Name: Ritik Sahni's review of Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us by Manu Joseph
Item: Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us
Rating: 4.5
Author: Ritik Sahni

Manu Joseph

In this searing and darkly hilarious diagnosis of contemporary Indian society, acclaimed writer Manu Joseph explores why the poor don’t rise in revolt against the rich despite living in one of the most unequal regions of the world.

The poor know how much we spend in a single day, on a single meal, the price of Atlantic salmon and avocados. ‘Why,’ he asks, ‘do they tolerate it? Why don’t they crawl out from their catastrophes and finish us off? Why don’t little men emerge from manholes and attack the cars? Why don’t the maids, who squat like frogs beside kitchen sinks, pull out the hair of their conscientious madams who never give them a day off? Why is there peace?’

Why the Poor Don’t Kill Us shows us in pitiless detail just how hypocritical and exploitative people of privilege are, and it also shows us how and why they get away with it. It’s a sharp, witty, and perceptive critique of the many faults of the India we live in.

The Psychology of Indians

Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us

Ritik Sahni

It is not always true that entertainment is the collateral consequence of progress; progress, often, is the collateral benefit of the pursuit of pleasure.

India's very definition of comfort is a state that is inaccessible to the poor.

We can frame the freedom rung movement as the aristocrat's use of morality to mobilize the masses and defeat his oppressor.

The educated among the poor then fill up the spaces the rich have vacated.

I was introduced to Manu Joseph via a show he created that’s on Netflix, “Decoupled”.

It’s the kind of a show that made me want to learn more about who developed it instead of being a mere consumer of the plot. It’s when I noticed the work of Manu Joseph, who, in this book, splendidly conveys the nature of India in all its absurdities.

Decoupled felt refreshing, unique, well-written. It hilariously showcased the Indian class divide and it grappled with idea of how India treats money, class, religion.

Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us feels like an extension of sorts. At times, I read certain excerpts with the voice of R. Madhavan who plays the protagonist in the show Decoupled. It was hard to me for decouple the show with the book.

Now, the book asserts the psychology of Indians across different socio-economic backgrounds and talks about ideas like how the aesthetic ugliness of the country reassures the poor, our outlook towards money and how it makes sense for rich moneylenders to prefer an austere life, how material success is more powerful than mere activism to bring real change.

It is a darkly hilarious book that will make you laugh, and then leave you uncomfortable because you laughed. It confronts a reality that is deeply relevant to the Indian society in a bold, unapologetic	fashion that leaves you surprised because what you read in this book is what you live around, everyday, without noticing.

I was introduced to Manu Joseph via a show he created that’s on Netflix, “Decoupled”.

It’s the kind of a show that made me want to learn more about who developed it instead of being a mere consumer of the plot. It’s when I noticed the work of Manu Joseph, who, in this book, splendidly conveys the nature of India in all its absurdities.

Decoupled felt refreshing, unique, well-written. It hilariously showcased the Indian class divide and it grappled with idea of how India treats money, class, religion.

Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us feels like an extension of sorts. At times, I read certain excerpts with the voice of R. Madhavan who plays the protagonist in the show Decoupled. It was hard to me for decouple the show with the book.

Now, the book asserts the psychology of Indians across different socio-economic backgrounds and talks about ideas like how the aesthetic ugliness of the country reassures the poor, our outlook towards money and how it makes sense for rich moneylenders to prefer an austere life, how material success is more powerful than mere activism to bring real change.

It is a darkly hilarious book that will make you laugh, and then leave you uncomfortable because you laughed. It confronts a reality that is deeply relevant to the Indian society in a bold, unapologetic	fashion that leaves you surprised because what you read in this book is what you live around, everyday, without noticing.

Ritik Sahni &
Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us by Manu Joseph

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Ritik Sahni &Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us by Manu Joseph

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Ritik Sahni &
Why The Poor Don’t Kill Us by Manu Joseph