‘Rising Sons’ takes us a hundred years back in time to a small village in the southern part of the country.

pix: penguin.co.in

Book: RISING SONS: A NOVEL

Published by: Penguin /Price: Rs 599 / Author: Kavery Nambisan

Kavery Nambisan, a surgeon by profession, has also achieved significant accolades for her writings. She began her career as a children’s author and steadily moved ahead, penning novels like The Scent of Pepper and The Story That Must Not Be Told that have gained her recognition. Rising Sons is her eighth novel. It takes us a hundred years back in time to a small village in the southern part of the country. It is a story that is immersed in the history that shaped our nation.

The general plot seems deceptively simple. It maps the lives of Devaraya’s family members, including his own, and would seem, on the surface, to be a basic coming-of-age story. Devaraya’s statement, “I have two boys and one-and-a-half girls”, opens the narrative and after a few pages it is revealed that the “half girl” is his adopted daughter, Chinni. His wife, Gowru, whom he collected from the Bhoodevi Anatha Ashram in Mysore, had been “orphaned” along with Bhagya when both their fathers were charged with theft and subsequently imprisoned. Their mothers followed their husbands, leaving the bewildered young girls alone. Chinni was Bhagya’s daughter. Devaraya, priding himself in his high Brahmin ancestry, scorned Bhagya who married the Malayali, Dharma, from the fishing community. He took a high-handed pleasure in arranging an abode for Bhagya in his village, Kesarugattu, where he had established himself as an honourable miller and a fair moneylender. He also held a proud position at a Mysore bank and visited his home fortnightly. Devaraya’s other children, the eldest, a boy named Nanju, another boy, Anna, and a daughter, Bhavani, were all overcome by the “darkness” Devaraya brought with him when he visited. The small village strictly adhered to the boundaries set by caste and Chinni’s inclusion in the Brahmin household after the unfortunate fate that befell her parents wagged tongues and incensed minds.

Devaraya was resolute in the education of his boys. Nanju was dutifully sent to the Putter Government High School (for boys) to complete his matriculation. Growing into a deeply thoughtful and keen young man, Nanju seemed to offer to his family a steadfast reputation. But the evils of caste divisions found the family. The revelation of the bitter truth of Devaraya’s childhood and his struggle to find a place for himself in the cruel rural society affected Nanju profoundly. Unable to bear the burden of his caste’s truth, he disappears from the pages of the book. Anna is more stoic in his handling of the shame. Beginning to trace his brother’s footsteps into higher education, Anna found himself getting involved in the struggle for national freedom. Inspired by the ideas of swaraj and the iron determination of the frail Gandhi, Anna and his friends rise above the aspersions of caste and delve into the newly-emerging political scenario. Anna becomes a successful Congressman and finds a life of glamour befitting his new role. Bhavani has long since been married off and is dismissed from the predominant plot line.

What of Chinni, then? Chinni retains the zeal and the sharpness of her rebellious parents. She reads and avidly follows the swadeshi movement. The little hints in the narrative about her relationship with Anna get buried under stories of sermons, speeches, rebellion and illegal pamphlets. Ironically, it is Devaraya’s “half” daughter who ultimately assumes full responsibility for him and his ageing wife.

Nambisan’s own childhood experiences in the warmth of her home colour the pages. Memories of home-cooked food, midnight adventures, and lasting friendships fill the lives of the growing children. The language lovingly encases the softness of these tender moments, moments that fleetingly haunt the characters in their busy adulthood.

In order to rise, one must fall. The novel is more about the poignant falls of fathers and brothers and sisters than about the consequent rise of sons and brothers. Nambisan deftly spins a tale that rushes us through the fast-changing nation at the brink of independence. In the rush, the author does not neglect her characters or her story. Rising Sons rises from amidst the bitter fall of its characters as an epic saga. The tale sits in the history of the country like a glowing ember, a showcase of how lives are changed, or remain unchanged, through the passage of time.

source: http://www.telegraphindia.com / The Telegraph Online / Home> Books / by Tayana Chaterjee / pix: by penguin.co.in / April 04th, 2025