Published: September 9, 2014
Special ArrangementThe Lives of Others by Neel Mukherjee
Special ArrangementThe Lives of Others by Neel Mukherjee
Kolkata-born British author Neel Mukherjee’s latest novel The Lives of Others, set in troubled Bengal of the 1960s and centred around a dysfunctional family, has been shortlisted for the prestigious Booker Prize 2014, in its debut as a global literary award.
Mr. Mukherjee, who studied at Oxford and Cambridge, was also the only Indian-origin author to be longlisted earlier this year, the first time the prestigious literary award opened up for anyone writing in English regardless of nationality.
“We are delighted to announce our international shortlist. As the Man Booker Prize expands its borders, these six exceptional books take the reader on journeys around the world, between the U.K., New York, Thailand, Italy, Calcutta and times past, present and future,” said A.C. Grayling, chair of the 2014 judging panel.
“We had a lengthy and intensive debate to whittle the list down to these six. It is a strong, thought-provoking shortlist which we believe demonstrates the wonderful depth and range of contemporary fiction in English,” he added.
Mr. Mukherjee, now a British citizen, reviews fiction for the Times and the Sunday Telegraph and his first novel, A Life Apart was a joint winner of the Vodafone-Crossword Award in India.
A break from the past
Previously, the prize was open only to authors from the U.K. and Commonwealth, Republic of Ireland and Zimbabwe. For the first time in its 46-year history, the £50,000-prize has been opened up to writers of any nationality, writing originally in English and published in the U.K.
Printable version | Sep 10, 2014 6:29:42 AM | http://www.thehindu.com/books/booker-shortlist-neel-mukherjees-the-lives-of-others-makes-the-cut/article6394350.ece
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1 comment:
Neel Mukherjee's novel, The Lives of Others, is overwhelming and powerful, it is a force, but however hard I tried to fall in love with it, I couldn't.
It seemed very pleasant in the beginning. I saw the map at the beginning. Most of the places mentioned in the novel - Jhargram, Gidhni, Belpahari, Binpur - are within 40-50 km of my ancestral village. Somewhere in the novel, my hometown, Ghatshila, has been mentioned. Then there are Bali, Nalhati and Memari--places I travel through on my way to Pakur, the place where I work. Latehar, Chhipodohar, McCluskieganj--these are the other places I know. Nearly everything in this novel is familiar. Be it the term "munish" used for farm labourers, or the original Bengali terms for "fourteen forefathers" and the saying "sieve accusing the colander of having holes". The details the author has given regarding everything from the manufacturing of paper to the politics of West Bengal to a seemingly simple act of a mynah catching a centipede made my jaw drop. I was ready to embrace this novel as my new favourite.
But then, I read the stereotypical, almost Aranyer Din Ratri-ish description of Santhals, and all my love for this novel vanished. On one hand, a drunk character is made to say, almost patronizingly, that tribals are pure and honest. On the other hand, a major character thinks that Santhal women are promiscuous because they drink homebrew. On top of that, there are scenes of Santhal men brutally killing non-Santhal moneylenders. And - I nearly choked at this - there is a line about "Santhal burial grounds". I am a Santhal. I know we don't bury our dead. We cremate them.
Such a huge canvas, I had expected a lot from this novel. But now I am just relieved that it is over.
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