New vocabulary of resistance

Saihtya Akademi Award winner Baig Ehsas touches issues of personal, political and religious identities and subverts people’s perception about common things

January 19, 2018 03:07 pm | Updated January 20, 2018 07:01 pm IST

 ELOQUENT WRITING Baig Ehsas

ELOQUENT WRITING Baig Ehsas

Does our post modern environmentally compromised society permit an individual to actualise his final act of charity — leaving his dead body exposed to natural scavenger, vulture and carrion birds? Does denial of the last wish create a deep sense of unease and foreboding in a whole community? Answer, a definite ‘no’, and it features prominently in a poignantly told story, Dakhma (Tower of Silence) in which the celebrated Urdu short story writer, Baig Ehsas turns attention to unprecedented spread of intolerance that leave people to vandalise the places that have been looked with a lot of reverence. It is the title story of a short story collection that got this year’s Sahitya Akademi Award.

The collection comprises eleven stories rustled up a range of astutely narrated stories and it looks incredible to note that almost every story portrays uncertainty of reciprocation and a fear enhanced by the unknown. In his widely acclaimed story, Dakhma , the author vividly weaves the structure of the gothic story to bring forth the feelings of the protagonist ‘Sohrab’, a Parsi, who was forced to close down the bar he owns as it was situated near a place of worship. He was forced to squander the very source of his sustenance and uncertainty impends his cherished desire for ex-carnation, but at last luckily his prayers are answered and suddenly missing vultures throng the outer ring of the Dakhma when the body of the owner of ale house was brought there.

Ground reality

The subtext is a critique of the cultural homogeneity which prevails in our times and it also mocks at the futility and absurdity of conflicts generally propagated by the rabble-rousers.

Nuanced depiction of death related activities — the hallmark of the gothic fiction —acquaints the readers with an undecipherable sense of claustrophobia and entrapment and it is what that sums up Sohrab’s existence. Strong evocation of intolerance coupled with the affirmation of the resilience of human spirit make the story palpable and it reminds one of William Faulkner’s famous stories, “A Rose for Emily”.

The other stories, such as “Nijat”, “Sang-e-Garan”, “Khai”, “Dhaar”, “Shikasta Par” make it clear that Baig has an innate ability to infuse new aesthetic and ethical dimension into ordinary events. He touches issues of personal, political and religious identities and subverts people’s perception about common things.

Familiar terrain

At a time when writing has become a ‘mime for self’, Baig’s oeuvre reveals new stories of denying expectations, breathlessness and panic, and the majority of his characters breathe nostalgia in a substantially altered world where one can occasionally find more than one person vying for affection. His stories are firmly located in the geographical area he lives in and it prompts eminent critic and scholar Professor Gopichand Narang to observe, “Baig Ehsas uses allegorical and symbolic techniques to delineate the personal and social problems of the Muslim milieu, especially in and around Hyderabad and their emotional links with expatriates living in the Gulf countries”.

His storyline at places is thin but his artful treatment of the subject leaves an impression on the mind of the reader. Baig’s stories are a timely response to the scourge of intolerance and he creates a new vocabulary of resistance and it makes his stories a compelling read.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.