NANDANVAN & OTHER STORIES,
Short Fiction.Translated from the original Tamil by the author. Introduction by C T Indra.
(New Delhi, Orient BlackSwan, 2011)
Review of Nandanvan & Other Stories By Ranjeeta Dutta
One of the joys of reading short stories in a collection is that one can linger on each story without feeling compelled to go forward, anxiously clutching the threads of the narrative. Lakshmi Kannan’s collection of short stories has the similar quality of making the reader ruminate and sense the resonance as each of the stories in some way or the other connects with the life experiences of the reader. Whether it be the everyday struggle with the mundane tyranny of the work place in “Zeroing In” and “The Maze”, or transacting internally with a world of emotions while swinging between life and death in “Please, Dear God” and “A Sky All Around”, grappling with loneliness and filial indifference in old age in “Nandanvan” and “Savvyasachi Square” and finally, negotiating with patriarchy that forms the dominant theme in this collection, these stories immediately forge a relationship with the readers, giving them an easy access into the inner world of the text.
The anthology is divided into three parts. The first part is a detailed analysis of Lakshmi Kannan’s literary style and her stories by C T Indra, followed by two sets of interviews with the author by Christine Gomez and Sudha Rai, giving a useful insight into the worldview of the author. The second part comprises sixteen short stories followed by a novella in the third part. Originally written in Tamil and translated into English by the author herself, most of the stories despite being situated within the South Indian context, have a universal appeal with an eclectic literary style that transcends all regional and linguistic boundaries. In fact, one of the merits of this collection lies in the ways in which the author has negotiated not only with the bilinguality of the text, but has also deftly transposed the cultural traditions. This is the mark of an excellent translation where the culture and the language that expresses it, blend effortlessly, transporting the reader to the world of the narrative. While replying to the question posed by Sudha Rai, Lakshmi Kannan aptly stated, ‘The mediations I negotiate are mostly in the use of language, as I am anxious that the translation should read well…that it has to flow without disturbing the laws of English grammar and syntax…The real challenge is in translating the dialogue and grasping the speech rhythms of a people’. (30)
One of the striking qualities of the stories is the complex treatment of the themes. This is best articulated in the narratives on gender with multiple voices creating a whirlwind of tensions and conflicts accentuating the intensity of these short stories. Thus, we are confronted with a situation in which feminism is not a simplistic linear idea. Rather it is a complex discourse woven with the broader frames of religious orthodoxies, class structure, postcolonial identities, women’s compliance with the patriarchy and most significantly, their quiet subversion and negotiation instead of outright rejection. For instance, “Ejamaanar” (meaning husband in Kannada) is one such story in which the protagonist, Gowri, an old lady operates within the traditional patriarchal family, controlling the financial as well as household matters with the husband usually occupying the interior portion of the house, probably symbolic of his withdrawal from practical life. Gowri’s position of authority is further enhanced in her portrayal as the confidante of the neighbourhood and the silent yet palpable chemistry that she shares with one of the relatives, Sambasivan indicates a certain sexual autonomy that Gowri quietly enjoys. There is a pun in the term ejamaanar as the tone of the narrative points out that the actual ejamaanar, which also implies a Manager, is Gowri. In many ways, the tradition dominated by power and hierarchy between the husband and wife here is reduced to an empty symbol, mocked at by none other than Gowri herself when she says, ‘…there is a world beyond this very imperfect character called an ejamaanar’ (60).
Summer Hill, IIAS Review. Vol XVIII, No. 1 (Summer 2012). Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla.
Review of Nandanvan & Other Stories By Ranjeeta Dutta
In contrast to this is the outright rejection of the oppressive traditions and a firm denunciation of the patriarchal structure in “Muniyakka” and “Because…” However, this denunciation is accompanied by adherence to the same traditions generating a tension that creates several layers of negotiation. Such a nuanced approach is adopted in “Nagapushpam” in which the constant struggle between the mother and her questioning daughter is resolved by the author herself in her insightful commentary on women as lynchpin of the traditions, carrying the burden of meticulous adherence to them.
Interestingly, in these stories, the class differences are the basis of the attitudinal differences too. The characters belonging to the middle class are usually reticent in challenging the traditions. The questioning and the tentativeness of the protest are mediated in most of the stories, through the character of the girl child belonging to the same middle-class background. On the other hand, this conservative middle-class attitude is countered by strident opposition by the women belonging to the marginalised sections of society as reflected in the two stories in which the female rebels have the same name, Muniyakka. The mythological tropes are used by the author to underscore some startling analogies between the sufferings of women situated in different time and space. The disconcerting questions asked by the girl child in “Because…” not only represent an alternate reading of the Ramayana, they also attempt to undermine the legitimacy of the tradition endorsed by the epic, creating a tumult in the comfort zone of the cherished conventions.
Even the modern ideals are not spared. The discourse of feminism is questioned in “Simone de Beauvoir and the Manes”. Beauvoir, with her writings as an iconic feminist, is deconstructed in the story by juxtaposing her unconventional personal relationship with Jean Paul Sartre with that of the contemporary urban educated Indian woman who feels stifled by the modern man’s expectations of her as an intellectual embodiment of Beauvoir and her unconventionality on one hand, but a submissive partner on the other. Through the protagonist, the writer highlights this dilemma in the feminist legacy of Beauvoir that also tries to grapple with the mismatch in Beauvoir’s unflinching devotion to Sartre despite his infidelity in a truly conventional mould with her avant-garde writings like The Second Sex that have been the inspiration of feminist movements. Ultimately, the modern Indian woman charters her own feminist trajectory in “Simone de Beauvoir and the Manes”, the recurrence of which we find in the novella “Another Hour, Another Hue.”
Interestingly, the feminine of the word novello, this novella “Another Hour, Another Hue” deals with sexual politics that confront women in their workplaces, especially in an intellectually liberated university environment where gender hierarchies are supposed to be minimal. In fact, the duplicity of the modern man is highlighted who, on one hand, wants a modern woman and on the other hand, resents her self-confidence and independence. Whether it is “Just Think About It”, “Maria”, or “Another Hour, Another Hue”, the narratives expose the hypocrisy of the patriarchal behaviour that is recast in the modern assertion of the traditional sexual power and sexist attitudes. The bruised male ego in “Just Think About It” in which the man is unable to take the rejection by his wife, ignoring his own instrumentality in it, the insensitivity of the male attitude that mocks at female homosexuality while glorifying the male homosexual behaviour in “Maria” and the oppressive sexual assertion of a superior who manipulates the career of his women co-workers, reducing them to helplessness, though not for very long, in “Another Hour, Another Hue”, tell us that gender equality in our society has a long way to go.
The trials and tribulations of a workplace are brought out sensitively in “The Maze” and “Zeroing In” that highlight the stressful professional situations in which mediocrity manipulates and marginalises excellence, and loyalty is given precedence over merit. The frustrations, helplessness and dejection experienced by the protagonists are easily identifiable by readers irrespective of gender. The documentation of real-life experiences into sensitive narratives in the stories point to the existential predicament resulting from continuous oscillation between traditions and modernity. Caught between the two ends, the characters struggle to grapple with the sense of self and preserve their individual identities, something that dominate the real-life experiences.
The stories dealing with life and death are surrealistic, giving an even pace to the narratives, making a reader to introspect about the questions of life.
Clearly there is a distinct literary style within which the stories are grounded that makes Kannan a part of the distinctive genres of postcolonial Indian writers. Theorising this style of Indian writers, especially of those who write in English as well as other regional languages, becomes important.
Summer Hill, IIAS Review. Vol XVIII, No. 1 (Summer 2012). Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla.
A Rich and Delightful Collection By Tej N. Dhar
Lakshmi Kannan is an internationally known bilingual writer who has written and published long and short fiction in Tamil and in English. The volume under review consists of seventeen stories and a novella, translated by her from Tamil to English. They embrace a variety of themes and use diverse narrative modes. As C T Indra writes in her introductory essay to the volume, the stories ‘are forged on the anvil of the staple spheres of human existence such as family, marriage, kinship, academia, public office and the emergent spheres of human existence such as discourse and creative writing as an ideological weapon.‘
The most forceful stories in the volume are about women whose lives are bound within patriarchal practices and cores, and their efforts to come to grips with them. In “Ejamaanar”, Gowri lives her dreamed life without transgressing the bounds of the traditional fold. She takes care of her husband and his business with admirable efficiency, but her best moments, when she glows “with extraordinary radiance” are spent in the company of Sambasivan, who visits her family occasionally. When her granddaughter asks her about the secret of her cool and relaxed manner, Gowri asks her to “find a Sambasivan” for herself.
Quite different from Gowri is Muniyakka who figures in the story named after her. A fiercely independent woman, she works hard to keep herself going because her husband, a useless person who squandered her hard-earned money, is dead and her three sons, whom she raised with love and hope, have deserted her. So, she mocks at women who worship snake gods in temples for getting sons. Kannan adds an edge of complexity to this by showing that she still performs the shraddha of her deceased husband and appeases his soul by gifting all the things he loved, but curses him soon after the ritual is over. Muniyakka is featured in yet another story titled “Because…” to provide a contrast to women who silently suffer inhuman practices that have the sanction of religious heads. The suffering of women, especially of widows, is seen through the eyes of young Kamala, for whom Muniyakka is a woman of grit and defiance. Because Muniyakka is courageous enough to take on the devil himself. Kamala also exposes the female oppression in fairy tales.
In “Simone de Beauvoir and the Manes”, Kannan uses the details about the life of Simone de Beauvoir to expose the males in our society who exploit the new thinking among women for their own selfish needs. Uma, an aspiring writer, is encouraged by the married man Shekar to entrust herself to him only because Simone had a relationship with Sartre. Several other men like Mehta, use the example of Simone to propagate the idea that women need the protection of men. The novella too, titled “Another Hour, Another Hue” deals with the exploitation of women by men in the work place, in this instance an institution of learning. The head of the department harasses his female colleagues, manipulates situations to play one woman against another, and drives a young woman research scholar to desperation. But the women colleagues join hands to put him to shame, thus serving a positive message to women that male chauvinism can be fought effectively by taking recourse to concerted action.
Review of Nandanvan & Other Stories, Indian Literature, Sahitya Akademi, 271, Vol. LVI, No. 5 Sept-Oct, 2012.
A Rich and Delightful Collection By Tej N. Dhar
The title story “Nandanvan” mixes the conventions of realism with that of the fable in which people and the birds are used by Kannan to deal with filial ingratitude. Thatha, the head of the household, who spends most of his time taking care of the birds, is neglected by his children, and refuses to eat. When he dies, his sons fight with each other and his body is left unattended. The birds are appalled by the selfishness and greed of his children. They take away his dead body. “Savvyasachi Square” deals with a similar theme, but in a different manner. An old man is brought by his son and daughter-in-law to live with them in London, where he has to put up with them for their harsh ways. When, during a moment of his sadness he watches a talented musician singing and playing on several instruments in a market square to earn his bread, he realises that he is not the only man who suffers in this world.
“Please, Dear God” and “A Sky All Around” are located in hospitals. The first one dramatizes the desperation and suffering of a man whose wife lies in a coma. In the second one, the spirit of the patient roams around to see and hear about the agony and suspense of his family members and of various others too. “A Political Colour” brings out the problem of colour in human lives. “Zeroing in” and “The Maze” are short and subtle explorations into bureaucratic apathy and the unfair advantage it creates for go-getters. Other stories explore different human experiences and states of mind, and subject social institutions to critical scrutiny.
The volume is enriched by a detailed and scholarly essay on the art and craft of Kannan’s stories by C T Indra, in which all the stories have been explicated with rigor and depth. Kannan’s conversations with Christine Gomez and Sudha Rai provide useful and interesting details about Kannan’s artistic credo and her experiences as a bilingual writer and translator.
Nanadavan & Other Stories is a rich collection of stories that should be of interest to all readers.
Review of Nandanvan & Other Stories, Indian Literature, Sahitya Akademi, 271, Vol. LVI, No. 5 Sept-Oct, 2012.
Seline Augustine
‘All the stories translated into excellent English, have incredibly strong characters. Powerful messages, descriptive and evocative prose, arresting dialogues and soliloquies, incredibly strong, never-say-die characters dot the landscape of Lakshmi’s book.
She loves the genre of short story and poetry for their brevity. It adds to the intensity of a composition and is an excellent medium to accommodate a sudden experience or epiphany that comes upon the reader like the ahaa-moment of illumination. Her fiction has been translated into English, Hindi, Marathi, French and German.
The title story “Nandanvan” takes the fable route where the sparrows, cuckoos, crows and canaries observe and indict the greedy sons of Thatha, their friend and sustenance-provider. The garden and its blossoms jasmine, roses, lily, salvia and hibiscus join the chorus. The birds teach a telling lesson by carting away the body of their benefactor even as the sons begin to squabble over the property in unseemly haste.
Major social evils that cry out loud to be addressed are taken up by Lakshmi – colour prejudice, gender discrimination, the girl child, neglect of aged parents and unconventional relationships.
“Crossing Cultural Landscapes”, The Literary Review, The Hindu, December 2011
Seline Augustine
‘All the stories translated into excellent English, have incredibly strong characters.
Lakshmi Kannan loves the genre of short story and poetry for their brevity. It adds to the intensity of a composition and is an excellent medium to accommodate a sudden experience or epiphany that comes upon the reader like the ahaa-moment of illumination. Her fiction has been translated into English, Hindi, Marathi, French and German.
The title story “Nandanvan” takes the fable route where the sparrows, cuckoos, crows and canaries observe and indict the greedy sons of Thatha, their friend and sustenance-provider. The garden and its blossoms jasmine, roses, lily, salvia and hibiscus join the chorus. The birds teach a telling lesson by carting away the body of their benefactor even as the sons begin to squabble over the property in unseemly haste.
Major social evils that cry out loud to be addressed are taken up by Lakshmi – colour prejudice, gender discrimination, the girl child, neglect of aged parents and unconventional relationships.
In “Savvyasachi Square”, Vanaja and Arumugam treat the latter’s old father Velayudam worse than a servant, grudging him the couple of pounds he spends taking the London tube to spend the day outdoors in St. James Park. And the couple play the hypocrites when they brag to the Britons about their cultural values that ensures Indian don’t dump their aged in Old Age homes. Valayudam’s encounter with a busker, a musical wizard, reminds him of the archer Arjuna, the ambidextrous, in Mahabharata who inspires him out of his self-pity.
Powerful messages, descriptive and evocative prose, arresting dialogues and soliloquies, incredibly strong and never-say-die characters, a prime example being Muniyakka the servant who figures in more than one story, dot the landscape of Lakshmi’s book.
The writer has translated her stories into excellent English from her Tamil original and has captured the idioms and finer nuances of the Tamil world with admirable precision.
“Crossing Cultural Landscapes”, The Literary Review, The Hindu, December 2011
