Parati Parikatha
This is the latest reading - a novel by Phanishwar Nath Renu of "Maila Aanchal" fame. Hope some of you remember the TV serial from DD 1 days. And also the famous Raj Kapoor, Waheeda Rehman starrer "Teesri Kasam" (remember melodies like "Duniya banane waale kya tere man mein samai" and "Sajan re jhooth mat bolo"?) was based on one of his novels...
Apart from every thing else, my affection for him would obviously stem from the fact that he belongs to my region. Yep, he was a native of a village called "Aurahi Hingna", which was then in Purnea district(that's where my home is), and now falls in Arariya district (that's the district in which Jogbani, where my parents currently stay, falls). And then all his writings are very specifically set up in the local context. I must mention that sometimes his language becomes so "local" that even I have difficulty understanding what they mean! Sitting in a totally different part of the country, working amongst people of a totally different class, I just can not express what overwhelming feelings a novel presenting a familiar picture of familiar people and familiar places brings. Oh - yes! That train from Katihar to Jogbani passing through Purnea, Kasba, Garhbanaili, Arariya and Farbisganj is almost legendrey there. That's the train I take for going home and that's the train Renu mentions in his novel written in the context mentions too! (Now, the work on broad gauge (upgradation from meter gauge) is going on there - so expect some changes in the kind of trains, but the route remains!)
This was not to undermine his talents as a writer. He is known as the first "anchalik kathakar" (translated approximately to "regional story-writer") in Hindi and he does justice to this name! The description is just too realistic. Unlike Premchand (why do I get a feeling that I have mentioned it earlier?), there is no idealization of village life here. If there is something to be laughed at, he laughs at it. But it is not an outsider's laughter. It is like laughing at oneself. So, his sympathies are still with his characters, but the description is realistic.
I do not know if you would exactly know what I am saying unless you have come to similar writing in your region... No, no I am not trying to say none exist - it's only a question of reading :-)
Rest later...
It was just to break the silence :-)
Categories: Literature
Apart from every thing else, my affection for him would obviously stem from the fact that he belongs to my region. Yep, he was a native of a village called "Aurahi Hingna", which was then in Purnea district(that's where my home is), and now falls in Arariya district (that's the district in which Jogbani, where my parents currently stay, falls). And then all his writings are very specifically set up in the local context. I must mention that sometimes his language becomes so "local" that even I have difficulty understanding what they mean! Sitting in a totally different part of the country, working amongst people of a totally different class, I just can not express what overwhelming feelings a novel presenting a familiar picture of familiar people and familiar places brings. Oh - yes! That train from Katihar to Jogbani passing through Purnea, Kasba, Garhbanaili, Arariya and Farbisganj is almost legendrey there. That's the train I take for going home and that's the train Renu mentions in his novel written in the context mentions too! (Now, the work on broad gauge (upgradation from meter gauge) is going on there - so expect some changes in the kind of trains, but the route remains!)
This was not to undermine his talents as a writer. He is known as the first "anchalik kathakar" (translated approximately to "regional story-writer") in Hindi and he does justice to this name! The description is just too realistic. Unlike Premchand (why do I get a feeling that I have mentioned it earlier?), there is no idealization of village life here. If there is something to be laughed at, he laughs at it. But it is not an outsider's laughter. It is like laughing at oneself. So, his sympathies are still with his characters, but the description is realistic.
I do not know if you would exactly know what I am saying unless you have come to similar writing in your region... No, no I am not trying to say none exist - it's only a question of reading :-)
Rest later...
It was just to break the silence :-)
Categories: Literature
posted by Jaya @ 11:40 AM
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3 Comments:
At Tue Jun 07, 06:35:00 PM 2005,
Anonymous said…
talking about local languages, i was just thinking about the cause of sharp changes in dialect within a matter of a few kilometers. If you are in Bhagalpur you will be speaking Angika and just cross the Ganges and you have shudhdha maithili!! the question is why this sudden change and what posssibly could have caused it.
One point is worth noting that Fanishwar nath renu was very considerate about the development of his village and the region. His will says that if youy want to make any film or serial on his stories then it must be shot in the Purnea, Araria districts only(Thats why Teesri Kasam was shot in Champanagar and Maila Aanchal in Raghunathpur villages). I happened to be in my village when Maila Aanchal was being shot and it was funny to see Preeti Khare coming to our house and eating kasara (a kind of laddu made of rice flour, usually in marriages) like it were some kind of delicacy, while it is such a tasteless thing to eat!!
At Tue Jun 07, 06:45:00 PM 2005,
Jaya said…
Yeah, in one of the post of my "The Maithils" series I had mentioned the change that comes in language as you move from one part to the other. And the saying that goes like "Kos-kos par paani badle, teen kos par bani" ("Water changes at every Kos, language at every three Kos." - Kos is a measure of length).
The post is here
http://jayajha.blogspot.com/2004/12/maithils-i.html
At Sun Oct 09, 09:00:00 PM 2005,
Anonymous said…
when i was studying in darjeeling i never relised dat there was an film being shoot up at my place(purnea as i alwys used to see the stars coming to darjeeling for their film) and when i came to know this i was just surprised.actually in my +2 hindi syllabus we had a short story which was written by mr Phnishwar nath renu and there i came to now about him.Now i know much about him and it gives a sense of proudness because my homeland has produced sch a fantastic person.thats all for me to cheer up...
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