Rohinton Mistry’s second novel A Fine Balance circumscribes
the life of four protagonists, Dina Dalal, Ishvar, Om and Manesh Kohlah to
throw light upon the callousness and corruptions of India during the 1970s. The
novel unfolds in the omniscient point of view of the author.
Uncertainties of life has brought four unlikely companions
together in a dingy flat, in a city by the sea of Bombay. Dina Dalal has lived
for decades in solitude after the tragic death of her husband. She is unwilling
to accept her brother’s help even though later we finds her going to him when
she is running short of money for her apartment rent. In her quest for
self-dependency and attaining financial security she decides to do stitching
for a large manufacturing company, but health prevents her to indulge in
sewing. Luckily she gets the help from two tailors Ishvar and Omprakash who
hails from a low caste family whose circumstances have forced them to leave
their village and their traditional “untouchable” occupation and finds a place
in the city to earn enough for leading a peaceful life. Their family was faced
with brutal repercussions of being an untouchable which ultimately ends in the
death of Om’s father. Maneck kohlah has left his country-side life and his
father’s general store in the Himalayas to get higher education from the city
which according to his father will provide stability to his life. In Dina, we
find the struggle and hardship of a women to lead an independent life as she
embodies a strong women’s determination and perseverance in sustaining her
life. Similar kind of perseverance is reflected in Om and Ishvar to break the
cobwebs of untouchability and attain an upward social mobility. Maneck can be
regarded as a ‘diaspora’ since he suffers from rootlessness and always longs
for his hometown. Maneck easily gets acquainted with the tailors which Dina
watches with scorn and suspicion at the beginning. Through a series of
unpredictable events they all end up living in the apartment of Dina together
.This is the story of how these four people find family in each other, find
friendship, laughter, and a courage to struggle and persevere despite all their
troubles. This is the story of shattered dreams, of Indira Gandhi’s cruel side
of Emergency, of how each person’s life gets entangled in its own drama, of
caste, poverty that strangles every time.
The novel has a lot to do with the political scenario of the
contemporary India. The Great Emergency and its after effects which bestowed
upon the people of the so called ‘lower strata’ was drastic. The government has
implemented Family Planning Program that first endowed people with cash and
better ration cards for food if they are willing to have the operation for
sterilization.
“You build it and they will come. There is no field of
dreams in this India”
The government also implements a beautification program
which involves breaking down all the temporary structures that have been built
around the city where the ‘subalterns’ being the ones who is always being
victimised. To the government they were like useless pieces of shit who has
been pushed into the periphery without any concern. This is what is called
‘development induced displacement. The dispossessed who are the scavengers of
the society are either supposed to roam around or vanish like air bubbles.
I find several interesting passages which carries great
levels of meanings inside. When the author says, “Money can buy the necessary
police order. Justice is sold to the highest bidder” he not only encompasses
the political situation of the contemporary India but also foresees the future
of our nation. The desire of the untouchables to attain an upward social
mobility in the society is reflected in Om’s words when he says,
“If time were a bolt of cloth, I would cut out all the bad
parts. Snip out the scary nights and stitch together the good parts, to make
time bearable. Then I could wear it like a coat, always live happily”.
The lines which struck me the most is “God is a giant quilt
maker. With an infinite variety of designs. And the quilt is grown so big and
confusing, the pattern is impossible to see, the squares and diamonds and
triangles don’t fit well together anymore, it’s all become meaningless. So He
has abandoned it”. This line is open to several interpretations either placing
within the context of the novel or keeping it away from the text. The squares,
diamonds and the triangles can be suggestive of different classes of people in
a community who finds it unable to mix together in a chaotic society. But in
the novel we see such a mixing and the love and friendship evolved out of their
cooperation even in the midst of a political and cultural uncertainty.
The novel is realistic, wherein I was able to relate with
each of the characters. The emotional turmoil which is summed up in their lives
is transmuted into my mind. The life revolves around hope and despair. Success
becomes momentary and disaster ever present. Hopelessness is a shadow around
everyone’s heart. The characters walk through a narrow ledge hoping that the
wind doesn’t blow, through “a fine balance”.
“You see, we cannot draw lines and compartments and refuse
to budge beyond them. Sometimes you have to use your failures as
stepping-stones to success. You have to maintain a fine balance between hope
and despair. In the end, it’s all a question of balance”.
The book is a bit lengthy but keeps the reader awake with
its lucid style of narration which adds flavour to the events of the novel. I
can’t help but get involved with each character’s life, their struggles, their
hopes and their disappointments. I was moved by the realistic portrayal of the
story which is appealing and is worth a good read. Those who haven’t read the
book should definitely get a copy and start reading it as soon as possible.
- Akash Sajikumar
