Yaar Jadugar (Hindi)
Nilotpal Mrinal
Nilotpal Mrinal
2021
Hind Yugm
pp. 240
pp. 240
Audiobook on Storytel
Yaar Jadugar is a fictional tale set in a village. The plot revolves around people from the village bringing their loved ones back to life through a magician/ tantrik, I am not sure what is the right word. As people struggle to make sense of living with their loved ones again, greed, politics, corruption, caste negotiations also come to fore. The story is intense and manages to unpack the subtle layers of human emotions and relations.
The last two chapters are particularly poignant. Conversations between people get philosophical and social hierarchies are questioned. In the face of existential threat and meaninglessness, boundaries of status, caste and religion get diluted, giving way to a common thread of survival in the face of helplessness.
A twist in the end brings demigods of death into the picture. This was a bit sudden and disappointing but I guess the author felt the need to provide a logical explanation to the magic. I found it unnecessary. Yet, the content of conversation between Yamraj and his son is engaging and a fitting end.
The exploration of existential meaninglessness that runs through the story is quite appealing to me. More engaging than the writing, the author’s rendition of it on Storytel.