Dr. Bhabani Bhattacharya is one of the few Indian English writers who belongs to first-rate novelists of the world. He is a much-translated Indo-Anglian writer who has won global fame. It is my endeavour to bring out the thematic concerns in all his six novels and fifteen short-stories. In addition to this, his work on Gandhi is also taken up for a chapter-wise analysis.
Bhabani Bhattacharya Is One Of The Remarkable Novelists In The Realm Of Indo-English Fiction. This Anthology Containing Twenty Articles By Dedicated Indian Scholars Deals With Almost All The Significant Aspects Of Bhattacharya S Fictional World. All The Six Novels Focussed Upon Are : So Many Hungers!, Music Of Mohini, He Who Rides A Tiger, A Goddess Named Gold, Shadow From Ladakh, A Dream In Hawaii. It Is Hoped That Present Critical Study Will Be Helpful To The Teachers, Research Scholars And Students For Recent Studies On Bhabani Bhattacharya.
The Book Provides A General Survey Of The Indo-Anglian Fiction And A Detailed Analysis Of The Prominent Political Fictions And The Fiction Of Bhabani Bhattacharya. Showing Bhattacharya S Position And Achievement In The Domain Of Indian Fiction, The Book Studies His Art Of Writing Novels For Political And Social Value.The Book Also Dwells On The Indo-Anglian Fiction Of Varied Themes Social, Political, Nationalistic, Diplomatic, Cultural, Etc., Of Pre-And Post-Independence Periods And Shows The Significant Place Of The Indian Political Novels And Those Of Bhabani Bhattacharya. The Indian Content Of These Political Novels Has Created A Context For The Study Of Bhattacharya S Novels.The Book Also Makes A Critique On Bhattacharya S Six Novels Depicting Contemporary Social, Political, Economic And Religious Realities Of India Before And After Independence. It Also Highlights His Plea For The Social And Moral Function Of Art And For Reality And Truth In Literature And Also His Defending Of The Use Of Contemporary Events As Worthy Subjects For Writing Novels.The Author Presents A Perspective On Bhattacharya As An Innovator And A Free User Of English Language In An Indianised Style. His Authentic Tone And Indianness Are Also Shown Through The Common Theme, Traditional Technique And Typical Indian Language Of His Novels.
A quiet, unassuming novel of lyrical charm and infectious humour! The story could not be simpler. A girl marries and in course of time produces a child. The girl is city bred — her husband, a Sanskrit scholar, who has his heart in a remote village and where he takes her after marriage. That is all. Young, playful and mischievous Mohini dreams of a husband but her education and upbringing and the ideas of liberal professor father are unacceptable to her Brahmin traditioned grandmother. Marriage for love is discarded, matrimonial advertisements in the newspapers bring only embarrassment, and it is through a fortune teller that a match is made. Finally charming Mohini is wed and brought to grip with a different reality, a responsibility and a way of life to which she would gladly succumb if only her husband was closer. The unusual cast of characters include a passionate and romantic snake charmer, and a matriarch whose worship of tradition leads her to amorality. ‘Here is a quiet, unassuming novel that has moments of true lyric charm and infections humour. The writer has such a real feeling for people that his characters transcend national barriers and a western reader soon feels comfortable with the unusual cart — including the passionate and romantic snake charmer, the lovely girl whom none will marry because her horoscope is accursed, and the matriarch whose worship of tradition leads her to a amorality. We see the best of India – the best of any civilisation for that matter – in Mohini.' — The New York Times 'The customs of old and the ideas of a modern age clash in this fictional account of the marriage of a young girl and a country scholar.' —Saturday Review, New York 'A splendid novel that may take rank with Pearl Buck's The Good Earth.' — Chicago Tribune 'The story of evolution of seventeen year old, day dreaming girl filled with romantic notions into an emotionally and intellectually mature woman. Bhabani Bhattacharya, as ever, gives a perfectly round female character and paints Mohini’s every emotion with ease and dexterity of the seasoned artiste.' — Nagpur Times
A modern fable of rural India narrated against the backdrop of freedom struggle. It is a masterly satire on those who live by the lure of gold. The characters are introduced one by one in a leisurely manner, and we meet among them a pretty girl, a wandering minstrel and a luxuriously mustachioed seth. Skilfully blending fable and reality it delves deep into the human mind. The plot centres around a touchstone given to Meera by her sagacious grandfather. It is believed that the amulet would enable Meera to turn copper into gold, provided she acts kindly as a natural and spontaneous expression of herself. ‘Wearing it on your person, if you do an act of kindness, real kindness, then all copper on your body will turn to gold... parted from your arm, the touchstone will be dead, a worthless pebble.’ It is hugely entertaining tale, yet it disturbs. It disturbs as a warning and as a prophecy.
