Thi. Janakiraman’s Ecstasy draws you in gently. These are stories to be read slowly, carefully, one or two at a time, and then turned over in your head. The plots or the characters are not particularly complicated. But if savoured slowly, the stories speak to you.
Thi. Janakiraman or ThiJa (1921-82) has an outstanding reputation in the Tamil world of letters. He emerged as a formidable voice in the 50s, his social realism and depiction of the change taking place in the countryside winning readers and wowing critics. The stories in this volume give evidence of his mastery.
A thoughtful introduction by David Shulman, one of the three translators (the other two are S. Ramakrishnan of Cre-a Publishing fame, and Uma Shankari, ThiJa’s daughter), sets the context for the reader to better understand ThiJa’s personal background, the setting of his stories and the literary scene when ThiJa was publishing some of his best work. This having been imbibed, one dives into the stories with great expectation.
There is something of a common thread running through the stories. Most of them have a rural setting, possibly Thanjavur, where ThiJa hailed from. They are in a sense period pieces, given that the world they depict has changed almost entirely. But the strength of the stories is that they continue to resonate owing to the universality and timelessness of their themes.
‘Alimony’,about marital discord, seemingly proceeds on expected lines till the twist in the end leaves you shaking your head in disbelief. It vies for the honour of the best story in this collection along with the title story, ‘Ecstasy’, which tugs at your heartstrings.
‘The Mendicant’strikesyou as old-fashioned but meaningful. For the title of unusual, ‘Offspring’ qualifies. Its theme, the way it is structured, and the way it ends, leave you thinking deeply.
Each of the stories in the collection has something to offer. And that is the book’s most endearing quality.
Ecstasy and Other Stories; Thi. Janakiraman, trs David Shulman, S. Ramakrishnan and Uma Shankari, Penguin Books, ₹499
The Bengaluru-based reviewer works in publishing.
