Grasping the original

Sunil Gangopadhyay is one of the leading Bangla writers today. Some of his novels have been translated into English and other Indian languages. He has written a number of stories as well but this reviewer has not come across many of them in translation. So, one welcomes this collection of 10 stories (selected for translation by the author himself) translated by Shiela Sengupta, simply titled Stories. Gangopadhyay is a writer rooted in his own times and inspired by it. In his words, "In my own life and the life that I see around me, there is so much to write about, but not all of that can be expressed in words."

Generally speaking, Gangopadhyay's stories take up relationships: a man (or woman) in relation to other individuals, groups or society at large. The stories in this collection explore different aspects of this society. Though Naxalites or ultra-leftists are not openly mentioned in it, the first story "A Fugitive and a Follower" obviously deals with them, looking at the kind of life they lead and perpetuate. "The Wooden Bridge" possibly deals with the impact of terrorism on an individual. Or rather, with the act of living itself""which is as stressful as tightrope walking, with options too narrowly strung to even breathe normally. Nothing is ever said openly, only alluded to, making it an open ended story for the sensitive reader to interpret in his or her own way.

A few months back, when I visited Kolkata, I noticed that there were many high-rise buildings near Gariahat and some under construction. While reading "Skyscrapers", I remembered the construction workers I had seen and wondered if any of them wanted to live in them""like Munni, the young girl in the story. Of course one knows that she would never live in an apartment like that, almost touching the sky, but one can always dream about it. Similarly, in a caste-ridden society where a harijan cannot chisel an image of a god or goddess though blessed with the artistic skill to do it. "Blood and Tears", the long story at the end of the collection, is about Bangshi, a talented young boy whose talent gets a recognition only at the end, after much humiliation by the self-appointed moral guardians of a place called Matigada.

The progressive writer's vision comes through in many of the stories, talking about the downtrodden, imagining how they would feel if they were to experience the luxuries of the rich""like having tea at the Taj Mahal Hotel.

A good short story often takes such quick twists and turns that the reader is left gasping. So Rehman Saheb, a police inspector, shares his muri with the thieves and smugglers at the police station, as they sit right under his nose and he cannot eat without offering them any. Also, he is reluctant to touch a small idol of Kali stolen by Shivmangal, who throws it away to escape detection.

The stories are well-crafted and the characters, many of them underprivileged, are shaped with great care. Having read many of these stories in Bangla, one admits that there are times when the translation is a little too literal. But they have been translated for the first time. There is no such thing as perfect translation, and grasping the original is an ongoing process.

STORIES

Sunil Gangopadhyay Translated
by Shiela Sengupta
Srishti
Price: Rs 145; Pages: 233