Kore Kagaz (Hindi)
Amrita Pritam
2007
Bhartiya Jnanpith
pp. 95
(audiobook on Storytel.in)
Kore Kagaz, loosely translated as blank papers, is a novel by Amrita Pritam. The story starts with a young man who comes home to witness the death of his mother and discovering the mysteries surrounding his birth and life. He realises that he is not his mother’s biological son and that there are many secrets that surround his life. The plot is complex in covering dimensions of relationships of blood and water, as also ideas of discrimination, greed, social practices and astrology. The detailing of planetary positions in discussing astrology was quite astounding. I have no knowledge of the same but I am sure that a writer like Amrita Pritam would not have put in something without adequate research.
The language is a bit terse in comparison to some of the other Hindi books that I have read. But the story is worth your time. It is engaging and keeps you guessing what will happen next. I found themes of identity and search for meaning as recurrent themes in the book. This made the book more appealing for me but there is no writing of Amrita Pritam that does not appeal to me.
A word for the cover designer; I have been in awe of this cover designer for a long time. I associate this cover style with all of Amrita Pritam’s books. I am sure this is publisher specific. But I guess this is why I end up buying all of Amrita Pritam’s writings from the same publisher!