Death of Malgudi

I grew up in Bangalore, and 'Malgudi Days' holds a place in some of my earliest memories of TV serials. I have read almost all Malgudi novels. To me the TV Serial was a work of genius, One of the things that stood out for me was that the serial was made in Hindi and yet it did not lose one bit of South Indianness/South Indian culture. The accent of the actors were South Indian (the actors were obviously South Indians) and that made the serial authentic. In fact, i don't even think about the language. Anant Nag as the 'Talkative Man', Vishnuvardhan as the 'office clerk'. I guess it is because every Indian identified with the characters. For me the description of the scene where Swami's father is teaching him algebra, is straight out of my life, even Swami's thought process. The class monitor like Rajam, someone whom Swami almost worships. This relationship gives you just a hint of the class system that prevails even at such a young age.

The simplicity of life depicted in Malgudi is a story of everyone of us. The characters, stories and the music (tanana tana nana na..., tana na tana nana na...) are all simple, yet we remember them because we identify with them.

Malgudi had been dying for a while by the time i passed out of college. If I were to put a definitive date to the irreversible death throes of Malgudi then I would peg to be the the year 1991. In 1991 India opened itself to the world. Economic growth has led to the old India disappearing. No longer do you see teachers in Dhoti,Kurta and Gandhi topi, No longer do you see students in those ridiculous khaki shorts. Many students don't walk to school, they ride their bikes, some are dropped off to the school by their drivers. I haven't seen a child play with paper boats in the rain for years. Nowadays many schools don't even have play grounds. How are kids going to form Malgudi Cricket Club (MCC)? Children in the city prefer to play computer games or watch cartoons to playing gully Cricket. Working hours are long, Elders don't read news papers anymore. I am always reminded of swami's father reading the new paper (I have always wanted to buy a rocking chair for my father).

Do i sound nostalgic? Yes, I do and I am, but this is also the lament of things that we have lost in the process. India has lost its innocence. India is no longer young, it has matured, and with it has come the burden of knowledge, memories of failures, regrets about past decisions. But i remember an old movie in which Ashok Kumar says "Jawani Jawan logo ke liye hain", I guess we have to do our best and move on, place the reins of India into the hands of the new generation. And move on and seek our future.

Why should one read the Dune series?

Simply put, it changed the way I looked at the world. It expanded the horizons of my imagination. It forced me to ask the question 'Is this how the world works?'. A caution for the reader though, The thing that will impress you most is not what the book says, but what you derive from it. The book also leaves a lot of things unexplained, things related to the story line, don't be worried, these are the very things that you will find fascinating, the mystery, the unknown, the desire to know more, Where did the 'Bene Gesserit' come from? What was the origin of the 'Guild'? How is a 'Mentat' trained? What is the purpose for the existence of the 'Bene Gesserit'? What are 'Other Memories'? Who are the Sardaukars? Who are the Fremen? etc... Some of these questions will eventually be answered. Some by YOU and some by the book.
The book revolves around the planet Dune. Humanity has spread to other parts of the universe. It could very easily be 20,000 years from the present. Dune is the only planet that has the 'Spice of life' called the 'Melange'. Melange ('Gives with one hand and takes away with the other') has geriatric properties, regular consumption causes addiction (changes the whites of the eyes to blue) and prolongs life, the average life span of a 'Human' is 300 years. For some individuals with certain genetical traits, it gives prescience, the ability to look into the future. The 'Bene Gesserit' have been preparing for a male individual, the 'Kwisatz Haderach', who will be their male counterpart and will be able to look into thed past, future and be able to manipulate time.

The book is about the power struggle to control the spice ('The spice must flow'), in other words Dune. Alliances are broken, new alliances are made, traps are set, newer methods of assassination are invented ... wheels within wheels within wheels. The characters are also a mystery in themselves, What are Leto and Paul Atriedes made up of? What is the cause for the enmity between the Harkonnens and the Atriedes? What role does Doctor Wellington Yueh play in Paul's life? Where, lies the loyalty of Lady Jessica?... But, remember what I said at the beginning, the story is important, but more important is what you derive from it. Don't be disturbed if you suddenly arrive at a revelation, about the way the world works, that forces you the ask the question 'Is this really how the world works?'. Don't be disturbed, you will find that you are disturbed because you are immediately trying to judge this new fact. Is it good or bad? At this point, let me caution you. Don't try to figure out if the revelation is 'good' or 'bad'. Just take it at face value. As a fact. The whole idea is about the awe one feels when one discovers a new facet about things (the way they work, the way things are) around us. The question to be avoided at all costs is 'Is this good or bad?'

Finally, on a lighter note. The biggest torture for an enthusiast is that he/she will not find someone to talk to, about the book. I will be here if any of you want to talk about the book. I have read the book several times and i still find something new in it every time I read it.

Note: The order in which you read the books is very important. I am giving the
order of the books below.
Dune,
The Dune Messiah,
Children of Dune,
God Emperor of Dune,
Heretics of Dune,
Chapterhouse Dune.

For further details refer to http://www.dunenovels.com/classic.html. YOU MUST READ THE FIRST SIX BOOK MENTIONED ABOVE IN THE SPECIFIED ORDER. When I refer to the book above, I mean the collection of all the Dune books.

Why a blog?

I have always believed that everyone has a story to tell. Only some get a chance to tell it. i.e until now. With this blog, I hope to share my story, my thoughts, my ideas, my opinions etc... with You.