KANNADA
Novel with a rural ethos
V. GOPALAKRISHNA
TOTTILU: Mogalli Ganesh; Ankita Pustaka, No.53, Shamsingh Complex, Gandhi Bazar Main Road, Basavanagudi, Bangalore-560004. Rs. 120.
THE SHORT stories of Mogalli Ganesh have received wide acclaim for their deep insight into village life. This first novel of the author gives an account of an undivided family of landowners in a Malnad village for a period of three generations overlapping pre-and post-Independence days.
The author narrates the events in first person assuming he is the only surviving male heir, a frustrated young man of the family.
A conflict between the landlord and the villagers began with the visit of the Maharaja to the village. Pleased with the warm welcome, the Maharaja granted the landless villagers fertile land for cultivation. Conspiring with some palace officials, the landlord kept the records of rights in his custody to grab the land. The peasants who worked harmoniously had a bumper yield of coconuts after some years. But the landlord with the help of police took possession of the land as well the produce. The conflict reached a high pitch with the arrest of many innocent villagers. Busted by the unbearable harassment meted out to them, the entire village rebelled against the landowners.
Though the story is not continuous, the pen-pictures give a peep into the affairs of the family.
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