When I mentioned the Prabu character to Greg, he said many things, but this was quite telling!

JDR: I have to ask you this, so many of us fell in love with the character Prabu (Prabaker)

GDR: I’m really glad they did. Thank you, it’s lovely, it’s endearing for me to hear this, it’s a wonderful thing when you create a character from nothing, and there’s no gesture, no expression, no word of dialogue, no physical appearance. Nothing is matched by in the real world by a real person and you get access to this created character… through… I don’t know, channeling in a way, and you create your character carefully, I wanted to make a character who was a gateway to India for all those people who had never been there. I wanted to create a character people could like first, be amused by, but then respect, then love and then grieve for when he passes so that this emotional experience, with the spectrum of emotions, would lead them to engage with India. Now it has, I get about 800 emails a week and of those… some 400 or so are about the book specifically so in many, many cases now people are saying, as you said, this book has changed my life for one reason or another, which is lovely to hear, and then you also get, “I’m going to India because of this” and now the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation here and the MTDC, they had a meeting with them here the other day and they said you know we’ve got about two hundred people a month coming to Bombay because of the book “Shantaram” ..they are coming on the “Shantaram tour”, they’re telling travel agents “I want to go to Bombay because I read this book called “Shantaram.”

What was your first sense about Prabaker? Did you have a sense of intrique? Of the unknown? Was he "good" guy or was he "bad" guy? What were your feelings? Why do you think Lin and Prabaker were drawn to each other? What did each see in the other? How did they compliment each other?

I got a kick out Prabaker right from the start. He was comical but yet he introduced Lin to the Indian ways and helped Lin understand the Indian people. I just felt he was a good guy from the beginning. I loved the banter between both of them. He always seemed to be looking out for Lin's best interests. It was like Prabu was Lin's guide through his journey of discovery.

They do compliment each other, sometimes like a comedy team. I just loved their exchanges and how some words were "lost in translation" at times. I'll have to look back for some favorite exchanges.

Just wanted to say I was leery at the very first, because of my trip to Jamaice, where "friendly" natives wanted to be your friend (for 5 dollars a day--sure it's way more now, 23 years later) but it was soon evident that Prabu was not malevolent in the least.

I have to go to work but I'll be back to continue later in the day.

Have a good one!

I want to go back and reread the part where Lin and Prabaker meet and their early days together before I comment specifically on their relationship but wanted to comment on a more fundamental (is that the right word?) note...

I think that we have a survival instinct that draws us to certain people. When we walk into a meeting where we don't know anyone, how do we choose who we sit next to? The guy who looks like Johnny? :D Or, if that is not an option, probably the person who looks the safest. Our instinct certainly plays a part in making that decision.

Dial the importance up quite a bit - walking into a situation where quite frankly the alligences one makes could be a matter of life or death, then instinct plays a much greater role. Having been in a maximum security prison and on the run, Lin was tuned into his instincts. Something about Prabaker said to Lin - This man will help keep me safe and Lin went with that instinct and as a result was able to survive as long as he did.

I'll be back after I have a chance to re-read the sections.

Yes! I completely agree with your insight on the way we humans use our instinct, irish, and also the way Lin would have sharpened that instinct. I also think he had a different take on the words 'safe' and 'personal safety' than the rest of us would have. He had no choice but to put himself at risk for his survival, and I think he was familiar with those edges. He was a tough guy at the bottom of his game, as it were.

Prabaker is one of the most endearing characters I've ever met! GDR managed to put all his love for India into this quintessential Indian man. (I can't wait to see who get cast in this role!) I never thought of him as sinister or threatening really - just maybe a bit too eager. As the Dylan line goes, "scrounging around for your next meal" makes a person that kind of eager. The physical delicacy of most Indian men makes them appear less dangerous to larger, bulkier Westerners. I assumed Lin figured he could hold his own if push came to shove. The scariest thing about being in an Indian city is dealing with the masses (witness the cab wreck scene) not the individuals.
And then there was Prabu's SMILE... :D Who could resist, mate?

Well, If it were me, (white female travelling alone)I'd be non trusting and cautious. Warning flags, etc...(and probably still be sitting there on the corner making the decision) Never really know who is good or bad in those types of situations. :( Pick one you think might be truthful, and nice enough, but not too nice.

Roberts says he wanted to make someone who would be a welcoming gateway to India. He sure did that! I hope a Prabaker is waiting for me when I arrive!
:crossfingers :lol: They say a smile is an international greeting, no words needed.

Lin, a veteran of making those life decisions, picked Prabaker because he had a nice, honest smile. Lin needed to trust one of the travel aids, so he picked the one he thought to be most trust worthy, and spoke English. Fate. Ennie meenie, miney moe... :shistle

Also, this could be the purposeful foreshadowning, that good things will happen in Bombay. Prabaker is a good balance or opposite of Lin.

Originally, I thought Prabaker was some kind of con artist, saw a new sucker in town, and was going to capitalize on it. He seemed too obliging and too eager. But, and I can't remember the exact dialogue between them, Lin asks why he really needs him and Prabaker says something like, because so many terrible things could happen to him if he wasn't around and he knew all of Bombay etc., and somehow I just felt that Lin was a pretty good judge of character, so my opinion of him changed.

Pg. 12:

It wasn't intrigue, or the unkown that I felt--it was Kismet.
Lin was destined to meet and befriend Prabu. Perhaps Prabaker somehow "knew" it already, and that is why he was so assertive and put off the other guides to get to serve Lin.

The Canadians were right to mistrust the guides, as these guides must take advantage, but in a third world country this is how they survive, no? There is no real malice involved, it's just work.

My sense of dread of the guides initially matched the Canadians due to my experience in Jamaica, but I very quickly changed my mind due to the exchanges between Lin and Prabu and Lin's instincts to trust him.

We can't overlook the concept of Karma when it comes to this most fortuitous meeting of Lin and Prabaker, yaar?

I think you are all correct in your assessment that Lin has an instinct when it came to people. Just read another part today about a different character and Lin's thoughts show that he knew he would end up fighting this person in the future. Instinctively knew he didn't care for the guy. I think that's the way he started trusting Prabu---I would imagine that his instincts also helped to allow him escape the law for so long.

However, as a female, don't think I would have this much trust if traveling alone. Lin is a skilled fighter so I think he just believed he could handle the situation if turned sour.

I also agree that Kismet, fate, led Lin to India and the book seems to bear this out. This is where he started making peace with himself in spite of some very rough patches he endured in the jail and heroin den.

I agree with the previous posts-Lin's instinct had served him well in his escape from prison and he was willing to take a chance and trust Prabaker and lets face it he had the skills to dispatch of Prabaker if he proved to be an enemy and move on with his quest to hide out in India.

Instinct is something that I fear modern "man " is loosing. Lin surely was well served by following his instincts!

I went back and re-read the meeting between Lin and Prabaker this morning...

from the paragraph that begins with "I stood and bumped my way to the front of the bus..."

I think it is interesting to note that Prabaker is a leader among the touts (street operatives, drug dealers and other businessmen of the city.) It would be a position that he has worked and fought his way up to. He is at the front of the pack (prized location) and the others quiet down for him which shows a measure of respect from his colleagues. He's obviously intelligent and physically able to hold his own - (this isn't the taxi line at the Las Vegas hotel where the first cab in line gets the next fare - the one in the front would have to be constantly fighting to retain his position.)

Given Lin's intelligence and ability to survive, I am thinking that along with the instinct to trust Prabaker, and the karma/kismet also played a role in their meeting, Lin did choose to hire the "best man for the job" so to speak. He didn't seek out a person in middle or back of the pack - he chose the one in the front.

The trust factor kept the relationship going, but I wonder if Lin would have picked another man holding Prabaker's position to fulfill his initial requirements (lead me to a clean, cheap hotel, show me the lay of the land, and get me some hashish.)

Karen - I wonder, is modern man truly losing instinct or getting better at ignoring it?

Hmmm, this is an interesting point. :thumbsup

You kept me up half the night with this comment! :blink:
Yes, he does have instinct all right, he even mentions (another part) that instinct at the beginning , with regards to India. (p.73, 1st paragraph) ...but it has nothing to do with Prabaker. :shistle

I'll ditto that one! :thumbsup :thumbsup
He picked the person who gets where he needs to be, who can get the job done.

Agreed! And I'll add that Prabaker didn't appear to possess such an aggressive personality, so what made him fight to the front in order to get this particular gora's attention? Hmmmm...