A Fine Balance Indeed

I fell in love again (click here to know about my first love). This time it is Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance. I totally surrender to such a towering masterpiece creator. From the cover page, which shows a 10 foot long vertical pole with a horizontal crossbow 9 foot from the ground, onto which a little five year old girl perches, her hand outstretched skyward and the pole sways precariously, being supported by nothing more than a man's thumb, a fine balance continues till the very end.

The introduction reads
Holding this book in your hand, sinking back in your soft armchair, you will say to yourself: perhaps it will amuse me. And after you have read this story of great misfortunes, you will no doubt dine well, blaming the author for your own insensitivity, accusing him of wild exaggeration and flights of fancy. But rest assured: this tragedy is not a fiction. All is true.

Mistry has stuck to his word to the dot. The 614 pages throw light on the realities of intricate lives of four people, Dina Dalal (a widow) , two cobbler turned tailors (Ishwar and Om) and a college student (Maneck), who struggle under the Emergency Regime during 1975. The things these four have in common are dignity, self-respect to live on their own and shut out mercy and sympathy, dregs of humanity which otherwise lost its meaning during those dark bleak days,a caring heart and of course inseparable poverty. I turned every single page saying, yeah life will get less complex, their checkered fates will change, things will be restored with smiles and hugs finally like in the usual movies and sitcoms, but was miserably wrong and ended up wetting my cheeks ( last time I had watered sockets was after seeing Sadma (Hindi) or Moondram Pirai (Tamil) , ten years back). This book also re frames the good old adages to Truth never Triumphs, What you sow is never what you reap, Honesty is not the best policy, Jaisi karni waisi nahin bharni. I wont call it pessimism but the simple fact of LIFE elucidated with a fine balance of love, honour, ego, sarcasm, laughter, hunger, anger, suspense,uncertainty and revenge.

When Dina gets to know of the fatal accident that killed her husband due for dinner , the dignity and poise with which she handled herself is extraordinary for words. All she said was that his food was still there, and that it should be given to the beggars in the corner of the street.

How the birth of daughters in upper castes and sons in lower castes brought upon beatings to the bearer and the child by the male chauvinists of the upper castes is a heart aching read.

A very nice thought saying " human face has limited space, if you fill the space with laughter , there wont be room for crying".

An irony dipped in humour when a quack tries to sell Potency Potions with the cries " Does it stand but not straight enough? is there a bend in the tool? Leaning left like the Marxist-Leninist party? To the right like the Jan Sangh fascists? Or wobbling mindlessly like the Congress party? Fear not for it can be straightened! Try my ointment and it will become hard as the government's heart!"

A crippled Shankar, who crawls along pavements collecting alms is one person with whom you cannot empathize. Not because you have an iron heart towards beggars, but because he never lets sympathy creep into you. He is a character blessed with a great sense of humour, optimism and helping tendency, notwithstanding the God's blessed physical impediment.



There are a few censorious parts in the book, where the fine hair line difference between love and lust is lost, the beautiful feeling is messed up conveying just Strip... Bang...Whewww..making you mindlessly flip through, albeit return after a while, to make sure you did not miss on something read worthy.


I have spent six sleepless nights now on this, not that I am a slow reader, but because I could not bring myself up to gulp down its magic and essence quicker than six nights. Brilliant English in which there is yet again, a fine balance of rich vocabulary not compromising on emotions that tumble down like a smooth waterfall. It is shortlisted for the Booker prize and I vote for it. I am not a good reviewer of books, this is my mediocre yet sincere attempt.This review made me buy the book and read it till the end. This is a must read for all those who breathe good books and also have the fire to become a writer. I warn you again, this is not a light read but truth in the crudest form which slaps you left right left.
To conclude, Rohinton Mistry -I SALUTE YOU