Book Review: Savithriyude Aranjanam (Malayalam)

M Mukundan is considered as one of the best writers in contemporary Malayalam Literature. My only tryst with M Mukundan till I caught hold of this book has been the cinematic version of his "Daivathinte Vikruthikal" which I have seen only in parts (Directed by Lenin Rajendran, the movie starred Raghuvaran, Malavika Avinash and Sreevidya in an award winning role). I definitely was impressed with the movie and its unconventional story line and characters and that was precisely the reason I thought I should read M Mukundan. The first book that I selected was "Savithriyude Aranjaanam"- a collection of 3 short stories- Mariyayude Madhuvidhu, Savithriyude Aranjaanam and Rasaleela. Mariyayude Madhuvidhu is about a young European lady- Maria whom the author meets at Delhi and keeps on meeting her at different points of time at different situations and in different places in and around the city. Maria is a disturbed soul who is out to find solace and gets attracted to the mysticism that Europeans often associate with India. She takes to yoga, meditation, sanyaas and goes even to the extent of sleeping around with the Baboos in Delhi to extend her period of stay in India. The story culminates in the tragic death of Maria. Through the character of Maria, the author has tried to analyze the hollow European culture which often borders on vanity and hypocrisy. How Maria wants to break away from her roots and how she gets sucked into the Indian culture has been expressed very well. The choice of language and the subtlety of the narration adds to the charm of Mariyayude Madhuvidhu. Rasaleela is the story of Krishnan, Leela and their lost love. The story starts with Krishnan coming back to the city of his love, Leela. The only difference is that this time around he is blinded (the reason for which is not mentioned) and has to depend on his old room mate, Balan for every information he needs. Balan, on his part, is never genuine and puts Krishnan into a world of make- believe. The dictum that Balan follows is very simple- "It is better to speak desirable lies than undesirable truth". Balan makes Krishnan believe that he is now a well placed professional with a happy and contented family while the truth is that he is still the same old Balan- a bachelor still struggling to make both ends meet, living in the same old pigeon hole which he used to share with Krishnan in their hey days together. Leela, who Krishnan was madly in love with, is now a prostitute. But, it is interesting how both Balan and Leela hide the truth from Krishnan. Leela is presented as a happily married woman with her loving husband Sreedharan doting on her and her kids. At times, the narrative falls down to the pulp fiction level though it is generally interesting to know how Krishnan's story progresses, loaded as it is with a lot of semi- truths and some interesting lies. The best of the lot is definitely Savithriyude Aranjaanam- the story of Ramunni, Neelakanatan, Neelakantan's wife Savithri and her aranjaanam (waist band). Ramunni is a local patriarch who helps out the needy by lending them money. Neelakantan, the local lad has borrowed petty amounts of money from Ramunni earlier and has not been able to repay him. This time around Neelakanatan borrowes some money from Ramunni by pleding his wife Savithri's golden Aranjaanam (waist band). However, the aranjaanam brings with it a hell lot of problems for Ramunni and his unsuspecting wife- Sarojini. Ramunni starts getting obsessed with the Aranjaanam and consequently with Savithri herself. He starts losing interest in his family life much to the dismay of his wife, Sarojini and also his social life, ignoring his friend of many years, Achumaash. How the aranjaanam becomes the bone of contention and puts the life of Ramunni in doldrums is what the short story is all about. It is interesting to note how M Mukundan makes Aranjaanam a metaphor for everything that is taboo from a moral point of view. Ramunni's lust for Savithri and his claustrophobic life within the moral confines of his patriarchal existence in the hypocritic Kerala society has been brought out by Mukundan in an awe inspiring style and that is what makes Savithriyude Aranjaanam the pick of this lot. All in all, a good read!