Shurjo Dighal Bari: A second reading

This is not a book review in its contextual sense. Rather, this is a reader response after second reading of a Bangla Modern Classic- Shurjo Dighal Bari. It is considered as Abu Ishaque's first and classic novel. How did I feel the second time? Good of course. In my first reading, I just thought it to be a simple representation of the well and woes of the marginalized rural Bangladeshi people. But I could not realize the political and social allegory then. After about ten years, I don't know why, felt that this novel is not that much simple as I thought it to be. So I gave a second reading and some unrealized hidden gems attracted my reader- mind. Before sharing my views, I would like to clarify that this write up is not for any academic purpose, neither have I read any reference book; rather this is purely my personal realization. May be I am going to say what has already been said. As I don't know what others already have said, my realization is new to me. Not as a writer but as a reader I have took the opportunity to look at the novel from different dimensional perspectives:
Background/ Plot: The background or plot of the novel is twofold. First, the time which is known as the famine of '50, in Bangla year 1350 (1943 AD), a devastating famine stroke this land and almost fifty lakh people died of starving. This famine was caused by some controversial policy and indifference of the British government. Second plot is, the eve of the partition between India and Pakistan and its impact on ordinary people.
Politicians are not the characters of this novel. We find ourselves, our mothers, brothers and sisters roaming around the field of this novel. We can smell war though we don't see any single gun. War created famine, country became independent, and politicians became benefitted in various ways. How significant is this independence to the ordinary people? At a certain point of the novel, we see that a train is coming waving the national flag of Pakistan and the marginalized people are working like slaves beside the railway track as they have been doing since the British colonization of this land. Their life has not been changed. The national flag of independence and sovereignty usually fails to show any new light to the ordinary people whose life is sunk into darkness for time eternal. Communication becomes impossible between the government and the citizens as the second sect is like invisible men in the society. Abu Ishaque's representation of this scene gave me an impression of Old Major in Animan Farm. Just within five or six years of independence, Ishaque realized that nothing positive was going to happen in independent Pakistan. Politicians didn't create war for economic- social- psychological freedom of these invisible men. They wanted to fix up their own geographical border where they would practice power freely. The novel is modern in both its plot and mood. National and international politicians created war and took their own shares. But the inextricable strike of the rodent paw of war descends on those who don't know the who- what- why- how of the war. They don't even know who are fighting against whom. They people dying of starvation are innocent and their only fund is some simple- impeccable dreams. One of these dreams is to eat rice three times a day. This simple dream becomes an unreality when war comes and famine strikes. I have realized that the descent of simple men towards the gradual extinction because of man- created famine is the theme of this novel.
Characterization: No other character except Joygun, the protagonist has achieved gradual development throughout the novel. It was not necessary either. Joygun is the representative of the victim of time and the other characters has given her fullness. Joygun is a modern man. She doesn't believe either in the superstition of the Shujo Dighol Bari or in fate. She believes that man is the designer of his destiny. Under the persecution of starvation, she realizes that the only truth in this world is the stomach; religion, God, society everything is meaningless and hollow. She can't believe in fate like the traditional religious people. We see the influence of fundamentalism here also. The Mullahs of the village don't want the women of the village to roam around or work outside. They demand that indoors is the appropriate place for women. But they can't ensure the basic necessities of the women. They claim that God is the determiner of Rizik. Joygun can't trust on this at all. As she is going out of home and roaming around the village and city, she becomes impious according to the Mullahs.
Another modern character is Doctor Ramesh Chakrabarti. During the riot between Hindus and Muslims, Doctor Ramesh Chakrabarti decides to overlook his wife's suggestion to leave his motherland. He denies being a refugee to provide health service to the people of this backward village of then East Pakistan. The width of Fakir or Pir is more than a doctor in this village full of religious and social superstitions. The existence of Jinn is more believable than human beings. Ramesh Chakrabarti believes in man as a man. His motto is: man creates crisis and famine and man has to pay for his deeds to overcome it. That is why when a patient says him, "life or death is at the hand of God", Ramesh Chakrabarti says, "life or death is at the hand of God! Let me give you a drop of potassium cyanide, then see who saves you!" Ramesh Chakrabarti appears for a very short time in the novel, but he leaves an impact in the reader's mind.
Joygun is a progressive woman in a regressive society. This backward society doesn't let her lead a life of her own. This is a modern crisis and most of the modern fictions reveal this crisis. Joygun becomes compelled to marry off her immature daughter and is again criticized. Everybody asks whether the daughter of an outward woman can be taken as daughter- in- law. This immature girl loses her virginity before knowing anything about sexuality. Joygun's son becomes stranger to her. Yet, we don't see Joygun lose her mental strength.
Gadu Pradhan is the creator of superstitions for his own benefit. He is the ghost of Shurjo Dighal Bari. He hires people to throw stones to the premise of Shurjo Dighal Bari to preserve his own benefit and political power. When Karim Baksh catches Gadu red handed, his corpse is found next day and the existence of the ghost becomes more intense. In a sense, Gadu Pradhan represents the ghost of colonial power-both Britain and West Pakistan. This belief of ghost is something people are afraid of without knowing why.
Symbols: the most significant symbol of this novel is the Shurjo Dighal Bari itself. It is called so because the house is expanded from the east to the west. The novelist has expanded the house from sunrise to sunset. Why? What is the relation between this house and the main theme of this novel? I have hypothesized different symbols for it.  
1.    East= sunrise and West = Sunset.
2.    East= Indian Subcontinent (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh) and West= Britain (the Colonizers)
3.    East= East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and West= West Pakistan
Now let's see in elaboration:
1.    Sunrise is the hope of light. Sunset is the opposite. On the way from sunset to sunrise, an invisible ghost prevails. One must overcome this fear of the ghost to reach his/her destination
2.    The famine of '50 happened in English 1943. This country was still under British Raj. British rulers were primarily responsible for this infamous famine. So displaced persons like Joygun are coming back to their homeland (East) for shelter. But East has already been devastated by the West.
3.    This novel was published in 1955 after the independence of Indian subcontinent from British rule. Pakistan became independent also. So, after the dismissal of Britain, another passage from East (Bangladesh) to West (Pakistan) emerged, a passage which people could never cross.
This shurjo dighal bari represents this country. Like Joygun, the people of East and West Pakistan became hopeful of the Shurjo Dighal country's independence. A good writer is usually prophetic. He can predict the future logically. Abu Ishaque's logical intuition could understand that this hope would be in vain. The anxiety found in this 1955 novel flourishes in 1969 and 1971. East and West break up for the second time and this country and people start their journey to another uncertain destination as the novel ends with the beginning of another uncertain journey of Joygun.
Narrative Technique: The novel is written in third person and in easy language. Smooth expression in short sentences. In some places the narrative seems immature but it is not worth considering. No specific theory has been applied like magic realism or surrealism-- Revelation of translucent reality in simple- spontaneous narrative. Abu Ishaque is not still celebrated in Bangladesh as Syed Waliullah or Akhteruzzaman Elias. He deserves more. Some of his short stories are world class and after reading Shurjo Dighal Bari, It seems to me that he can be compared to Tarashankar Bandopadhyay.

The writer is awarded Kali O Kalam young writers price 2016. He teaches at a private university.