First Light

Book Title: First Light  

Written: Sunil Gangopadhyay 

Translation: Aruna Chakravarti  

It took a long time for me to finish First Light by Sunil Gangopadhyay. It is 753 pages of fine print. The original is written in Bengali, one of the vernaculars of India. It is well-translated to English by Aruna Chakravarti. The title in vernacular reads, Protham Alo, which translates, First Light. It is an acclaimed book.

The story begins with a Maharaja, Manikya, of the small realm of Tripura who never cedes his power to British rule. He has several wives and concubines. He begets a son with a Kachhua, a low caste woman. The child, Bharat, can never inherit the throne. Bharat, in his youth, promises a girl, Bhumisuta, to take care of and never leave her. But he runs away due to circumstances. He, she and the story meander through places and people after that. 

This is a fictional and factual narrative of some of the most prominent figures of late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries of Bengal Presidency under British rule over undivided India. The historical figures I am familiar with are Aurobindo Ghosh, Rabindranath Thakur, Swami Vivekanand, Ramkrishna Paramhans and Bal Gangadhar Tilak. The poet, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay who gave us our beloved National song, Vande Mataram, is also featured. All figures, whether real or fictional are from only united Bengal. These personalities are made to connect through servants, actors, friends, religious figures or courtesans.

This book addresses the good, bad and ugly features of the social, political, financial and cultural fabric of India of the time.

It touches on a gamut of subjects such as foreign rule, royalty, polygamy, child marriages, widow remarriages, sati system, poverty, theater acting, literature, illiteracy, brotherhood between Hindus and Muslims, prostitution, untouchables just to name a few. To read the entire list is to exhaust one's mind. 

The fiction is without antagonists, in the true sense. Even the protagonists do not emerge until towards the end. To write a novel without either is an interestingly novel idea.  Ultimately, it remained more of a historical but episodic account than a fiction.

The book contains too many characters and issues. The translation is done well. The author however, has used 'One day....' at the start of many paragraphs. It is like, 'Once there was a... ', making it read more like a fairytale than a literary work.

I continued to read the book for two reasons, Bengal is where I grew up. It holds a special place in my mind. I love her intellectually. It presented to me that slice of society which I knew and like to relive whenever I can even remotely by reading about it. Second, I wanted to know and read more about Rabindranath Thakur's life. He holds a very special place in my mind too. I wasn't disappointed on both those counts. For a time, I reveled in nostalgia.

Today, as was then, Bengal is a sophisticated and enlightened hub of stage acting. In my young days, I had fantasized about being a thespian. My hope was soon dashed by my father.

He vehemently refused. Now I know why. Most of the female actresses, in those days, were either untouchables or prostitutes. It was a lowly profession. And, I was born high class Brahmin!

Thinking back, not withstanding that acting was a lowly profession, it was indeed a laughable aspiration for me. I would not have made a success of it. I once fainted on stage reciting Thakur's poem-I suffered stage fright.

Charu

01202018