I am writing this blog aware that this is the 200th blog
piece. This is on my 6th book and the first collection of fictional works
– short stories - ‘Heart Alone – Whispers in Relations’, an
e-book for Amazon Kindle.
The book pleasantly enough has evoked good response from friends and patrons and a few favourable reviews also.
Manish Anand, a fellow
journo friend has enthusiastically obliged:
"Heart alone is a beautiful collection of tales
of Bengali lives woven from the landscape of India's pristine North-eastern
states. Some of them are perched in idyllic places near Kohima, Shillong where
Bengalis have traditionally co-existed with ethnic tribal. These tales tell
human agonies and pains of hearts in times when human relationship is fast
becoming subservient to materialist cravings of fast changing lives of the
people. Women seemingly appear to be principal characters in these tales and
the writer has done a world of good in portraying their worlds. Men and women
relationship are a lot different than those of boys and girls and that appears
to have well been captured in these stories. The writer has beautifully
experimented to bring the characters to life by catching their thoughts and
reflections in words. The book makes for an excellent read and holds back the
reader."
There has been another review wherein Andalib Akhter says: "‘Heart Alone’ is probably worth downloading
on mobile and read quickly".
But as objective reviewer, Andalib is also candid:
"The author, however, appears confused on certain issues of life,
love and family matters. Is he batting for a joint family system or getting
guided by his middle class inhibitions, one is not sure? Similarly, one is not
sure on whether he wants the characters to be free birds and ‘rebels’ – not
influenced and cowed down by the pressures of family members. Thus the stories
often differ a lot from each other. So we have ‘A Rebel Son’, where the
protagonist wants to be the master of his decisions; at the same time, in
‘Axiom of a girl friend’, the author runs down a woman who ill-treats her
in-laws.
Well, if Dev is confused, so is also perhaps everyone else who listens to his
or her ‘HEART’."
With Manish Anand during one journalistic venture |
Another enthusiastic friend from northeast has
also commented in a dignified manner.
“There is a time-tested maxim that pen in
honest hands is always mightier than a sword. But pen-paper is a thing of past
these days and in this era of internet revolution when people forego eating to
their weakness for Facebook, books have been aptly replaced by e-books. Nirendra
Dev’s ‘Heart Alone – Whispers in Relations’ - a collection of
Short Stories is just an addition in that list. But as the title suggests the
book talks about characters who are mostly guided by the
diktats of their hearts. It sounds righteous
but also antique.
Heart is often alone, that’s a truism; more so
in the modern era.”
My personal comments on the stories are contained in the Preface of the e-book.
“My characters are generally Bengali and from
northeast India. The reason is simply because as a writer I have not been able
to withdraw myself completely from the trials and tribulations of that
far-flung region.” Thus I say, stories have characters where in an
army officer serves in remote Akuluto region of Nagaland or a south Indian babu is shown working in
Mizoram.
I also believe: “In a short story everything cannot be reflection of what has
happened or could happen. Something ought to
be pure invention too. Thus in ‘Patrons of a Letter Box’, the narrator of the story is the Letter Box
itself but the admission of guilt is again not by the ‘box’ per se. Stories
should keep the reader’s mind locked in a debate,” he says.
Everyone around was trying to
comfort her. My children, their spouses, my colleagues and what’s this – even
my school headmaster and boss of many years, Shaibal Sen.
Shaibal Sen rubbing his hand
gently over my wife’s head and slowly…. the gutsy shoulder. This crook was
always eyeing Banalata. I distinctly remember, once he had said, “your wife’s
name Banalata itself is like a current volt….. some poetry in it…. You know
what does it mean?”
As he was my boss, I tried to
be gentleman…. Or else I would have shown that son of a dog, what’s real
‘bhadrata’ is. I had simply gazed; then to top it all, Shaibal Sen had asked,
“did you like her name or physique more”.
The word or name Banalata, as
I understand stood for ‘jungle tweeds’ but over the time the name has become a
symbol of feminine mystery, beauty and love. Thanks essentially to Bengali
poet, Jibanananda Das’s celebrated title work: ‘Banalata Sen’.
(Niharbabu's Last Rites)
##
"For my father on the other hand, Contempt for women
was a symbol of true manhood – Purushwata. It had come to stay as a minimum
virtue in my father’s family to underestimate woman or to find fault with them.
Well, feminine traits were like a disease they would be more careful than any
other malady in the society. Actually, my father had inherited that. Four of them,
my father, my grand father and two of my uncles were more than convinced that only
in ‘vinash kaley’--- when your end is imminent- men would listen to women,
especially the wives. The better half was a misnomer..."
(Chaitali's Father)
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