It's a literary take on Mumbai's famous local trains that brings alive the "rocking homelessness" experienced by thousands of travellers in this city every day.

"Local", authored by Jaideep Varma, describes the travails of the average Mumbai resident who has to travel by these passenger trains day in and day out to reach his workplace or anywhere else.

"The book is about surrender. To surrender completely to the rocking homelessness of a local train," Varma told IANS about his debut novel.

In a narrative journey that halts for varied characters to get on board, an advertising executive straddles two worlds - the matte-finished, night time home of the local train and a glossy, bustling daytime job.

As he walks the border between motion and stillness, the paradoxes of his dual existence transform him in readable ways.

Varma, an advertising professional, like his protagonist, thanks his wife "for never, despite considerable provocation sometimes, asking me to go live on a train".

The book was compared by filmmaker Sudhir Mishra to Vinod Kumar Shukl's classic "Naukar ki Kameez". Varma had originally written the novel as a film script. However, Mishra felt the story works even better as a book.

Mishra, who recently made the critically acclaimed "Hazaron Khwaishen Aisi", released the book (Indialog) at the Prithvi theatre.

At the book release, D. Ramakrishna, executive director JWT, said he was surprised that characters in what is considered such a shallow profession - advertising - were not at all shallow in the book.

Melvin Sterne, editor, Carve, said he received 2,000 manuscripts a year, but this was one manuscript that he enjoyed reading after a hard day's work.