Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s recently released Hindi audiobook, Aazadi (on Audible), is set in Kolkata, against the backdrop of India’s freedom movement and Partition. An adaptation of her 2022 novel, Independence, the historical fiction revolves around the three Ganguly sisters, who see India through their own lenses and desires. Divakaruni’s three books prior to Independence also centred on women — Draupadi, Sita and Rani Jindan. Edited excerpts from an interview:
What prompted you to bring out ‘Aazadi’?
I think we live in a period when people, even though they love books, don’t always have the time to sit down and read. Audiobooks fill that need as they can be listened to any time — while commuting, exercising, cooking, etc.
Are audiobooks popular in India, and especially among Hindi listeners?
I know English audiobooks are getting popular in India. I have several successful ones on Audible but this is my first one in Hindi, so I am very excited. I am interested in seeing how Hindi readers respond to it. Hopefully, it will reach many people because the story of Aazadi is for all Indians.
The novel, ‘Independence’, came out in 2022. Was it meant to coincide with India’s 75th year of independence?
Yes, absolutely. I thought of the novel as my gift to readers on this historic occasion since many of us were born into a free nation. We take freedom for granted. I wanted to remind people that it took hard work, sacrifice, and even tragedy, for us to gain our freedom and become a nation.
Tell us about the research that went into recreating 1940s Bengal and the stories of our freedom struggle?
I did a lot of research and was touched by three things: newspaper accounts of those times, in Bengali and English; photographs — of the riots, the trains and buses moving across the border, and of the very first Independence Day celebrated in India; and stories that I heard from my mother and maternal grandfather, who were part of the freedom movement. These stories made me care about the times and the many sacrifices made by those no one will know about. I was determined to write their story.
It appears you consciously titled the book to reflect not only the independence of India but also of the three women in the book? Is it a sequel to your 2021 novel, ‘The Last Queen’?
Yes, the ‘independence’ of the title reflects a time when not only the nation but also its women were learning to stand on their own feet, run businesses and flourish in various careers. Because the men were gone (for some reason), the women had to shoulder the family responsibility. That is what happens to my heroines in the novel.
Independence completes the historical arc that I began with the writing of The Last Queen, which showcases Maharani Jindan’s prolonged battle against the British. Though she fought against them valiantly, they were able to take over her kingdom — Punjab — through treachery. They even took away her son, Maharaja Dalip Singh. I did not wish to leave the narrative there. In Independence, Indians take back their land and the British are forced to leave. It is a moment of great triumph, also a tragic one due to the violence that happened during Partition.
The Hindu-Muslim marriage (Deepa and Raza) in the book caused an uproar some 75 years ago. Isn’t that sad and disturbing?
Seventy-five years ago, such a love story was tragic but understandable, especially in the wake of the Hindu-Muslim riots. If we see the same thing happening today, would it not be sadder?
The interviewer is a Bengaluru-based independent journalist and writer.
Published - August 16, 2024 09:15 am IST