The Princess and the Political Agent - Binodini

 Fiction

Verdict: A difficult one, but Read it

As I mentioned, when one wanders through Indian novels and writers, each brings a specific flavor that can help the reader understand the culture that the novel stems from. Binodini's novel is no exception. While my daughter had a Manipuri boyfriend for a while and I have had some...acquaintances from Manipur and Assam as well, I have had very little exposure to Manipuri Culture and no exposure to literary works from there. To be quite frank, when i picked this up, I mistakenly thought that this was a Bengali novel. I was thrilled to find out otherwise. As with my previous post on Attia Hosain, the introduction to Binodini at the beginning was intimidating as hell. Related to the royal family of Manipur and quite the literary influence, Binodini has published just one novel, but many other poems and short works.

The novel follows one one of the Manipuri Princesses during the British Raj, when the Manipuri king was removed and sent into exile,  and through her life. The author has created a treasure trove of culture, court intrigue, and romance. As title suggests, the Princess ends up being a common law wife of an English Political agent. While he is portrayed as a compassionate and caring person, one cannot help but wonder why the princess would accept someone who is widely recognized as being a face of the enemy and not one of them. Binodini never really answers this question. While it is a fiction novel, she has based it on actual people and events. The princess actually was with the political agent.  

This was a difficult novel for me to follow. The author does her own thing and tells her story exactly as she wishes to - no apologies, very few explanations.  While the cultural value this novel has is quite something, it's not easily digestible. I found myself having to do additional research into words and such while I was reading. I don't fault the author for this, but those who do not invest in helping themselves understand will probably miss a great deal. I also found the characters very difficult to understand and identify with. As someone who loves Indian literature, this was frustrating for me. I also would have loved to have had further insight into interpersonal relationships between the characters. Many of the relationships were confusing at best, down right confounding at worst. True to form, Binodini has just presented the story, she does not explain. 

Manipuri literature is a new one for me, and I fully plan to see what else I can find to read from there. Hopefully I can develop my knowledge enough to fully appreciate the story Binodini has told. 

Read it, but unless you are Manipuri, plan on investing some time to investigate. If you don't, you'll miss the richness of this novel.

~Becky~

Sunlight on a Broken Column - Attia Hosain

Fiction

Read it

One of my favorite parts of books is the introduction - and even better an explanation of the author. They help open up the author's world to the reader. I had never heard of Attia Hosain before I started reading this novel. To say the least, the introduction on her was intimidating and I very much looked forward to reading her one and only novel. Anita Desai, another favorite authoress of mine wrote the forward which helped me on my way through the novel. When one investigates Indian novels, and if he or she is careful, the nuances of different locations and sub-cultures soon becomes very easily seen. This is very easy to see in Hosain's novel.

Sunlight on a Broken Column follows a young Muslim girl and her family from British era Lucknow to more modern times. The family struggles to change from a house where ladies are in purdah to learning to accept new norms. To say the least, it's not an easy transition and many struggle. It's difficult to avoid certain stereotypes when one talks about the Muslim community in India, however some of those spring from history and it's good to look at the historical attitudes to understand current culture. Hearing this from someone in the community, and in my opinion a neutral person, helps the reader get an accurate picture.

If my description doesn't tell you too much, it's because the author portrays ideas and everyday life. There's no story arc per say to follow. It's just everyday life and how it slowly changes. While this isn't always easy to follow, it's culture rich. 

I wish Attia Hosain had written other books. I would have like to delve a bit further into her mind.

Read it if you have the time to wander slowly and contemplate the breadcrumbs and cultural tidbits she lays out for you to find.

~Becky~

History of Modern India - Bipin Chandra

NonFiction
Verdict: Read it!

The title is pretty self explanatory for this one. However, this is one of the better explanations of Indian History that I've read. It will leave you pretty angry at the British if you have any sense at all. But still a fascinating read - not too long or heavy.


Becky

Sea of Poppies - Amitav Ghosh

Fiction
Verdict: Read it

Amitav Ghosh is another author that I am become extremely fond of reading. Sea of Poppies has taken two very different characters and placed them next to each other and you can't help but contrast them. 

One character, an orphaned white woman, leaves her adoptive home due to unreasonable restrictions. She comes from a place of privilege, sanitation, and servants. 

The other is a woman from the central plains of India. One that still covers her head, but had the courage to run away with a man after he foiled plans for her to be burned on her husband's pyre and is hunted there forward.

Both women find themselves on a ship headed to Sri Lanka in the hope that working on a plantation will bring them safety and a comfortable life - more comfortable than the one they are running from. 

Set in a time when Britain was present in India, the language is stunningly confusing to understand at first. It's a bastardized mix of English and Hindi that apparently was common and popular among the English when they colonized India. As someone who understands both languages, it's a confusing ride for a while. Once one catches on, it's very amusing as well as horrifying to watch both languages being butchered so badly with so much arrogance. 

Read it.

Becky