Author: Dharamvir Bharati
No. of Pages: 80
Publisher: Bhartiya Gyanpith
Year of Publication: 2011 (Fortieth edition)
About the Book:
The novel, or novella if you please, is a collection of stories interwoven within a single story. Written in the simplest of styles, Bharti introduces the storyline through a narrator. The narrator has a life and opinion of his own. Although not the chief protagonist, the narrator plays a very significant part in the book. The other character, the storyteller, is equally strong, as are all the other characters. Each character is equally real. When you read about them, you start thinking of people around you who relate to the characters in the story.
The storyteller narrates stories that are at least semi-autobiographical. The authenticity of his words is ofcourse in doubt, but the doubt lends a rather mystic appeal to his stories. The criss-cross that is created by the several women who ‘visit’ his life is interesting. It brings out the inherent complexity in relationships as well as emotions. His audience and their comments are not any less fascinating. Their pseudo-intellectualism at linking Marx to the love stories that their mentor, the story teller, narrates, is both comic and endearing.
Final Analysis:
The descriptions are vivid. Interweaving love stories with class struggle, Bharti’s attempt at capturing the travails of the lower-middle class is lucid and mesmeric.
Must read.
Favourite Quote:
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