Occasionally, there are certain literary works that anchor an author’s style in the reader’s mind. For Hindi author Swadesh Deepak, this might be his 2003 novel Maine Mandu Nahi Dekha (I haven’t seen Mandu.) The latest addition to this pile is his collection of 10 short stories—A bouquet of dead flowers, translated by renowned authors like Jerry Pinto, Pratik Kanjilal, Nirupama Dutt and the author’s son, Sukant Deepak. Reading the collection, each story, like an onion, unravels the myriad layers of Swadesh’s writing style and showcases its multifaceted dimensions.
Reconciliation with reality is the focus of “Because the wind cannot read‘. The protagonist’s journey as a newly employed doctor in a village is described in a flashback while she waits for something or someone at a train station. As the reason for the agonizing wait slowly comes to light, one realizes how much pain and turmoil the uncertainty brings. In ‘hungerIn No News of Untoward Events, the author exposes the ugly and brutal reality of our society. A young boy roams the railway station hoping to find something to eat. In a pathetic image, he collects grains for his disabled mother and 12-year-old sister, which fall out of torn rice sacks being transported. As the title suggests, the story goes on to describe the life-changing decisions one must make, or are made in their name, when the basic need of hunger looms over one. In No News of Untoward Events, reality meets satire. Irony dies a thousand deaths as we see the life of a politician – a civil servant – being given priority over the safety of common people.
Swadesh had a unique way of telling stories; there seems to be a constant sense of haunting. What makes these translations successful is the way each translator has conveyed that essence into English. The fact that these stories remain relevant even today is a testament to the author’s brilliance. Each story makes its characters as human as possible – they are flawed, loving, cruel, and everything in between. They roam in grey areas, as we all do in real life; some by choice, while others attribute it to circumstance. The extrapolation of reality makes this book seem more like non-fiction than fiction.
