Waiting for Mahatma
Waiting For Mahatma
Sriram is a high school graduate who lives with his grandmother in Malgudi, the fictional Southern Indian town in which much of Narayan's fiction takes place. Sriram is attracted to Bharati, a girl of his age who is active in Mahatma Gandhi's Quit India movement, and he becomes an activist himself. He then gets involved with anti-British extremists, causing much grief to his grandmother. Sriram's underground activity takes place in the countryside, an area alien to him, and the misunderstandings with the locals provide the book's best comic moments. After spending some time in jail, Sriram is reunited with Bharati, and the story ends with their engagement amidst the tragedy of India's partition in 1947.
Waiting for the Mahatma is written in Narayan's gentle comic style. An unusual feature of this novel is the participation of Gandhi as a character. His revolutionary ideas and practices are contrasted with the views of traditionalists such as the town's notables and Sriram's grandmother. The political struggle serves as a background to Sriram and Bharati's unconventional romance which is concluded outside either's family circle. This is one of Narayan's most successful novels, where much happens behind the facade of the low key storytelling.
Waiting for the Mahatma by R K Narayan - Book Review
R K Narayan's novels, which involve various types of people from a fictitious town called Malgudi, are a delight to read. "Waiting for the Mahatma" is another realistic novel set during the freedom struggle days. I was surprised by noting R K Narayan handling a romance genre in his novel. However after reading this novel, I am amazed how well he brings out the emotions in romance as well. This novel is a stunning representation of freedom struggle movement and its impact on the lives of numerous Indian people.
The novel is about a boy of age around twenty called Sriram. He lives with his grandmother in Malgudi. Sriram tries to explore the
Sriram is a high school graduate who lives with his grandmother in Malgudi, the fictional Southern Indian town in which much of Narayan's fiction takes place. Sriram is attracted to Bharati, a girl of his age who is active in Mahatma Gandhi's Quit India movement, and he becomes an activist himself. He then gets involved with anti-British extremists, causing much grief to his grandmother. Sriram's underground activity takes place in the countryside, an area alien to him, and the misunderstandings with the locals provide the book's best comic moments. After spending some time in jail, Sriram is reunited with Bharati, and the story ends with their engagement amidst the tragedy of India's partition in 1947.
Waiting for the Mahatma is written in Narayan's gentle comic style. An unusual feature of this novel is the participation of Gandhi as a character. His revolutionary ideas and practices are contrasted with the views of traditionalists such as the town's notables and Sriram's grandmother. The political struggle serves as a background to Sriram and Bharati's unconventional romance which is concluded outside either's family circle. This is one of Narayan's most successful novels, where much happens behind the facade of the low key storytelling.
Waiting for the Mahatma by R K Narayan - Book Review
R K Narayan's novels, which involve various types of people from a fictitious town called Malgudi, are a delight to read. "Waiting for the Mahatma" is another realistic novel set during the freedom struggle days. I was surprised by noting R K Narayan handling a romance genre in his novel. However after reading this novel, I am amazed how well he brings out the emotions in romance as well. This novel is a stunning representation of freedom struggle movement and its impact on the lives of numerous Indian people.
The novel is about a boy of age around twenty called Sriram. He lives with his grandmother in Malgudi. Sriram tries to explore the