Bali and the Ocean of Milk

Written by

NilanjanP Choudhury

Published by

HarperCollinsIndia

Saucy apsaras, paranoid asuras, scheming devas...

caught in a tangled web of murder, myth and mirth...

      Something is rotten in the state of Amravati. A mysterious ailment afflicts Indrah, reducing the omnipotent king of the gods to, well, not quite the man he used to be. To add to his woes, the Holy Trinity threaten to fire him for dereliction of duty. But Indrah’s troubles wilt in comparison to those of his asura counterpart, Bali, ruler of Tripura. 

       Even as Indrah sits fretting over his delicate health, an assassination attempt on Bali leaves the asura on the brink of death.There is only one thing that can save both these men from certain doom: amrit, the mythical nectar. But to secure it, the gods and the asuras will have to cooperate and churn the Ocean of Milk together… Will Indrah and Bali be able to set aside their ancient enmity, or will old rivalries keep them from pulling off this epic feat?

(Available for sale on Flipkart over here)

PRAISE FOR THE BOOK

A ripping good yarn... 

‘Choudhury tells a ripping good yarn, the fast-paced action given resonance by echoes of current moral, political and social issues...the frequent use of modern idiom adds a touch of timelessness to the tale which is seen to take place in a then which is an enduring and relevant now. As is the case in all the best myths of all ages.’ – Jug Suraiya, Times of India (Link)

A grand and frothy manthan of myth, magic...

‘A grand and frothy manthan of myth, magic, palace intrigue, Wodehouse-ian humour and more! Nilanjan Choudhury uses the entire palette of good story-telling – humour, conflict, sex, dramatic reversals and action sequences that should have Hollywood pounding at Choudhury’s door. A modern day Aristophanes!’ – Mahesh Dattani, Sahitya Akademi Award-winning playwright and film-maker

An engaging mythological universe …

'Nilanjan Choudhury’s novel creates an engaging mythological universe of arrogant gods, warring asuras and convoluted power play which resonates with contemporary politics' – Proteeti Banerjee, Business World (Link)


Spicy retelling ...

'Dig into this spicy concoction of myth, human drama, social satire and humour. You won’t be disappointed as you revisit our ancient  myths, discovering their contemporary resonance with plenty of chuckles along the way' – Utkal Mohanty, Deccan Herald Books Review  (Link)


A rollicking good read…

‘Bali and the Ocean of Milk, is a rollicking good read. It’s funny, it’s serious and it is a thriller’ – Malavika Velayanikal, DNA (Link)


Unputdownable...

'Once I started the book, I just couldn’t put it down... the book made me revisit mythology in a very unique way' - Arundhati Raja, Bangalore Mirror (Link)


Lip-smackingly good fun...

‘Genre-bending fiction, like a purana on modern politics narrated by a cynical, urban dilettante… The dialogues are crisp and well-written…and most of the book is seriously funny’ – Sailen Routray, Hard News (Link) 

Quite a cocktail... 

‘A tongue-in-cheek story that spans time, mythology and politics. Quite a cocktail.’ – Abhijit Bhaduri, bestselling novelist


Side-splittingly funny... 

‘Mythology with a modern political twist, subversive and side-splittingly funny’ – C.K. Meena, author and columnist