LEAFING THROUGH
Tottilu
Mogalli Ganesh
Ankita Pustaka, Rs.120
The transition from one literary form to another is an exciting adventure filled with challenges. Many young and talented short story writers in Kannada, particularly those inspired by the Dalit-Bandaya movement, are now trying to utilise the possibilities offered by the genre of novel. Mogalli Ganesh, an accomplished young writer, has created an output which is at once imaginative and introspective. He is as good as any of his contemporaries in espousing the causes of the Dalit and downtrodden. However, he can be dispassionate, analytical and self critical when examining the movements generated by the angst and the anger of exploited communities.
Tottilu is a novel which delineates the pangs of social transformation stretched out in time and space from the vantage point of a young man. This young narrator is from a rich family although he is a child born out of wedlock to a forsaken dumb woman (Mooki) and a lecherous and callous man. The narrator has an opportunity to examine the complex psyche of the exploiters from close quarters and arrives at a reality which is not black and white. The positive aberrations in the rich family such as radio uncle, ha-oh-ayyoo uncle, and Ashwini who becomes a scientist in NASA are memorable characters which are Marquez-like in their depths and eccentricities.
The conflict between The Dibbada Mane (house on the hill) and the Tagginavaru (those living at a lower level) gives the novel a new socio-economic dimension. This conflict forms only the backdrop for a panorama which is much wider. Ganesh indulges in a serious probe into the genesis and evolution of both protest and cruelty. An abiding interest in insensitive and wanton cruelty has been a recurrent theme in Ganesh's works. The disintegration of an upper class family under the weight of its own contradictions, as also the onslaught of emergent lower classes, is brought out in stark reality.
As always, women are perceived as the forces that sustain life and all other institutions that auger well for humanity. Characters such as Mooki, Malli, Venakatalakshmi, Ashwini and the grandmothers represent the forces of continuity, creativity and adaptability. Men more often than not are egotistic, eccentric and wayward. At times they are so immersed in their creative and vocational passions that they become insular to genuine life forces.
This novel adapts a non-linear mode of narration, with the young narrator having many points of departure as the mood strikes him. It is a creative mixture of memory both of the collective and the personal kind. The experiences are essentially contemporary, infused with an imagination which can switch to the fantasy mode at its discretion.
This method of encapsulating centuries of experience into a short non-realistic narrative is qualitatively different from the one adopted by Devanoora Mahadeva in his celebrated novel Kusumabale. Ganesh does not confine himself to the Dalit experience per se and ventures successfully into the realm of cross-cultural possibilities.
Tottilu is remarkable for its deliberate avoidance of dialect used by a region or a community. Ganesh uses the standard language possibly in order to create an interpretative space within the confines of the experiential universe created by him. The narrator is torn asunder by the ideological persuasions fostered by his activist associates and the emotional realities that hold him together. He is slightly disappointed with the former and cannot come out of a love-hate relationship with the former. This is the dilemma faced by many young persons deeply influenced by modernity and social change. Hence this novel is truly representative of the conflicts, turmoil and the angst of a generation. This is a must read in our troubled times.
H.S. RAGHAVENDRA RAO
Charitreya Vikruthikarana
Aditya Narayana
Navakarnataka Publications, Rs. 25
The book by Aditya Narayana draws one's attention to the fragmented, contemporary context of reading history. But after reading the book, one wonders if it is anything more than a limited propaganda tool. The author admits that all the documents were supplied by Prof. Arjun Dev.
The first 28 pages of the book are devoted to NCERT, about a quarter of this to criticise J.S. Rajput alone. Phrases such as "Talibanising textbooks" and "saffron agenda" have been brandied about freely. The logic behind choosing the 1990s as the cut-off for the retrogression of NCERT isn't clear. One fails to understand the logic of reproducing the entire "text of deletions" in seven pages in English instead of giving its gist in Kannada.
Perhaps the only balanced point made here is that it is wrong to give too much prominence to Sanskrit in the curriculum. The portions on CABE (Central Advisory Board for Education) and Syllabus Panel are too intellectual and lengthy for a general reader. Though he mentions five categories of mistakes in history textbooks, details on instances of twisting facts are few and sketchy. One wonders why a leading publisher like Navakarnataka should encourage a poor rehash of material already available in English, without the author's own insights.
H.S. MANJUNATHA
Magumalagide Yedeya Mele
M.D. Okkunda
Lohia Prakashana, Rs. 35
War and violence have not only left behind a trial of death and destruction, but also led to the birth of some fine poetry. The mindless and multi-faceted violence taking place around us and the mind behind it form the core of Magumalagide Yedeya Mele, the third anthology of poems by M.D. Okkunda, a Professor of Kannada at Nargunda in Gadag district.
Like a sleeping child, Okkunda is disturbed by the war and violence that have been triggered by the boundaries (gadi) man has drawn within himself as well as across the nations. The bunch of seventeen poems that go under the single title "Yuddha" show how these boundaries have led to boundless violence.
As he opens his eyes towards the world around him, he only sees "deserted streets/ air thick with the smell of blood", "baby shuddering in the womb", "strewn, severed limbs." The newspaper hawker appears to him like a "terrorist" and he just fears to touch the newspaper with "the photograph of the martyrs,/ their bodies lying on the borders".
Yet, Okkunda is optimistic: "The borders on the world map/ have turned red/ like streams of blood. /One day, I shall paint them white."
In yet another bunch of seven short poems titled "Gujarat", he brings out the other face of the violence, the communal carnage. He not only vents his ire against the "saffron guillotine", ("Gujarat-3") but also yearns for a casteless world. The peace-loving poet says: "They are into arson. /Come, /we shall light the lamp." ("Deepa Hachchona.")
The poet expresses his fears, dilemmas and regrets about Time in nine poems titled "Kaala". While poems such as "Surya", "Anjike", "Gulamala Athmageethe", "Bandhisabahudhe Bayala Aalayadholage" display serious social, political and humanistic concerns, the two poems with one title, "Niddhe Hodha Sangaathi — 1 and 2" and a couple of "Gulmohar" poems have romantic overtones.
Leafing Through is a monthly column that features Kannada books. You can send in books to Friday Review, The Hindu, 19 & 21, Bhagwan Mahaveer Road, Bangalore 560001.
K.V. SUBRAMANYA
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Entertainment
Bangalore
Chennai and Tamil Nadu
Delhi
Hyderabad
Thiruvananthapuram
