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manish_ladla 's review for:
Ministry of Utmost Happiness
by Arundhati Roy
This is my first novel of Arundhati Roy. I have heard about her through newspaper , and through various controversies (especially related to sedtion and dissent). I never had any inclination to her ideas. Frankly speaking I never cared about her ideology. Her novel The God of Small Things is on my to-read-list. But somehow this time , I picked this novel. But on reading the novel, whatever the media tell about her is justified.
First of all, the story of hijra (Anjum) was new to me. Apart from books on human rights issues of Transgender, I never thought that someone could write a novel with a Hijra as protagonist. The Old Delhi is described lucidly. Young generation does not know about the main Delhi (original Delhi or famously called as 06 (pin code of Jama Masjid)). Only through this , I came to know about the Delhite life. . . It also introduces us to Muslim life and obviously life of Transgenders
The changes a transgender person undergoes during his/her growing ages, can't be felt other. The transgender baby can't talk about his/her feelings to others. He/She can't attribute what is happening with him/her. The textbook on biology generally deals with male and female anatomy , transgender child is not able to relate that to self. His /her parents are also in misery . Once the transgender person is accepted widely and their gender is given wide publicity especially in books , and by changing of overall perception towards them, we will be doing a much needed justice to them. Aftab found himself wanting to be her. or That is us. That is our ancestry, our history, our story. We were never commoners, you see, we were members of the staff of the Royal Palace These are powerful line. The summary of life of hijras is - Ordinary people in the Duniya – what did they know about what it takes to live the life of a Hijra? What did they know about the rules, the discipline and the sacrifices? Who today knew that there had been times when all of them, including she, Ustad Kulsoom Bi herself, had been driven to begging for alms at traffic lights? That they had built themselves up, bit by bit, humiliation by humiliation, from there? The Khwabgah was called Khwabgah, Ustad Kulsoom Bi said, because it was where special people, blessed people, came with their dreams that could not be realized in the Duniya. In the Khwabgah, Holy Souls trapped in the wrong bodies were liberated.
Author due to her leftist tendency, is against the BJP govt. There was no need of bringing Godhara Riots or Gujarat Lalla or even saffornisation of system into the novel. But she has dropped visible references through out the novel. There was no need to introduce content regarding Anjum teaching Gaytri Mantra to Zainab. It could all be avoided. But the author in her extreme leftist tendency and a general hatred towards a particular party , have intentionally wrote such references.
Similarly there was no need to include Kashmir and Tilo's character or even the maoists into the novel. There was no direct connect to Anjum's story.
For Kashmir, these lines fits perfectly "An administration that was at war with a ruthless insurgency cannot be held to the same standards as one that is functioning in ordinary, peaceful conditions." and meaning of azadi - "that if you put four Kashmiris in a room and ask them to specify what exactly they mean by Azadi, what exactly are its ideological and geographic contours, they would probably end up slitting each other’s throats. "
I personally think that even after 20 years of insurgency, we have not solved it . It is our failure. Solely our failure. Kashmir is lost casue. There is no imporvment in years of police and military presence. Lets hope that after removal of 370 A, the situation improves. "Tourists flew out. Journalists flew in. Honeymooners flew out. Soldiers flew in. Women flocked around police stations and army camps holding up a forest of thumbed, dog-eared, passport-sized photographs grown soft with tears: Please Sir, have you seen my boy anywhere? Have you seen my husband? Has my brother by any chance passed through your hands? And the Sirs swelled their chests and bristled their moustaches and played with their medals" . Situation is dire
Slowly and slowly Anjum had created her world "Jannat Guest House and Funneral services". It has expanded enormously. She had created an ecosystem. New members were welcomed with warmth.
Overall the novel was kind of new to me. I am now eager to read other novels of Arundhati Roy. Since the present novel has talked about Kashmir, I got curious and have searched few novels on that and have selected " Kashmir: A Case of Freedom by Tariq Ali . Now I am more curious about the novels of other leftist writers. Their novels will give a different insight and will force me to question me long held belief and notion of capitalist (given by my wife, and Ankit verma and Saurabh).
First of all, the story of hijra (Anjum) was new to me. Apart from books on human rights issues of Transgender, I never thought that someone could write a novel with a Hijra as protagonist. The Old Delhi is described lucidly. Young generation does not know about the main Delhi (original Delhi or famously called as 06 (pin code of Jama Masjid)). Only through this , I came to know about the Delhite life. . . It also introduces us to Muslim life and obviously life of Transgenders
The changes a transgender person undergoes during his/her growing ages, can't be felt other. The transgender baby can't talk about his/her feelings to others. He/She can't attribute what is happening with him/her. The textbook on biology generally deals with male and female anatomy , transgender child is not able to relate that to self. His /her parents are also in misery . Once the transgender person is accepted widely and their gender is given wide publicity especially in books , and by changing of overall perception towards them, we will be doing a much needed justice to them. Aftab found himself wanting to be her. or That is us. That is our ancestry, our history, our story. We were never commoners, you see, we were members of the staff of the Royal Palace These are powerful line. The summary of life of hijras is - Ordinary people in the Duniya – what did they know about what it takes to live the life of a Hijra? What did they know about the rules, the discipline and the sacrifices? Who today knew that there had been times when all of them, including she, Ustad Kulsoom Bi herself, had been driven to begging for alms at traffic lights? That they had built themselves up, bit by bit, humiliation by humiliation, from there? The Khwabgah was called Khwabgah, Ustad Kulsoom Bi said, because it was where special people, blessed people, came with their dreams that could not be realized in the Duniya. In the Khwabgah, Holy Souls trapped in the wrong bodies were liberated.
Author due to her leftist tendency, is against the BJP govt. There was no need of bringing Godhara Riots or Gujarat Lalla or even saffornisation of system into the novel. But she has dropped visible references through out the novel. There was no need to introduce content regarding Anjum teaching Gaytri Mantra to Zainab. It could all be avoided. But the author in her extreme leftist tendency and a general hatred towards a particular party , have intentionally wrote such references.
Similarly there was no need to include Kashmir and Tilo's character or even the maoists into the novel. There was no direct connect to Anjum's story.
For Kashmir, these lines fits perfectly "An administration that was at war with a ruthless insurgency cannot be held to the same standards as one that is functioning in ordinary, peaceful conditions." and meaning of azadi - "that if you put four Kashmiris in a room and ask them to specify what exactly they mean by Azadi, what exactly are its ideological and geographic contours, they would probably end up slitting each other’s throats. "
I personally think that even after 20 years of insurgency, we have not solved it . It is our failure. Solely our failure. Kashmir is lost casue. There is no imporvment in years of police and military presence. Lets hope that after removal of 370 A, the situation improves. "Tourists flew out. Journalists flew in. Honeymooners flew out. Soldiers flew in. Women flocked around police stations and army camps holding up a forest of thumbed, dog-eared, passport-sized photographs grown soft with tears: Please Sir, have you seen my boy anywhere? Have you seen my husband? Has my brother by any chance passed through your hands? And the Sirs swelled their chests and bristled their moustaches and played with their medals" . Situation is dire
Slowly and slowly Anjum had created her world "Jannat Guest House and Funneral services". It has expanded enormously. She had created an ecosystem. New members were welcomed with warmth.
Overall the novel was kind of new to me. I am now eager to read other novels of Arundhati Roy. Since the present novel has talked about Kashmir, I got curious and have searched few novels on that and have selected " Kashmir: A Case of Freedom by Tariq Ali . Now I am more curious about the novels of other leftist writers. Their novels will give a different insight and will force me to question me long held belief and notion of capitalist (given by my wife, and Ankit verma and Saurabh).