Book Review: Eastern India through the cultural lens

Sumita Banerjea’s book documents insightful glimpses of Bengalis tradition, lifestyle, psyche

Hyderabad: Sumita Banerjea’s Chowringhee Charms is a remarkable compilation of short stories coerces readers to a world of imagination, a smooth transition from crime to supernatural, angst of adolescence to marital discord. Each story in the book has a different theme and cast of characters. The author’s empathy with her characters is palpable.

Sumita’s PhD thesis on ‘Crime against women and by women in Bengal in the 18th and 19th centuries’ and her training in psychological counseling clearly showcases her characters in the stories on to the stage. Her experience in understanding women’s state of mind is quite noticeable in the book.

The names of the characters like Brishti, Badalini, Rupsa, Mishti and the subtle usage of names of relationships be it Dadu, Didima, Mashi, Maa, Baba in the stories all give the readers a tinge of Bengali flavour. The characters revolve around St. Paul’s Cathedral, Chowringhee, National Museum, Old Kolkata cemetery, College of Fine Arts, Botanical Gardens in and around Kolkata and the eastern region. The author finds a sense of pride describing Kolkata and a few of its landmarks.

Interestingly, in the chapter ‘Camouflage’, she paints a lovely picture by saying, “The friendly winter sun spread its beam over the imposing edifice of St Paul’s Cathedral and lit by the historic stained glass window. Sunlight poured into the church and those attending Sunday morning mass gazed in wonder at the painting on the panes. It looked ethereal as if a divinity had come riding on the slanted sunbeams and was being welcomed by the music of the church choir and organ.”

A gripping third chapter of the book explores the agony and pain of Relina who gets torn between her loyalty to Rathi, whom she loved, and the realisation that he was a criminal who needed to be brought to justice. A woman of grit and determination, Relina sacrifices her love for truthfulness and guides the cops about Rathi’s whereabouts.

There are a plethora of stories smartly woven in. Some touching on human frailties with amusement others dealing with gloomy social issues, while some of them account existing realities and the uneven treatment meted out to girls and women and their incomparable acumen to face the odds of parental discrimination and spousal indifference.

Careless parents, who have not cared to nurture their children but have only thrust their ambitions and desires on the progeny, creating bitter burdens of expectations can be well illustrated in the sixth chapter, ‘Palash’ where a young boy falls in love with a much older widow. Sumita describes, “Spriha Mashi was a widow who had lived through a dull and listless marriage and always seemed to be searching for that spark and loving companionship. …And today she wanted Palash.” It was obviously a dreadful shock to the parents when Palash reveals about the relationship. “What have we done that made you do this? Is this some form of revenge?” The answer, “You were both busy just thinking of your convenience. Would you like to know how I felt?” The author smartly pens the veracity of love and affection. She says, “Indifference to children in the pursuit of careers is not an uncommon phenomenon.” Young Palash was shattered when he comes to know that her mother does not want to be seen tagging along a grown child as she was known for getting younger every year.

Through these carefully chosen examples, Chowringhee Charms encourages the readers to think more deeply about the emotions and relationships. And obviously being a Bengali, she delves more into the eastern landscapes, their views, traditions and lifestyle.

Sumita paints a poignant picture of realities and human values. The magic lies in the art of using descriptive language and the occasional twist in her tales at the end is what makes her special.

Book: Chowringhee Charms

Author: Sumita Banerjea

Publisher: Readomania

Pages: 182

Price: Rs 295