’’Americans don’t want to read about anyone else but themselves and that’s why Indian writers sell less in America’’ - Salman Rushdie

By bringing home the Pulitzer and creating waves across the three continents, Jhumpa Lahiri proved Salman Rushdie wrong and made him eat his words. People all over the world appreciated this book.

About the Book

Interpreter of Maladies is a fine collection of nine stories that delves into the lives of Indian protagonists--natives, immigrants, and first generation Americans. The nine stories explore different aspects of human emotions. The Interpreter of Maladies depicts the alienation and loneliness of immigrants immersing themselves in two drastically different worlds. The main thrust of the stories is on the intercultural miscommunications and conflicts that are often experienced by Indian immigrants and second generation Indian-Americans. Considering Lahiri’s own experience, her portrayal of Indians who face the culture clash of inherited strict traditions and the
new world they live in, is sensitive.

1) A TEMPERORY MATTER

This story is about a young couple, ShuKumar and Shobha, whose marriage has reached a deadlock following the stillbirth of Shobha’s first pregnancy. The couple receive a notice from the power company informing that their neighborhood will be without power one hour each night for the next five days. Jhumpa Lahiri has made excellent use of the prop of electricity cut off to build up some correction between the couple, over the space of the story, where the couple make confessions to each other over next five nights. And in these exchange of confessions a renewal of their intimacy is brought about.

2) MR. PIRZADA CAME TO DINE

This story is set in 1971 (during the civil war in Pakistan) and is told through a young child, Lilia. This story tries to bring about the similarities between South Asians with respect to their culinary and linguistic characteristics. This is the story of a Bengali family and a Bangladeshi, Mr.Pirzada. Lilia, the Indian-American girl is emotionally touched by the kindness her parents show to Mr. Pirzada who fears for the safety of his family back home amid civil war. Jhumpa Lahiri is in fine form in this story and has beautifully brought out the desperations, separation pangs encountered by the characters in the story.

3) INTERPRETER OF MALADIES

This is the story of an Indian-American couple, Mr. and Mrs. Das who come to India along with their 3 children. They hire a tour guide, Mr. Kapasi. Besides working a guide he also works as an interpreter in a doctor’s office. Mina Das, the wife, dubs his job of interpreter of maladies as ’’romantic’’. This arouses a feeling of romanticism in Mr. Kapasi whose marriage is on the rocks. He begins fantacising about her. At this point, Mina Das reveals a long kept secret to Mr.Kapasi. She tells Mr. Kapasi that one of her two boys is not fathered by his husband but by her husband’s friend. Mina Das reveals this secret to Mr. Kapasi hoping that he might provide a remedy for this. Probably she read too much into his profession. But all that Mr., Kapasi could retort with was ’’Is it really pain you feel, Mrs. Das, or is it guilt?’’

4) MR. SENS

This is the story of a professor’s wife, Mrs. Sen who has to learn driving so that she can keep her job as a baby sitter to 11-year old Elliot so that everything will improve in her new American life. Mrs. Sen takes up this job not for money but for killing time as his husband is always busy. Eliot becomes Mrs. Sen’s companion and confidante, and through Eliot, we are able to feel compassion for Mrs. Sen, her fear and frustration learning to drive, her isolation, loneliness and homesickness.

5) A REAL DURWAN

This is the story of Boori Ma, a sweeper of the stairwell in an old building in Calcutta, who was deported to Calcutta after partition. Every day Boori Ma Lahiri recalls in detail about her woes and sufferings she encountered ever since she was deported to Calcutta. And all this is illustratively explained by Jhumpa Lahiri through Boori Ma’s bug-ridden cover, a broom, a bunch of keys & money tied to her sarees’pallu, etc, In the end of the story the residents throw Boori Ma out of the building after a theft suspicion.

6) THIS BLESSED HOUSE

This is the story of a young Asian couple. Sanjeev and Twinkle, who have just started their married life in Connecticut, USA. The couple keep encountering flashy Christian paraphernalia, left behind by their home’s former owners, like a statue of Mary, a plastic nativity scene, etc. Being an artistic person, Twinkle is naturally delighted on finding these objects in the house and could not control her excitement on finding them. But Sanjeev is not too interested nor does approve of Twinkles over-excitement. Lahiri has beautifully used the Christian Paraphernalia to highlight the clash of the differing personas of the young couple and then uses the same icons to bring about their reunion in the end.

7) THE TREATMENT OF BIBI HALDAR

This story is about Bibi Haldar, an epileptic rural Indian girl living in Calcutta. She is very naïve and believes that marriage and sexual relationships with men is a panacea for all her maladies. The story is about how the people help her in finding her a husband and how she is finally cured with the birth of her son Jhumpa Lahiri was inspired to write this story from a real life women whome she got to know about during one of her rare visit to India.

8) SEXY

This is a story of an American Indian girl, Miranda, who falls in love with a married Bengali man unaware of his marital status. What ensue thereafter is how Miranda tries to adopt Bengali culture, how she tries to learn the Bengali language, eat Indian food, watch Indian movies and finally how Miranda realize the ramification and uselessness of this relationship. Lahiri beautifully captures Miranda’s various ranges of emotions of joy, skepticism, and grief.

9) THE THIRD AND FINAL CONTINENT

This is the story of an Indian immigrant who reminisces his first few weeks in America, thirty years ago. His was an arranged marriage but since he had to come to America immediately after the marriage he could not get acquainted with his wife. Meanwhile he rents a room owned by a 103-year-old widow, Mrs. Croft. When his wife, Mala, arrives in America, Mrs. Croft called her a perfect lady after seeing her in the Indian saree. This compliment from Mr. Croft evokes a sympathy and love in his mind for his wife because till now he had an aversion to the idea of an arranged marriage The crux of this story lies in how his interactions with Mrs. Croft, which affected his own arranged but unadjusted marriage and his consciousness of the differences between Indian and American ways, brings about a long and loving relationship with his wife, Mala.

CONCLUSION

The nine stories in this book give a very accurate picture of the myriad aspects of NRI life. This book will not only strike a chord with those who feel alienated and lonely in foreign land but also to the appreciators of Indian culture. The struggles and emotions that the characters face in the stories are universal to everyone.

Your comments will be highly appreciated.

AMJAD K. MARUF

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