THE PORTRAIT OF SOCIO-POLITICAL LIVES IN KHUSHWANT SINGH’S TRAIN TO PAKISTAN, MANOHAR MALGONKAR’S A BEND IN THE GANGES AND ROHINTON MISTRY’S A FINE BALANCE

Abstract

A literary work is a representation of social and political facts- it tries to depict the harsh reality of society. As literature is the manifestation of society, it’s a basic duty of a writer to unfurl the socio-political lives in their literary writings. Reality is the understanding of life’s evolution in general as well as its specific manifestations at a particular period. A writer captures both the positive and negative aspects of significant historical events in order to disclose/dismantle this fact in his writings. The depiction of lives requires emphasising the significant issues that affect people’s lives and novel facets of life. It is an act that acts as a link between the writer and society, bridging gaps in both time and social strata. This paper’s prime purpose is to illuminate the socio-political lives through Khushwant Singh’s Train to Pakistan, Manohar Malgonkar’s A Bend in the Ganges and Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance. The first partition-related novel in English to be written by an Indian is Khushwant Singh’s Train to Pakistan (1956). It only highlights the chaotic days of partition. Following the declaration of partition, Hindu and Sikh migrants flooded the trains and even overflowed the roofs. The issues, suffering, and fear of that specific period of partition are described in this book. Muslims, Sikhs, and Hindus conduct a bloody conflict, killing trains and truckloads of people in an effort to destroy entire populations. In his book A Bend in the Ganges (1964), Manohar Malgonkar described the pre-independence socio-political reality in great detail. The evil edge of the Emergency, such as the cruellest feature of it—anyone, young or old, married or celibatarian—being forced to undergo abortion surgery—all these kinds of stuff are replicated in Rohinton Mistry’s A Fine Balance. Social conditions, including the government’s complete disregard, police fatalities in custody, the ills of Indian campuses, the administration’s dismal breakdown or absolute failure, the anguish of the underprivileged, and the violence perpetrated against the lower castes are all reflected.

Key Words: Partition, Socio-political life, Emergency, Power and Politics, Religious Civil War, etc.