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A review by harishsusg
Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbhag
4.0
While in the midst of the literary heavy dose by Salman Rushdie, I paused- took a much-needed break, and picked up a short 118-pager novella called "Ghachar Ghochar". Originally written in Kannada by Vivek Shanbhag, it was translated into English by Srinath Perur. The novella also got popular in the West after it's translation and I do see the reason behind its popularity- it's a book that has so much to say with so less words.
The plot revolves around a closely-knit lower middle-class family in Bangalore. Setback hits the family when the lone bread-earner of the family loses his job. The younger brother of the head of the family decides to start a spice business which becomes a great success and the family is suddenly filthy rich. How the dynamics of the family change with the abundance of wealth, the behavior patterns, the camaraderie, the clash of opinions, marriages happen and broken; the story touches a lot of such family issues that are entangled into a knot, described as ghachar ghochar- a gobbledygook term used to describe the situation.
The depiction of frugality in middle-class life is beautifully portrayed with the struggles that are relatable to almost all Indian (middle-class) households. Going further, the contrast after the family experiences the riches is meticulously developed. The book broadly touches on two main issues- the struggle for power, and authority within the women in a joint family, especially the one that comes after marriages, and the shady practices behind a successful business that are often perceived as normal and indispensable.
The cover of the book shows a saucer with tea spilled and dried on its surface and infested by ants. There is one whole chapter dedicated to ants- hilariously describing the menace it cause in the modest house and some crazy ways adopted by the family members to keep the ants at bay. Another place where the author mesmerizes with his writing is how the wedding of the narrator is described- what goes on in the mind of the groom in the context of a typical Indian arranged marriage, where the couple in question are (technically) strangers. There is also another tense moment when the account sheet of the head of the family goes haywire and Rs. 800 is untraced. It's moments such as this that tie the reader with the characters and enhance the reading experience.
The ending is open and up to the reader's imagination of what he/she makes out of it. There are many ways you could possibly end it. Once you complete reading it, it will make you retrospect, link the happenings, connect the dots, and relook all the threads and loose ends deliberately kept to facilitate your after-thoughts. Here's sharing an excerpt of how the book ends:
"I freeze. What is happening? What have I become entangled in? There must be some way out of all this... The words rush into my head of their own accord: ghachar ghochar."
The novella is marketed as "psychological drama", something unheard of in my reading journey. It does touch on a few psychological aspects: the sensitive nature of the narrator, behavioral patterns, power dynamics in the family, and maybe more if you think harder.
Certainly a breeze of a read. Highly recommended if you are in a reading slump or a non-reader, but want to be one and looking for that one book that can get you started. For the seasoned readers too, it will be a time well spent- simple prose with a lot of substance and depth. Go for it!
The plot revolves around a closely-knit lower middle-class family in Bangalore. Setback hits the family when the lone bread-earner of the family loses his job. The younger brother of the head of the family decides to start a spice business which becomes a great success and the family is suddenly filthy rich. How the dynamics of the family change with the abundance of wealth, the behavior patterns, the camaraderie, the clash of opinions, marriages happen and broken; the story touches a lot of such family issues that are entangled into a knot, described as ghachar ghochar- a gobbledygook term used to describe the situation.
The depiction of frugality in middle-class life is beautifully portrayed with the struggles that are relatable to almost all Indian (middle-class) households. Going further, the contrast after the family experiences the riches is meticulously developed. The book broadly touches on two main issues- the struggle for power, and authority within the women in a joint family, especially the one that comes after marriages, and the shady practices behind a successful business that are often perceived as normal and indispensable.
The cover of the book shows a saucer with tea spilled and dried on its surface and infested by ants. There is one whole chapter dedicated to ants- hilariously describing the menace it cause in the modest house and some crazy ways adopted by the family members to keep the ants at bay. Another place where the author mesmerizes with his writing is how the wedding of the narrator is described- what goes on in the mind of the groom in the context of a typical Indian arranged marriage, where the couple in question are (technically) strangers. There is also another tense moment when the account sheet of the head of the family goes haywire and Rs. 800 is untraced. It's moments such as this that tie the reader with the characters and enhance the reading experience.
The ending is open and up to the reader's imagination of what he/she makes out of it. There are many ways you could possibly end it. Once you complete reading it, it will make you retrospect, link the happenings, connect the dots, and relook all the threads and loose ends deliberately kept to facilitate your after-thoughts. Here's sharing an excerpt of how the book ends:
"I freeze. What is happening? What have I become entangled in? There must be some way out of all this... The words rush into my head of their own accord: ghachar ghochar."
The novella is marketed as "psychological drama", something unheard of in my reading journey. It does touch on a few psychological aspects: the sensitive nature of the narrator, behavioral patterns, power dynamics in the family, and maybe more if you think harder.
Certainly a breeze of a read. Highly recommended if you are in a reading slump or a non-reader, but want to be one and looking for that one book that can get you started. For the seasoned readers too, it will be a time well spent- simple prose with a lot of substance and depth. Go for it!