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A review by solachi
Lajja: Shame by Taslima Nasrin
5.0
"I know what you're going to tell me. You'll say all the Hindu temples have been violated and the women raped. If there is anything else, you can tell me."
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When India razed Babri mosque to the ground in 1992, it put Hindus in a dangerous spot around Muslims dominated places. Taslima Nasreen pens down the real events that happened in Bangladesh after the Babri masjid incident by bringing in the Dutta family of four - Sudhamay Dutta, a doctor who finds a sense of home in the land of Bangladesh; Kiramayee Dutta, the dutiful homemaker who yearns to follow her father to India but stuck with Sudhamay's brassbound nature; Suranjan, the 33 year old MA graduate - unemployed son, choosing nationalism, eventually disappointed & slowly adapting to communalism. Suranjan remains insensitive to the news of demolished temples & young girls raped, but when the horror knocks on his door, he becomes aware of the reality that they're living in. His sister Maya Dutta plays a vital role in Suranjan's realisation of his wasted life. Suranjan is humiliated and ashamed of his incompetency to save his family, his inability to earn for the family & his helplessness to stay a human being rather than a Hindu. What will happen to Dutta family while hiding from the fundamentalists, in the course of thirteen days?
.
The novel gives brief history of the riots in thirteen chapters, on the account of one chapter for one day. The incidents penned down are disturbing & unforgettable because of the grotesque & gruesome actions. Lajja has always been at the centre of controversy; everybody wants to stay human but that simple task is arduous because of religion & politics. In every religion we have fundamentalist fanatics; one needs to understand that this book is not to blame one community but all. All of them are responsible for the people suffering in the name of religion. Nasreen's hidden theme was female oppression but no one is bothered to delve deeper into that. Only in India we say that women are the "izzat" of their families yet men still humiliate them to strip them of their honour. We certainly are hypocrites.
.
Rating: 5/5
.
When India razed Babri mosque to the ground in 1992, it put Hindus in a dangerous spot around Muslims dominated places. Taslima Nasreen pens down the real events that happened in Bangladesh after the Babri masjid incident by bringing in the Dutta family of four - Sudhamay Dutta, a doctor who finds a sense of home in the land of Bangladesh; Kiramayee Dutta, the dutiful homemaker who yearns to follow her father to India but stuck with Sudhamay's brassbound nature; Suranjan, the 33 year old MA graduate - unemployed son, choosing nationalism, eventually disappointed & slowly adapting to communalism. Suranjan remains insensitive to the news of demolished temples & young girls raped, but when the horror knocks on his door, he becomes aware of the reality that they're living in. His sister Maya Dutta plays a vital role in Suranjan's realisation of his wasted life. Suranjan is humiliated and ashamed of his incompetency to save his family, his inability to earn for the family & his helplessness to stay a human being rather than a Hindu. What will happen to Dutta family while hiding from the fundamentalists, in the course of thirteen days?
.
The novel gives brief history of the riots in thirteen chapters, on the account of one chapter for one day. The incidents penned down are disturbing & unforgettable because of the grotesque & gruesome actions. Lajja has always been at the centre of controversy; everybody wants to stay human but that simple task is arduous because of religion & politics. In every religion we have fundamentalist fanatics; one needs to understand that this book is not to blame one community but all. All of them are responsible for the people suffering in the name of religion. Nasreen's hidden theme was female oppression but no one is bothered to delve deeper into that. Only in India we say that women are the "izzat" of their families yet men still humiliate them to strip them of their honour. We certainly are hypocrites.
.
Rating: 5/5