with lots of puns and romantic wordplay. I was disappointed to see so little reflection of that. I also felt the relationship between Lata and her mother was too harmonious. In the book both are more emotionally volatile with each other and need the sister Savita to mediate between them. Pran is described as gaunt and lanky and with a great sense of humour, v different from the TV episode too. But it's visually beautiful and I think I'll stick with it !

Thank you Helocariad

I read and loved this book last year. Had I not read it, this programme would give me the wrong impression of its quality and detail. It makes it appear superficial and just all about love, which it really isn't.

I thought Davies did a better job with the tone of War and Peace.

I don't even recognise most of the dialogue, I think.

It's a shame. It deserved more episodes.

Also, I loved Pran in the book and he is barely featuring

I haven't read the book but I'm really enjoying the series. It's a bit hard to follow but I'm loving it so far.

I was so disappointed when the second episode ended tonight, an hour is not enough! I really lapped it up and am glad the other characters from the book are now being introduced, they are so entertaining.

Isn't everyone very good looking :-).

The girl who plays Lata is delightful.

I can't wait for next week.

Now that I no longer expect it to be "high brow" and "serious" I am enjoying it.

Well its better than Sanditon!

It has quite a lot of depth being set in the era just after partition.

The book is amazing, do read it if you can.

I haven't read the book and keep waiting for it to get going. Still finding it hard to remember who everyone is and some of the storylines seem to be in soap-sized chunks. Hopefully things will liven up a bit soon. The scenery and costumes are great though. All you need is the smell and the noise!

I've read the book and I still feel like the characters need a title card very time they appear!

I exposed my ignorance earlier about why the dialogue was mainly in English.

Just read this article about current use of English in countries that the English colonised! inews.co.uk/opinion/bbc-a-suitable-boy-authentic-english-language-570443

It brought the book back to me very thoroughly. The characters are clearly etched in my mind, even those on the periphery, and I think the dramatisation is spot on.

Adored the book, DH and I started watching this thinking he would hate it.both liked it....very like Monsoon wedding in style....dreamy quality almost. Sad the gorgeous Kabir isn’t going to feature much from the way the plot has moved swiftly in episode 1.

I had not read the book, and am finding the dialogue hard to follow because of the speed at which they speak and of course the accents, which I appreciate is not their fault.
The visual feast for the eyes is fab and I will plough on with it.
The up stream history lesson has helped as well

Surprised that there isn't much discussion about this tonight.

I am enjoying it but it is a bit of a slow burner. I am pleased that Lata asked Kiran to come over to stay in Brahmpur with them.

I hope they find Bashkar.

That was such a sad part.

It was very interesting tonight. Though I remember the story quite vividly it is so different seeing it all on location and I am really appreciating that.

I am getting a bit confused with all the characters. I almost need a little prompt to come up on the screen with a quick reminder of who someone is. Or maybe someone could draw me a family tree!

Just to add I am always like that with dramas as I get carried away looking at sets, clothes, scenery and in the meantime things are happening.

I think some of the characters haven't had the chance to be more fully explained than others, but in terms of plot I found tonight much more interesting, both on the personal level and the political level. And there seems to be some unspoken sisterly solidarity!

stumbledin, there must be some sort of 'map' showing all the characters and their relationships to each other. I've seen one for another book, I'll have a look for the same for 'A Suitable Boy'.