JOIN USThis is a fast-paced, engrossing tale of the super-rich of Asia; the beautiful people whose flaws, and glimpses of inner beauty, peek through the gaps in their bejewelled facades. They own islands, marry into royalty, and contribute a large chunk of their own country’s entire GDP. This exclusive privileged species flaunt fancy jewellery that can feed entire cities.
Singaporean Alfred Shang, for example, “lives mostly in England on an estate that’s half the size of Scotland.” They fly off in their private jets to palaces in India, to propose marriage amid a song-and-dance extravaganza led by none less than Shah Rukh Khan. They spend ridiculous sums for plastic surgery on pet Arowana fish, whose value rises to $2,50,000 after a chin job and eye lift.
The novelist deftly mimics the style of glossy fashion tabloids. Social satire and irony flow as undercurrents, adding depth and subtlety, without weighing down the breezy narrative. Doing a photo shoot for Singapore Tattle, the new wife of China’s second-richest man, Kitty Bing, “was posed on a regency settee in front of ‘The Palace of Eighteen Perfections’, the magnificent Chinese scroll painting she had purchased two years ago for a record-breaking $195 million. She was dressed in a pale pink Oscar de la Renta off-the-shoulder ball gown, the billowing duchesse satin skirt pooling gloriously around her, and on her head was a delicate Edwardian pearl headband.” Kitty, “the daughter of sanitation workers in Qinghai, had achieved such great heights at the relatively young age of 34 (although she told everyone she was 30). Not that any of this had been easy — she had worked non-stop her entire life to get to this place.”
Kitty strives to settle scores with her arch rival, her stepdaughter Colette, who is a fashionista-turned-saviour of orang-utans after marrying a British nobleman. Yet, Colette upstages Kitty yet again by appearing with her orangutans on the cover and main spread of Singapore Tattle, while Kitty’s cover and photo feature is indefinitely shelved.
This fashion-tabloid style can be hilarious, as when a middle-aged, old money Singapore heiress makes a grand entrance in “a sleeveless floral blouse probably purchased from the clearance rack at John Little, taupe elastic waist pants and orthopaedic open-toed sandals.”
Comedy happens when a society matron shares how “That! Woman! Tried! To! Steal! My! Seamstress! I found this girl who… could replicate all the Nina Ricci, Scherrer, and Fernand dresses I loved so perfectly.” You will be falling out of your chair laughing when her daughter adds, “It was 1987, Mum. Time to get over it.”
The humour, life and verve keep readers entertained and engaged. The fun balances the more serious concerns that strategically crop up. After all, rich people also have problems, but little sympathy. “Nobody wants to hear that Colin Khoo and Araminta Lee have any kind of problems. We’re too rich to have problems. We’re the golden couple, right?”
There’s fierce rivalry, and a sense of loss, of lack of love. Kitty fights a losing war against her stepdaughter Colette, who forever outshines her by getting invited to the funeral of the century, stealing Kitty’s Tattle cover, and throwing big charity balls. Kitty’s husband Jack stresses that Kitty and her children by him don’t count. He can always find another wife, but he will never get another daughter like Colette.
As grand dame Su Yi lies dying, droves of relatives swoop from all over the world vying to inherit her palatial estate Tyersall Park, and squabble over heirlooms. “So shameful!” says Eleanor to her husband. “Your mother lies on her deathbed while everyone is outside having a garden party!” Astrid and Nick, the only grandchildren who truly care about Su Yi, are banished from her deathbed by greedy relatives.
The gap between appearances and reality is another underlying theme beneath all the wealthy extravagance. Heiress and socialite Astrid isn’t the immoral adulteress she’s publicised to be. She only hopes to leave her abusive husband for her first love, whom her family pressurised her not to marry.
“They care about appearances more than anything else in life,” says Su Yi’s grandson Alex about his estranged parents. “My parents have always been racist and elitist to the extreme… Peel away the veneer of wealth and sophistication and you’ll find extremely provincial, narrow-minded people… He looks down on people… who are self-made — because at the heart of it he is a deeply insecure individual. He knows he did absolutely nothing to deserve his fortune.”
Such insights are skilfully woven into a delightfully lively tale that takes us from mansions in Manila and Singapore to Hong Kong and private islands in the Sulu Sea.
The main characters are convincing and multifaceted. Su Yi’s youth as an undercover agent during World War II; her heart-touching gesture of helping Charlie pull off a grand marriage proposal for her beloved granddaughter Astrid; her reconciliation with grandson Nick and his wife; Su Yi, the wealthy socialite, can be tough and brave, as well as deeply loving.
In the end, amid the wild extravaganza and vicious rivalries of privileged lives, there is also true love, rare but genuine. A thoroughly enjoyable read, this one.
Rich People Problems
Kevin Kwan
Penguin
2017, pp 398
Rs 599