Is there a need for an identity?
A.D. RANGARAJAN
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Kolakaluri Enoch believes in expanding his repertoire.
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SLICE OF LIFE Prof. Kolakaluri Enoch's writings capture real lives.
Where do I belong?', a litterateur may ponder, even a bit loudly. But it is not healthy to confine oneself to a genre, which in other words, means shrinking one's focus to a specific area.
Noted Telugu fiction writer Kolakaluri Enoch, who airs this opinion, is a multi-faceted personality. True to his view, he is all too familiar with a range of fields and has a penchant for dalit literature, feminist literature and even revolutionary literature, but is not a member of any of these associations. "This neutral stand acts as a shield from attribution of motives, but on the flipside, as we belong nowhere, no clan comes to our rescue in case of a crisis," smiles the Telugu professor, who was formerly the vice-chancellor of Sri Venkateswara University.
Prof. Enoch was in Tirupati recently to take part in `Kathasandhi', a programme organised by Sahitya Academy (The National Academy of Letters) at Sri Padmavathi Women's University, where he gave a brief introduction of his short stories.
An eminent short-story writer, his works are a diorama of poverty-ridden society and he is a master in bringing rural lifestyle before the readers' eyes. His stories often end abruptly, but the untold part conveys more that what is told.
He recalled his first work Uttaram, written when he was still an adolescent, which is about a poor boy who prefers against reading a letter till the exams are over, as he knows fully well that letters from home bring with them nothing more than loads of tears. Prof. Enoch explains that irrespective of the financial position, certain lives are prone to suffering based on caste, religion and gender.
He also dwelt on Kumkuma, the story of an upset lady doctor who reluctantly performs a surgery on a pregnant woman and saves two lives. Only towards the end is the fact revealed that her bedridden husband crosses the stage of danger. The story is woven around the sentimental value of kumkuma, when both the women get a new lease of life.
Similarly, the controversial story Thaakattu, revolves around two friends, a Brahmin and a dalit. The Dalit demands that the Brahmin's sacred thread be mortgaged for the hand loan given by him, which Prof. Enoch himself admitted created a lot of furore, but added it was a `conscious idea' and was not at all provocative. He explained that the story indicated how the thread stood as a barrier between people.
His compilation of short stories Gaalivaana and Oorabavi were nominated for the Sahitya Academy award in 1987, while the latter was even recommended for translation into French.
He is one of the few writers who capture real lives and present them on paper with the effect intact. And he is surely among those who don't invite criticism by being identified with a clan.
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