Reviewed On Amazon

Viriah- what a wonderfully written debut book ! It gave a perspective on a part of history that has been seldom written or spoken or ever discussed about ! Through the author’s personal journey we got a chance to experience the hardships, the immigrants dilemma and what it must have been like for Viriah and countless others. For this perspective and opening our eyes to an unknown part of history, thank you! An amazing journey, very well written and years of research in the making of this book - a great effort ! Excellent read!

RV

Viriah is a wonderfully narrated true story of the Author's quest to track down his ancestor's journey, understand the life he led and find the other people he left behind whom the Author never knew. Years of efforts by the author to find his great-grandfather and the curious happenstance during which they came to fruition are inspiring. The tragic historical background of indentured labor in the late 19th/early 20th century and its sordid parallels more than a hundred years later in today's world are well-researched and beautifully presented, interwoven with the story of the Author's great-grandfather.

Dileep Arvind Kasargod 

Hi Krishna. Read your book - Viriah. Loved it. I am a bit old school with paper books - but this was the 1st that I bought on Kindle. The story was relatable. I am a keen student of history so I was aware of indenture and ‘coolies’ going to various colonies but your book brought it to life. The other relatable aspect is that I live in the US and keep pining for my homeland and that is where the story struck me most. I think when we reach a certain age, we go back trying to discover where we came from - human nature. All the very best for the future and hope that the book reaches more people.

Tushar

I had a general idea of the indenture system that the British had setup, through observing Indian sounding names across Mauritius, Fiji, Trinidad etc. But never had I thought about it from the perspective of families and descendants of those impacted.

This book is a masterpiece, lucidly written, and the labor of love of a respected alumni, and it hits home hard.

Must read.

Aditya Pathak

UNPUTDOWNABLE

Amazing story of author's perseverance on how he tracked down his great grandfather’s journey to South Africa. He then narrates his life story while giving us a lesson in history of indentured labor, and how sadly there are parallels even today. Fast paced, emotional roller coaster written with a lot of love. Thought provoking as well. Excellent first novel by the author!

Mohan Natarajan

Krishna Gubili's debut book 'Viriah' is the true story of Krishna's search for his great grandfather's past, faraway in the sugar plantations of South Africa.

The kind of a story that must be told - while we try to hide our histories. And that is Krishna's greatest victory here - he tells the story without any feelings of shame or embarrassment (which most of us do with our histories) and tells it with great love and compassion.

The book is similar to 'Roots' and has as much passion and deserves as much attention and love. The other book I read about indentured labour was Amitav Ghosh's 'Sea of Poppies' and I can categorically say that Krishna's account told me more about the lives of indentured labour, and moved me much more.

I feel it is a great story to be adapted into a film - rarely do we get such stories where everything is perfectly set. I hope some producer picks it up. Also, this is a book that so deserves greater readership so I hope some literary agent or a large publisher picks it up as well.

It is a thorough and meticulous job, a labour of love and I can only compliment Krishna on this fine debut effort.

For all those who love great passionate stories,

Buy it and Read it.

Harimohan Paruvu