It would not be incorrect to say that the striking cover showing a headless person dressed in a sari with folded jeans peeping out from underneath and carrying a suitcase is intriguing and inviting. As one goes through the book, the story unfolding page by page, it becomes clear that the cover is a perfect representative of the theme that runs through the story — that of double and hidden identities.
Set in present-day Sikkim, Land Where I Flee is the story of a Nepali-Sikkimese family. Like most families, this one too has its share of eccentric, complicated individuals. The story revolves around Chitralekha Nepauney, the grand old sprightly matriarch who has single-handedly raised her four grandchildren, all of whom reunite in Gangtok for her 84th birthday. So, there is Manasa, the Oxford-educated granddaughter who dutifully agreed to get into an arranged match with the son of prominent political family of Nepal and ends up becoming a glorified nurse looking after her paraplegic father-in-law in London. Bhagwati, the beautiful one who runs away with a low caste Bhutanese, Ram Bahadur Damai, and is disowned by her grandmother. Agastaya, a successful oncologist based in New York, is a homosexual but doesn’t know how to inform his family. Ruthwa, the youngest of the siblings and a writer, is the black sheep whom the family cannot forgive for having written about Chitralekha’s secret.
The other important character is Prasanti, a eunuch who was brought to Sikkim by Chitralekha and over the years became her confidante and trusted aide. What makes these characters so relatable is their nuanced portrayal. One can understand why Manasa is so bitter and pessimistic about life, whereas Bhagwati is cheery and optimistic despite living a life of penury, or Agastya’s fear and emotional turbulence at the thought of introducing his American boyfriend to his conservative family. The only character one doesn’t really get a good grip of is the youngest sibling Ruthwa — it is unclear where he lives, what he does for a living and what was his past was like. Even Prasanti’s character — one of the best portrayals of a eunuch in contemporary Indian literature — has a ring of realism. It’s not often that one comes across eunuchs playing an important role in Indian fiction and that’s where Indo-Nepalese writer Prajwal Parajuly scores. One can either like or dislike Prasanti’s character, depending on how one understands her, but she certainly cannot be ignored.
What makes them all so interesting is the fact that they all have a secret to hide. Whether it’s Agastaya who pretends to be straight or Bhagwati who doesn’t tell anyone about the menial jobs she does for a living in Colorado, they all lead double lives. Once the grandchildren start arriving, Manasa being the first, the frictions begin. Tension prevails in the house. The days leading up to the chaurasi, or the 84th birthday celebrations, are full of unexpected turns, not-always-pleasant sibling banter, and revelations. The biggest surprise, however, is the arrival of Agastaya’s boyfriend Nicky, and the otherwise conservative grandmother’s acceptance of a foreigner in the house. Parajuly keeps the tempo up page after page, leaving no scope for the reader to get bored.
As the story moves towards the climax — which turns out quite anti-climatic — it becomes clear that the reunion has triggered off self-introspection among the siblings and Chitralekha too. The reunion, in a way, helps them discover their lost selves.
Parajuly has delivered a winner of a book. It has all the masala as well as the depth of a really good story.
