Book review

Eclectic narratives

By

Randeep Wadehra

A game of chess edited by Dhirendra Nath Bezboruah

Penguin. Pages: x+285. Price: Rs. 275/-

Translations (like wives) are seldom faithful if they are in the least attractive ___ Roy Campbell (1901–57) South African poet.

This anthology has translation of fifteen Assamese short stories by writers young and old. There is no specific theme although poverty and terrorism form motifs of quite a few narratives here. In fact, one is a pleasantly surprised that instead of getting obsessed with the extremist violence Assamese writers have been able to deal with themes that go beyond Assam and terrorism. For example, The Cavern investigates racism in America.

The canvas of A nymph of the desert spreads from Mumbai to Kishangarh – a drought stricken hamlet in Rajasthan. The steeped in affluence Emily’s life revolves around people of her own class, with the sole exception of her lower-middle-class friend Shobha who is an ambitious but struggling model. Emily is a budding gynecologist who dabbles in modeling. Since ethnic chic is in vogue Shobha asks her to acquire traditional Rajasthani dresses for a show in Paris. But Emily’s stay in the impoverished Kishangarh transforms her worldview.

Then there are stories of pre-and-extramarital relationships (Monika and Vikram & Parable of an ancient triangle) and cybernetic love affair (Cyber chatters). While Cyber… narrates how estranged lovebirds get reunited thanks to internet based chatting, Monika… tries to add twenty sixth story to the popular folklore Betaal Panchavimshati (more famous as Vikram aur Betaal). Caught up in a web of relationships with three men – her husband, current lover and childhood love – Monika desperately tries to tackle her dilemmas. The writer succeeds in exploring her mindscape. This excellent story would have stood on its own without the Betaal… prop.
Parable… portrays the tragedy of two women’s fatal attraction for a famous, philandering artist. Here too the female psyche is treated skillfully. Another story on relationships, The decision, has a strong woman protagonist. Aimoni refuses to marry in order to look after her young siblings and dying mother. Later on, when she is confronted with a choice for a life-mate, she prefers a father-of-two-widower school over a domineering rich suitor.

Bonsai is a satire on the miniaturization culture, especially the current trend of selling products in sachets that has reduced the gap among consumers belonging to different economic segments. Although quite readable, this story must have carried a lot more punch in its original version. A game of chess is a psychoanalytical attempt at studying human nature through the game of chess. Somehow one couldn’t get this narrative’s drift. Rats deals with deprivation and poverty and how it moulds relationships among marginalized people who develop their own tools for survival. Bats too portrays the poverty-stricken lifestyle wherein a poor man employs rather ‘unconventional’ methods for getting his daughter married off. The unwritten story juxtaposes human cruelty with the underdog’s haplessness and strangers’ generous gestures.

Inevitably, the terrorism related stories are more riveting. Munni’s legs, The prisoner and The journey portray different facets of terrorism with skill and sensitivity. However, it is Samiran Borua is on his way that has all the ingredients of a classic. When the news of a notorious extremist Borua’s return reaches them the hypocrisies of politicians, his ex-flame, friends and former “co-revolutionaries” are exposed. Borua finds that people (for whom he was presumably waging a war against the state) have become too busy with their own lives to bother about him. He feels redundant.

Translation as a literary genre has truly come of age, although one does not know how faithful this volume is to the original Assamese short stories. However, its contents certainly make for a fascinating read.  In fact, the syntax is so good that one can’t help recalling the late Argentinean writer Jorge Luis Borges’s witticism, “The original is unfaithful to the translation”.

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 I found your site very interesting

Rob Miller | April 19, 2010