CHILA NATTUKARYANGAL

                                                                            BOOK  REVIEW

CHILA NATTUKARYANGAL

This compilation of 37 blog posts is eminently readable; the writing style is a candid and forthright mixture of satire, commentary, humour, gossip, experiences, nostalgia and travelogue. Journeys for any person is a mixture of experiences and the author comments that it is the best way to learn the culture and customs of a place and one should adjust to that culture.His deep understanding of situations and drawing of themes from them is evident in every piece of writing, but then he nostalgically recalls the system or ritual in his native village.The author hails from a middle class matriarchal agricultural family, as can be made out from the book. The first two essays, one a childhood experience and the other about an innocent query from his mother to his brother about drinking from a left over champagne bottle, set the tone.Another experience is about how different persons reacted to the writer’s childhood query about the meaning of the word, ‘abhisarika’ (sex worker). ‘Sukhachikilsa’ is about an experience related to Ayurveda massage, its origin in other countries and about modern Allopathy looking down upon it.Two of the best essays in the collection are ‘Vengolayile Saypumar’ and ‘Alimappillayude Veedu’. The first one is about the Anglo-Indian families in the author’s village. It is a painful reflection on the standard of education in all our educational, including professional, institutions. (Chila Naattukaryangal, Muralee Thummarukudy, Current Books, Rs. 140)

Prof. John Kurakar