section - 1 an appreciation of balamani amma's...
TRANSCRIPT
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SECTION - 1
AN APPRECIATION OF BALAMANI AMMA'S
PROSE WORK - THE MOTHER'S WORLD
Prose has always been an effective medium of communication.
While tracing the evolution of prose in Kerala, Krishna
Chaitanya remarks :
"In Kerala, the evolution of prose is an especially
complicated story, because the early, formative phases
were those of trilingual ferment and interaction. A
class ical Tami 1 was the s ta te language; the language of
the people had branched off into independent evolution
from the old Dravidian which was the parent stock of
both classical Tamil and Malayalam, then the advent of
Sanskrit introduced further complexities." 1
There is no trilingual flavour 1n Balamani Amma I s prose
works as they do not show any mingling up with Tamil. But the
influence of Sanskrit is obvious in all her works. She handles
both the languages, Malayalam and Sanskrit effortlessly showing
her profound skill in both.
Balamani Amma is well-known only as a poet. Her prose works
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are negligible in number. The main book containing her
autobiographical essays, titled Through The Life is already
discussed in detail in Section-i, Chapter II.
The other prose work, Ammayute Lokam (The Mother's World)
deserves a special mention, hence it is discussed in this
section. The aim of writing such a book is expressed by the
writer herself 1n the preface of this book. She says:
"Those who have read my poetry, especially the present
generation, will be interested to see the vibrating
strings behind them through this. It may be of interest
to observe how the concepts that grew strong in small
experiences and became rooted there, throw light and
shade in the path of life. They can imagine how memories
1n the brain, like
fragrant when they dry
pineapple leaves, become more
up. I present this book to them.'~
The general editors of this book, while expressing
their happiness 1n getting a chance to publish a book of
Balamani Amma, consider it as a rare fortune they got. They say
that this book mainly contains the essays selected from a series
of essays that she had been writing at that time 1n Priyarama.
("Introduction", The Mother's World, p. 7).
This book is a collection of twenty-seven essays dealing
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with different topics concentrating more In propagating the
welfare of children and the role of women in reforming and
restructuring the world.
A thematic division in a strict sense is not possible as the
same theme is repeated in many of the essays. But a rough
division is quite proper keeping only the main theme into
consideration.
Essays 1, 9, 11, 13 and 22 deal with the importance of
giving freedom and love to children in the required proportion
for their personality development. In the first essay, Balamani
Amma talks about an article she read in a magazine. In this a
father painfully recollects an incident of his childhood when he
was punished mercilessly by his own father for plucking rose
flowers from his own garden to give to one of his friends. The
wound is still fresh in his mind which makes him promise later
on that when he becomes a father there should not be anything in
his house that his children should not use. Balamani Amma
appreciates his mentality but at the same time she expresses her
shock in hearing a child in the neighbour-hood crying as he is
punished by his own mother. Balamani Amma feels that neither the
child nor the mother may be knowing the reason for the mother's
anger. It may be the result of her own disappointment in
something else. The author does not appreciate such behaviour as
she feels that only parents can come closer to God. She says :
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"Germs mul tiply and spread even 1n the wounds of the
mind. Let us congratulate those 1n whom the desire to
I h · ,,3 para yse t em 1S seen.
The essay "To Every Child, with Love" also is an advice to
elders regarding the bringing up of children. Just as we show
the beauty of the moon to children, we should also show the
beauty 1n abstract forms like love, kindness, feeling of
equality etc. The child should get a lot of love especially
during the first four years. When the child accidentally falls
and gets hurt while playing, he blames his friend for it. But
the mother, too, should not blame the child's friend. Or
otherwise, the child will learn to blame others for his own
drawbacks. This essay was written during the 'International Year
of the Children' and she wants the elders to concentrate their
attention on the future of the children. She wants the elders to
give them more love.
Her approach to child Ii tera ture can be seen 1n the essay
ti tIed "The Li tera ture Of the Children." She feels that the
chi ldren should be encouraged to read and enj oy the same good
books and magaz ines tha t the elders read. According to her, it
needs some effort to chew the best. But even this effort
promotes the growth of intelligence (The Mother's World, p. 34).
On the basis of this knowledge they should be encouraged to
write articles, poetry and short stories, too. She is confident
that this will improve their outlook on life.
.....
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She is not happy to send the children to school at an early
age. In the essay "The Child wi th the Toy", she says that the
bi tter experiences a chi ld undergoes a t schoo I in the name of
discipline often have an adverse effect on him. They should
enjoy freedom at that age in the company of the elders, at home.
But when they grow up, school education becomes a must for them
to gain knowledge ln all fields. Balamani Amma expresses her
anxiety when she asks:
"Is there no way to make a student take interest in his
classwork
his toy?"
as naturally as he does when he plays with
4
The essay, "All the Blame on Children" is agaln an example
where the writer identifies herself with the children. The
children are blamed for an ink spot on the wall or a paper piece
ln the portico or even for laughing aloud. Their daily routine
is always fixed up by the elders. Balamani Amma cannot tolerate
any act of cruelty to children. According to her, their cry
pierces the heart of any kind person. She is against the
teachers who adopt physical punishment at school. Every child
obeys the kind advice. If any child refuses to obey kind words,
he will definitely not obey the rod of punishment. Only love and
sympathy can nurture good people. She asks the elders not to
forget their role in structuring the future society. (p. 69).
Balamani Amma's love for children is reflected ln the
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above essays. Her anxiety to see their well-being is clearly
projected in them. Her profound knowledge in child psychology
has to be admired. She feels that children have a tendency to
imitate the elders. So the elders have to correct themselves In
order to correct the children. This psychological approach of
the author reminds us of K. Thankam's analysis of her:
"Her belief is that the ability of a housewife lies in
letting the children free and creating model surround
ings (for them) as surroundings play a maj or role in
their character formation. Balamani Amma, even though
not a graduate In child psychology, stresses in her
works and words, the basic principles of this branch of
knowledge that if the elders criticise others and
condemn them In front of children, it may have an
5 influence on their character and thought."
Her advice to women is the main theme in essays 4,8 and 10.
The essay titled "Let the Wealth Spread" talks about a lesson
she learned. Once at home, while she was bargaining with a
vegetable vendor, another man came to collect money from her as
her contribution to some drama or music concert. Without a word
she gave him the money he asked and continued bargaining with
the poor vegetable vendor. The vendor then tells her that such
housewives who bargain and bring the price down create vendors
like him who are compelled to fix a high price for their items.
And like this they are forced to tell lies to make both ends
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meet. She feels ashamed of her own attitude. She asks the
housewives to help other women who make and sell food items in
order to make a living. She feels that the tendency to depend on
modern equipmen ts
heal thy trend as
at home to avoid keeping servants is not a
she cons iders it our duty to help the poor
financially. According to her, God lives in our hearts. Hence
blessing and curse also originate in our hearts, not from
anywhere else.
There is a frank appeal to the womenfolk, in the essay "Love
Your Neighbours", to love their neighbours as they love their
dear ones. By quoting the examples of Jesus Christ, Mahatma
Gandhi, Vinoba Bhave etc she projects
through which the concept of peaceful
achieved. This begins at home by
the importance of love
co-existence could be
loving our immediate
neighbours. She explains her point of view by quoting her own
experience. She recollects an incident that took place at a time
when the neighbours used
without hesitation. On
to borrow essential household things
one such occasion, when the borrowed
vessel is returned back, the maid servant complains to her that
the neighbours have damaged the vessel. The same maid servant,
after four days tells her that one of the lamps of the household
is 'just' damaged. In the former case the neighbours are blamed
whereas in the latter one, it just happens Balamani Amma's
appeal to the womenfolk is not to spoil the good relationship
with the neighbours on account of such worthless objects which
are bound to get damaged.
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This appeal is continued even in the essay "Through The
Harem" (Women's Apartment). She throws light on the importance
of maintaining a peaceful, contented atmosphere in the family.
As Mother Teresa says, peace begins at horne. According to
Balamani Amma, even restlessness begins at horne. Adjustment from
both the partners is essential for a successful married life. To
build up confidence in children, they should be made aware of
their importance at horne, hence unnecessary restrictions should
be avoided. They should be taught to lead a disciplined life but
they should not overdo it. The importance of serving a balanced
food to the family members in a pleasant atmosphere is stressed
in this essay. The house, too,
the housewives should not
should be kept neat and clean but
waste money 1n buying costly
decorative articles that consume a lot of time to maintain.
Growing their own vegetables is a wise practice. Above all she
wants them to spend some time every day in the open air to feel
closer to nature, closer to God.
The above three essays read like
conversa tion. There 1S a sincere reques t
bring about happiness 1n their immediate
their talents. An ordinary Indian woman
following her advice.
a face to face
to the womenfolk to
circle by promoting
benefits a lot by
It
formal
1S surprising to know that Balamani Amma,
education exhibits profound knowledge in
wi thout any
the field of
human psychology, too. Essays 2,15, and 16 prove this.
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"'1<.tO(~I~ lI~<.t~~A .... f(L" 't,
"'tL ~ '\ '1 ~,
In the essay "The Decoration of the House", she points out
the fact that by observing the way a house is decorated, the
personality of the house owner could be assessed (p, 11). The
profusely growing flowering plants in the front yard exhibit the
owner's sense of beauty whereas the well-kept vegetable garden
shows his prac tical mindedness and hard working nature. The
narrow minded people hang the pictures of many Gods and
Goddesses whereas the broad-minded ones are happy with only one
picture. Those who exhibit fancy articles and small toys in the
show-case of the main room wi 11 have chi ldlike men tali ty bu t
they can be strict disciplinarians, too. Books in the show-case
show his reading and intellectual capacity while the three
monkeys depicting the Gandhian principle reflect his powerful
personality. The show-cases kept inside the house reflect the
interest of the housewife in honouring the guests.
The essay titled "Handwriting" as the name suggests tells
how to asses a person's character by observing his handwriting.
According to her, this 1S based on scientific studies. The
scholars in this field say that the round, beautiful handwriting
reflects a good mind. If the letters show a slanting towards the
left, it is considered as the best. But slanting towards the
righ t shows the rude charac ter of the wri ter. Small letters
speak about the writer's high thinking and shy nature. Big
handwriting points at the writer's interest to exhibit his
abilities. But those who possess extra ordinary personality
traits need not have attractive handwriting as their aim in life
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is not to adjust with the world as such.
Her studies reveal the fac t that one's charac ter cannot be
analysed by judging the handwriting only once. When a person is
mentally upset, his unhappiness is reflected in his handwriting,
too. But with all this, Balamani Amma stresses on the importance
of forming a good handwriting from childhood onwards.
Essay titled "Not only with Words" is an interesting study
of human character by studying his expressions and physical
appearance. But she doesn't claim this knowledge as the result
of her own studies. She says
"I only copy down some parts that the scholars pinpoint
from the eternity of science." 6
According to this study, Balamani Amma points out that
black, thick curly hair show the intellectually backward nature
of the person. They are more emotional, too. A broad forehead
shows intelligence whereas a narrow one indicates childishness.
A neck fat at the back shows long life. She gives the opinion of
a western scientist who feels that those whose pupils are raised
exhibiting the white part of the eye are more physical minded.
She compares such assessments wi th the methods of diagnosis
followed by ancient Ayurvedic physicians. She feels that even
the modern doc tors depend on such symptoms. Fingers help the
most in one's character analysis. Long, slender fingers exhibit
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artistic taste whereas the short ones show practical mindedness.
Fingers that could be bent backwards show the capacity to
adjust. Claw-like fingers are the signs of some diseases. Even
the sections of the fingers help 1n analysing a person's
character.
The movements and expressions of a person, according to her,
contribute much to this study. If a person sits with legs apart,
it shows his lack of culture. But he may be good natured.
Careless way of dressing up in the public shows his confidence
in his own attractive personality. Even the actions of a person
can be analysed like this for his character study. But Balamani
Amma warns the readers that such studies should be taken up only
as an interest....-ing hobby. If anyone uses it for any other
purpose, it will have bad results.
Her interest in topics like this is admirable. The knowledge
she gained in such topics through self-study is also remarkable.
This shows that Balamani Amma is interested in adult psychology,
too.
The importance of temples and the message they g1ve are the
main ideas contained in essays 5 and 6. After discussing the
puri ty of the atmosphere tha t prevai led in the temples some
sixty years ago, the writer deals with the present day
atmosphere. She feels sad that the parents and children of today
do not get time to enjoy this purity. The administrators of the
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temple, In turn, should be aware of their duties towards
society. She wants the children to breath the fresh air of the
temples because the peaceful atmosphere there will promote their
mental and physical health. About the aim of the temples she
says :
"The main aim of the temple is the purification of
mental life .. . . . . . Temples should remind us that not weapons nor rivalry
7 but only good deeds come to the rescue of man."
The pilgrimage to the famous Sabarimala Temple is an
experience to her. She wonders as to what the message of the
deity will be and what the idol symbolises !
People crowd the temple forgetting their inequality In
position and status without any pride, concentrating only on
one aim, be with Him and enjoy His divine presence!
These two essays do not show her blind faith but they
bring out her unshakable faith In the goodness of the people
around. The satisfaction in uniting together forgetting about
their differences is the greatest achievement. This is possible
only In a common place of worship. According to Balamani Amma,
this IS the message that one gets from temples.
Essays7, 19 and 25 could be considered as elegiac prose as
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these reflect her sorrowful memories while bidding farewell to
three persons, who were very dear to her in different ways.
The essay tilled "The Final Sight" is a painful recollection
of the past while she was laying a wreath on the dead body of K.
P. Kesava Menon. She recollects that this well-known writer's
last article "Birthday Notes" appeared to be melancholic In
nature. Otherwise he never gave despair any place in his life.
While admiring the achievements of this well-known journalist,
writer and patriot Balamani Amma expresses her agony in losing
such a great leader.
The essay captioned "Journey to Eternity" is the most moving
one out of the three. This is a farewell to her husband who had
been a constant companion to her from the age of nineteen till
his death at the age of eightyone. Then her thoughts become
philosophical. She says that Tagore used to experience a sense
of security throughout his life as he used to feel the divine
presence in and around him. While performing the last rites of
her beloved husband at Tirunavaya she feels that the memories of
our dear ones should encourage us to promote the development
of the young generation.
Her calm and collected mind even during calamities, is
reflected in the above essay.
"My Teacher" is a tribute to her teacher, Mr. Nambeesan. He
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was the only teacher ln her life under whom she learned
Sanskrit, Malayalam and Mathematics at home. She continued to
respect him till his death. Balamani Amma recollects how he came
all the way to Calicut to bless her on her sixtieth birthday !
When she prays for the peace of his soul she remembers the days
when he led her through the different paths of knowledge. ,.
All the above three essays talk volumes of her noble and
gentle nature. The one remembering her husband is more personal
and subjective. The other two objective essays also show her
affectionate nature.
"About Skylab" shows her interest in Science. The working of
the skylab from the time it was launched till it fell, has been
described. Balamani Amma considers the creations of man, too, as
common property of the whole mankind. Even a topic that requires
deep scientific knowledge is discussed by her without any
difficulty at all.
The essay "The Stolen Spectacles" is thematically
different from the rest as it narrates only a single incident of
how her uncle's pair of spectacles was stolen and how it was
recovered. It projects her uncle's generosity. Through this she
conveys the message to the readers not to distrust anyone until
the guilt or mistake is proved.
Essay 21 " What The Life Taught" is also the only one of its
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kind in the book having some autobiographical touch in it. She
feels that whatever she has learned after the age of twenty or
twenty two could only reinforce the ideas she formed before
that. She talks about how noble works like those of Tolstoy,
Vi vekananda, Tagore, the Puranas and Theosoph ical works
influenced her at that time as these works contain the answers
to many problems in life. She considers the rotten feelings in
the mind of a human being as much more destructive than an atom
bomb. She wants everyone to be kind and compassionate to one
another. To create healthy attitude among the children a healthy
atmosphere should be created at home.
This essay begins in a subjective way. But she passes on to
deeper aspects and then ends with her own philosophical
thoughts.
But her philosophical thoughts are concentrated in essays 23
and 26. The importance of love and happiness is again stressed.
She feels that our problems are our own creations formed mainly
due to an undesirably developed critical attitude. We complain
of darkness and suffocation by closing the doors around us.
Love, kindness and patience give satisfaction and happiness in
return. To those who tell that the world is nothing but a dream,
she says that even if it is so, dreaming is desirable. In the
next birth she would like to become a poet if it brings her
closer to nature ~nd God. She wants to be more kind and
compassionate in the next birth to correct the errors of this
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birth. She imagines the world af ter thousands of years when
people may go to other planets as easily as they go to other
countries today. She wonders whether the noble works that adorn
the world today will be forgotten at that time !
Her philosophy is that we ourselves are responsible for our
own happiness and sorro...,s. Her own satisfaction in life is
reflected in the above essays.
Essays 18 and 27 talk about her never fading interest 1n
reading. The essay "Wha t My Way Was" shows her ecs tasy 1n
spending some time with the precious books at her childhood home
whereas the essay captioned "Hunger" is a reflection of her
hunger to read good books. Here, while sitting in the library of
her daughter's house) she talko/about her own library at Nalapat.
She realises the fact that the hunger she felt in her adolescent
age to read noble works, still persists !
This reminds us of Kamala Das' s remarks about her mother
tha t her mother is a voracious reader eve~now and tha t her
education, by reading is continued even after the age of eighty, •
(Diary Notes, p. 34.) Apart from this remark, recently Anup,
quoting Kamala Das's words, throws light on this hunger that
still burns in her mother.
"The interview given by Madhavikutty at an upper story
of the Ambadi Apartment on Warriam Road at Ernakulam. In
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the adjacent room, the poetess Balamani Amma whose words
express maternal presence. This mother is reading a book
even though with the tired eyes of old age. On seeing
it, the daugh ter said 'Fatigue is not a problem to
• I II 8 mother. She likes to read whenever she gets tlme.
The persistence of this hunger ln Balamani Amma at this age
is very much admirable.
The essay titled "Some Agricultural Thoughts" throws light
on her knowledge ln the field of agricul ture, too, stress ing
more on the poetical aspect of it. Quoting examples from the
poems of different poets, she has discussed the different poetic
concepts in them regarding this topic. The concept of farming
and the farmer has motivatd many poets but the modern poets,
according to her, do not glve much importance to these concepts.
She is anxious to see a poem wri tten by a farmer himself! She
expects some mental food from those who work hard to satisfy our
physical hunger. This is an essay written with deep insight and
though t.
The rest of the essays deal with miscellaneous topics. Essay
3 talks about the importance of a portico, an open space, ln
front of the house to bring us close to nature. The importance
of education in the life of a human being especially of a woman
is the idea contained in essay 14. She considers the student
life as very precious as it gives knowledge that lasts for ever.
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The examinations, too, are essential as they promote the ability
to concentrate and remember.
In essay 20, she asks the readers as to what should be the
measuring yard to measure our satisfaction and happiness. From
an upper story of a huge building in a great city, she looks at
the chi ldren who play happi ly wi thou t bothering about the bad
smell and the suffocating atmosphere prevailing there. The
labourers who build temporary huts to stay till their
construction work gets over, enJoy a happier life than the ones
living in the costly flats. The satisfaction is measured by the
ability to adjust to the surroundings.
A strict thematic division is not appropriate as the same
theme often is repeated in many of the essays even though all
the twenty seven essays deal with different topics. This book
with its simple narration, is easier to read and understand than
its counterpart, Through The Life.
As usual her style is metaphorical. Images and analogies
come naturally to her for explaining a complicated point. While
explaining the need to love the neighbours she writes :
"The torch light of the human mind falls on a far off
place, not on the nearby place. Who hates those who
live far ! It is easy to love them. But we should love
our neighbours and co-operate with them, knowing their
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mistakes and defects. A mental preparation is necessary
f h "" 9 or t 1.S.
Wealth should be distributed, according to Balamani Amma. It
should not be allowed to remain stagnant. Stagnant wealth is
compared to the stagnant water of a pond that cultivates weeds.
The flowers of these weeds may decorate the pond but it makes
the atmosphere unhealthy (p. 17).
Ignorance makes a person incapable of using his intelligence
effectively. Due to this, he cannot enJoy many noble
experiences. This incapability is compared to a blin~an's
incapability of seeing many good things in the world and to a
dea~man's, to hear many good words. But Balamani Amma feels that
the lack of ability to use one's own intelligence is much more
pitiable. (p. 41).
Those who complain that this era is unhappy and restless are
compared to those who shut the door and complain that there is
darkness inside (p.70).
The knowledge that she gained by reading good books during
her pre-marriage days is compared to the moonlight that spreads
light around her life. With admirable brevity she explains that
the moonlight (here the knowledge acquired during her
adolescence and youth) that she enjoyed at that time spreads
light through the sideways of life even today (p. 43).
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Certain drawbacks could be noticed In this prose work. Lack
of proper arrangement of themes is the main one among them. In
one essay itself from one topic she desultorily flits to another
topic. The essay "What the Life Taught" starts with an autobio
graphical trend in it, then she suddenly starts generalising her
ideas, then again talks about the children's need of getting a
peaceful atmosphere at home and at school. Even though five
essays express her feelings towards the same topic and three
essays deal \vith her advice to women regarding their duties
towards children, the same theme crops up again and again in the
essays devoted to other subjects, too.
The essay "Journey to Eternity" begins with the memories of
her long married life while she was getting ready to bid a final
farewell to her husband. Then it deviates into her philosophical
thoughts concerning death and life after death quoting even from
Upanishads. This diffuses the poignancy of concentrated emotion.
The book as such is a mixture of all types of essays. They
should have been arranged thematically or technically In a
systematic way. A thematic division, for example with essays
concerning the children and their welfare at one place, then the
essays containing her advice to womenfolk followed by the
miscellaneous ones, with more profound philosophical issues as
the concluding essays would have made the structure of the book
more coherent. It would have given the book a better appearance.
Or technically there should have been separate divisions for the
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narrative, descriptive and reflective essays.
Repetition of themes like the importance of creating a
healthy atmosphere for children at home and outside, the
importance of enjoying the wonders of nature, the uselessness of
buying expensive decorative articles etc. make the essays
monotonous at times. The reader who IS anxious to absorb new
ideas always gets disappointed often by reading the same points
again and again in different words.
But these minor matters should
demeri ts of the book. Every essay,
not be taken as serious
if read separately provides
interesting reading. Each one is a store house of the writer's
profound knowledge and deep thinking on the subject dealt within
it. We have the impression that the author talks to the reader
In these essays with effortless ease and intimacy. This indeed
is characteristic of a good prose.
* * * *
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SECTION - 1.1
KAMALA DAS: AN APPRECIATION
OF SOME OF HER PROSE WORKS
Kamala Das has written many prose works, fictional and
non-fictional. Her short stories and novels are not
considered here as in a comparative study like this where
the other one has not attempted this branch of literature at
all.
Her Memories of Chi ldhood, Years ago and When The
Pomegranate Bloomed are the best examples of her prose works
where through very simple language, Kamala Das has pictured
her life during childhood. Majority of the works of Kamala
Das are highly subjective and personal. These three read
like a trilogy but all the three have powerfully portrayed
the innocence of childhood. The reader is forced to shuttle
between the village life of Nalapat house in Malabar and the
city life of Calcutta. Kamala Das has herself stated that her
childhood and early adolescent days were like a swing that
shuttled between the rural and urban life. (When The
Pomegranate Bloomed, p. 143).
Kamala Das feels that her bank balance is only these
sweet memories of childhood and that she has not lived after
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her childhood at all. Whatever happened after that can be
easily forgotten like dreams. The only reality is her
childhood and her grandmother's love. (Diary Notes, p. 125)
It is not a surprise that a person like Kamala Das who
has such strong feelings has contributed three books, only
to express her strong reactions to situations that appear to
be qui te ordinary to any 0 ther person. Bu tit is qui te
surprising that a person after many years)recollects even
the minutest details of the incidents that happened during
childhood. Usually some of the incidents remain ln our
memory but even then, the minute details regarding these
incidents fade away ln course of time. To recreate such
incidents after many years requires deep insight and
retentive power. Often the help of fantasy has to be sought
to re-join the left over links. Kamala Das has shown
exemplary skill in restructuring her childhood memories.
Kamala Das explains to P. P. Raveendran how she got the
motivation to write Memories of Childhood. He asks her about
the connection between her short stories and her childhood
reminiscences.
"P.P.R. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . In fact they do not seem to be much different from
the accounts you give in your childhood reminis
cences, Balyakala Smaranakal (Memories of
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Childhood). Alternatively, Balyakala Smaranakal
can be read as a collection of short stories. How
will you explain this ?
K. D. Balyakala Smaranakal is an experiment I
undertook. I wanted each piece in it to stand
apart as a short story and yet I wanted the truth
to be told, as far as I could remember it. I have
used dialogue which I heard years ago and I have
retained the rustic flavour. I have a very good
memory. Some of us in the Nalapat family possess a
grea t memory. I suppose I can boas t a bi t. When I
experience something, I remember the colours, the
dialogue, the sound and its texture without any
difficul ty. I had a friend called Dr. Ramanlal
Patel, a very fine gentleman, a psychiatrist, ln
Bombay. A well-known person. He used to talk to me
about the cases that he had handled without
disclosing the names. He told me
would be sending half-cured people
once that he
to me as he
thought, now, all they needed was my love. So some
of these younger ones would come to me. They were
mainly girls and I would just hold their hands and
sit there and let them talk and then turn them to
writing poetry or to painting. Which worked ln
their cases. So Ramanlal told me once, Kamala, you
experiment, you have remarkable memory. You try to
go back into your life, towards your childhood and
-348-
try to remember things. Try to remember things
which may be lying forgotten now. It is possible
to pick them out. Perhaps you will be able to
hypnotize yourself into becoming a stronger person
by this. So this was precisely what I did. Like
meditation. Close the doors of a room, make it
dark, lie on a bed and try to go inward. So you
see from 1992 I would go to 1991 and like tha t.
And suddenly it occurred to me that I could get
snatches of dialogue locked in years ago and this
helped me to write Balyakala Smaranakal. It is a
pure experiment. I don't think such an experiment
has taken place in any other language. So I turned
each of them into a vignette that can stand apart.
Yet the whole thing possesses continuity. After
that I tried Varshangalku Mumbu (Years Ago) and
Neermathalam Pootha Kalam (When the Pomegranate
Bloomed) and I hoped that the three would fit into
one volume. It was an experiment that succeeded.
It is too soon now to say whether the audience
liked the book, but give it some time. I think
every product, even a literary product, is like
food that is cooked. You must let it cool, before
you eat it. So let it cool and may be in fifty
years' time it wi 11 be cons idered to be a good
product of the 1980's". 10
-349-
Her prediction that time might prove the worth of her
Memories of Childhood has already come true. The book has
become immensely popular. It is being serialised in the
television now. According to Vanitha, Lenin Rajendran aims
at bringing out before the T. V. viewers, in all authen
tici ty, the beauty of Madhavikutty' s childhood. ("Th ira-
nottam Balyakala Smaranakal T 1 .. II 1n e eV1S 10n, Vanitha
FortnightlY for Women, Vol. XX, No. IX (1-14 July, 1995),
p. 81).
Balyakala Smaranakal (Memories of childhood) begins
with her visit to the Kovilakam with her grand mother. From
here she learns the preliminary lessons concerning the caste
system prevalent in Kerala at that time. As the book is not
divided into chapters and sections, the Jumps from her
Nalapat life to Calcutta life and vice versa come as an
unexpected turn. But the gap of space between one incident
and the other points out the change. The next sections, even
though not divided systematically, show her childhood at
Nalapa t giving equal importance to Ambazha thel house, the
occupants of which were her neighbours and relatives without
thinking that one day she will come to this house as a
bride. The life in a village during a storm and rain is
pictured without losing its essence. Many incidents like
important guests coming and staying at Nalapat and
Ambazha the I houses, the dramas and folk dances tha t
enlightened the life of the villagers at that time, her
-350-
school life at the village school, her return from the
boarding school, her life at Landsdowne Road, Calcutta, all
this is discussed in a natural and interesting manner. Along
with these some incidents like how her elder brother made
perfume at home and how she believed that the juice of a
plant when used as an eye drops will improve the eye sight
of her grandmother to enable her to see her dear grand -
daughter even after death, adorn the book with humour.
There is no clear cut narrative frame ln this book.
Around characters the incidents are woven. The characteri
sation is very powerful. It is done most effectively either
through plain narration or through conversation, the latter
being more effective than the former. Even the plain
narration is done by projecting only one aspect of the
person's character traits. She throws light on the genero
sity of her grand-uncle and other's reaction to it. On one
occasion, Kuttikrishna Marar, a well-known writer and a
friend of her uncle, had mentioned in an article about this
uncle's refusal to lend him some money. The reality is
expressed in the following words of Kamala Das:
"Uncle lived like a king. But he did not have any
money with him. He did not see any way to make
money. It was not easy to sell the books. Marar's
request must have made him very sad. He might not
have had enough courage to admit that he was poor.
-351-
Whatever it was, those best friends separated due
to a misunderstanding. Before
Marar stayed at Nalapat often as
this separation,
" 11 a gues t.
How touching is the description of the uncle's
helpless-AIess in his own inability to help his friend in
need!
Gentle humour pervades Kamala Das's prose. Consider for
example the portrait of Kunjan Nambeesan.
"Nambeesan's shape resembled the decayed piece of
ripe banana which instead of being steamed, is
cooked ln water. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . His voice stood in between the voices of a man and
a woman. . . . . . . . . . Because Kunjan Nambeesan belonged to a high caste,
his poverty was not an obstacle to a happy social
life
There was never a better listener than Nambeesan
at Punnayurkulam. Who else had the patience to
listen, the abili ty to acknowledge whenever
required and the capacity to sit and sleep without
listening to anything when others are
. . . d?" 12 crltlclse .
In a village talking ill about others used to be the
-352-
maln hobby. The patience to listen to it but at the same
time to sleep without listening to the unwanted part of it
is an ability indeed. Kamala Das discovers fun in the then
prevalent oddities through Kunjan Nambeesan.
The young man Balan who works as an assistant to one of
her relatives, an active cheerful woman, is humorously
drawn. He is characterised as a good person who due to his
big, protruding teeth smiles always even when he is sad.
"Balan smiled broadly even ln sorrow. That sight
attracted me very much. I could understand even at
that time that ugliness
attraction as beauty has."
has 13
the same power of
Elements of seriousness and pathos, too, are not absent
ln Kamala Das's prose. Consider her fondly portrayed picture
of her grandmother. Nalapat incidents are woven around her
personality. Through effective conversations this grand
mother occupies a prominent place in the reader's mind.
Kamala Das cannot think of a life without her grandmother.
The knowledge that her grandmother will not be able to see
her af ter dea th, makes her res tless. When her class-rna tes
tell her that after death when the body is burnt, the eyes
also will get destroyed, Kamala argues with them that she
and her grandmother will not die at all. Her friends make
fun of her but she is extremely innocent and fails to
-353-
understand the reason behind their laughter. When she
returns from school,
has gone wrong ln
her grandmother senses that something
the school. To her ques t ions, Kamala
bombards her with counter questions. She pours out all her
innocent doubts by asking her whether a powerful eyesight
will enable her grandmother, after her death, see her dear
grand-daughter from the other world! Her grandmother's
answer tha t both of them will die one day makes her feel
very sad. When such questions suffocate the grandmother she
jus t wipes her tearful eyes wi th a towel expressing her
helplessness ln answering Kamala's questions. This action
talks volumes of her love towards her little grand-daughter.
(Memories of Childhood, p. 206). This attachment is
expressed in some other incidents, too, especially when she
recollects the extraction of her tooth ( pp. 83-84) and the
cutting of her thick curly hair on her father's orders (pp.
88-89).
The maid servant Devaki's characterisation is very
powerful. This she has done mainly by means of conver
sations. The loyal mentality of the low class uneducated
people is presented here in an interesting way.
"'I don't know them. I don't go anywhere. My job
is to look after this girl. I don't know any body
in this vi llage. I don't wish to be acquain ted
with them. I don't have the habit of climbing up
--- -~--~---------------------
-354-
and down the steps of each and every house. The
women of my house do not go out. Do the work -
then sit and pray if there is no work. Do you know
that the more we pray the more blessings we
get?' .................................... 'My name is Devaki and my village is Nannammukku.
I liked you when I saw you. That is why I told
you my name. If anyone asks, I won't tell my name.
Th · , ' at 18 my nature. . ............. .
'I am not afraid of anyone. When Valiamma finishes
her praying, I will go with her. My job is not to
look at the Nairs who pray without shirt and
banian, showing the hair on their body. My job is
to look after this girl. After going back I have
to clean the floor of the outhouse and the middle
room upstairs to lay the bed. I have to keep water
In all the bathrooms. I have
water, too. I don't have time to
to take drinking
14 talk ....... "
All the other major characters among the servants like
5ankaran, Unnimaya, Kunjathu, Tripura, Kallu etc. depict the
same culture. They all continue to live in our memory. 50
impressive are their simplicity and innocence.
Actions and incidents, too, at times are developed
through conversa tions In a very in teres ting way. The way
both the children, Kamala and her elder brother make perfume
-355-
(pp. 146-151),
Kunjukutty (pp.
the coming and going of the maid servant
157-167) and the eventful days in between
these, the cultural programmes of the village at that time
(pp. 60-66), the trip to Guruvayoor temple (pp. 66-69) etc.
are all developed in this fashion.
The incidents that depict her days at Nalapat are more
numerous and natural than the Calcutta incidents. This
proves her attachment to the place.
Varshangalku Mumbu
continuation of Memories
(Years Ago) can be
of Childhood. This
read
also
as
is
a
a
collection of incidents of childhood recollected by Kamala
Das after many years. It begins with her grandmother's soap
preparation where Kamala is only a silent witness in the
background. The conversations of the others, especially that
of the grandmother and the servants develop the description
of the process in detail.
When a visitor's daughter cries for Kamala's favourite
doll, her grandmother forces Kamala to give the doll to this
girl. Her desire to keep her own doll is as strong as her
desire to obey her grandmother. At last her affection for
her grandmother wins. But her heart breaks at the loss of
her favourite doll. The grandmother advises her to keep
control over her own desires, otherwise disappointment and
sorrow will follow. The innocent child Kamala asks:
-356-
" 'Grandmother, do you love me, won't you feel sad
if I am sent to another house? '
My grandmother did not answer for a long time and
lay looking into my eyes. At last she told, 'Yes,
Kamala, I will feel sad. I will feel sad if I am
" 15 unable to see you.'
Unlike Memories of Childhood this book Years Ago is
divided into chapters with suitable titles. Here, too, her
life at the two places during her childhood is the ma].n
theme. Her attachment towards her grandmother and the
village life stands as a sharp contrast to her disinterest
in the city life at Calcutta away from her grandmother. Her
father's anxiety to make her a cultured fashionable girl
does not create any interest in her to go to Calcutta. Her
father assures her that he will take her to see circus when
they reach Calcutta. This also does not make her happy. She
asks
"'Won't we take grandmother to Calcutta? '
'How can we take grandmother? Does'nt she have to
take care of the rna t ters of this house ?
Grandmo ther wi 11 stay here. I wi 11 take you to
Calcutta and make you a fashionable girl. Is'nt it
enough? '
At that moment I hated the fashions and circus and
16 other things of the city."
-357-
As in Memories of Childhood, In Years Ago, too, Devaki,
Sankaran and other servants play important roles. Their
characters are portrayed humorously and effectively through
conversation. The innocence and simplicity of the village
servants at that time is symbolised by these two. Devaki
wants to learn one of the slokas of the famous book,
Narayaneeyam. This book con tains devotional s lokas wri t ten
In Sanskrit In praise of Lord Krishna of the famous
Guruvayoor temple. Kamala tries to teach Devaki a sloka from
it but Devaki fails to understand the hard Sanskrit words of
the sloka. The most humorous part of it is that Devaki does
no t admi t her ignorance of Sanskri t. She argues tha t the
English words of the slokas make it difficult for her to
unders tand it. When the grandmother explains to her tha t
Narayaneeyam is In Sanskrit and not in English, Devaki
smilingly answers:
" •••.••• This Devaki is not a fool. If I hear
English, I can understand that it is English. I
have been listening to this girl's English since
so many days." 17
Most of the chapters In this book depict her
village life at Nalapat. Only a few deal with her life at
Calcutta. In one or two chapters she mixes up both as is
seen In the las tone. This begins wi th her granduncle's
advice to learn how to think. Both she and her elder brother
-358-
start practising the art of thinking. Kamala, in her
childhood innocence, is particular that she should think in
the same way as her brother does. So she asks him as to what
he was thinking at that time. When he tells her that he was
thinking about the coming Mathematics examination, she says,
pretending to be surprised that she was also thinking about
the same The theme then suddenly deviates to her life in
Calcutta and the feeling of loneliness there and then again
shifts back to her village life at Nalapat. At Calcutta, she
feels closer to her elder brother only.
"When my elder brother went to Madras, leaving
Calcutta to study medicine, I felt like an orphan.
No one else had any in teres t 1n
frankly or making me talk frankly."
talking 18
to me
Still, at times, she 1S conscious about the weakening
1n the relationship that existed between them.
"On those days, for whatever I asked, I got only a
disinterested expression from my elder brother.
The spiritual relationship that we had from my
childhood onwards gradually was breaking up. I
never could gain the extra-ordinary intelligence
nor the ability to act that my .elder brother
expected to see in " 19 me.
-359-
A t times, the elders of Nalapa t house, too, en ter tain
the readers with their innocence. A framed picture of Lord
Byron, the poet, was a constant companion to Kamala during
those days. Her grandmother and great grandmother refuse to
believe that Byron is dead. They were worried that Kamala
was going to marry him. The fear that Kamala was in love
wi th a man, who was not a Hindu even, worries both these
elderly ladies of the house. This evokes humour as well as
sympathy for their feelings among the readers. (Years Ago,
pp. 186-187).
The peculiar feature of this book is that the title of
each of the chapters clearly indicates its subject matter
which may be an incident or characterisation of a person.
For example, the title of a chapter "Cheru" gives the idea
to the reader that the characterisation of Cheru including
his physical appearance will be the content of the chapter.
"Toniyare Paru Amma" , "Paily" "Sister Telka", "Amina Umma",
"Patticheeru", "Madam Rose" etc. are other examples.
Neerma thalam Pootha Kalam (When The Pomegranate
Bloomed) begins with the origin and history of Nalapat
family and its members. Then she passes on to her husband's
family history. Her interest in exploring the roots of these
two families is explained by her:
"The search that I conducted about the past was
-360-
like drawing water slowly from a deep well. My
grandmother, my husband Das's mother, my aunt, my
servants etc. told me stories. The fondness I had
towards the stories of Vikramaditya was agaln
experienced on hearing the complete story of the
families of myself and my husband, Dasettan
I 10 20 a so.
She compares the past and the present and discusses the
various changes that have transformed her old village into
the present one. Nostalgic memories take her back to her
childhood days whenever she visits her village even now.
This book depicts her Calcutta life more; hence it
throws more light on the 'otherness' in her personality.
lOAn imaginary life, the twin of the real one, came
into existence very close to my life. I saw ln it,
wha tever new colours tha t I could no t see ln the
real one. I enj oyed in it the tunes, rhythms and
musical notes that I could not hear in the real
one. 10 21
Instead of Devaki and Sankaran, here Tripura,
Parukutty, Kunjathu, Kasiram the Dhobi, Naresh the driver,
Metilda the lady tailor, etc. occupy prominent places.
Some chapters are a mixture of incidents of both the places,
-361-
Nalapat and Calcutta. The Second World War is ln the
background. Chapter forty six deals with her adventurous
spirit. Kamala, along with her teacher and friends, visits
the zoo. Her friend Ramola and herself escape from the
others to go near the cages where the lions are kept. Ramola
opens the cage for Kamala to get inside. Kamala takes it as
a challenge and steps in to the cage. Ramola locks it from
outside. Kamala falls down inside the cage but does not
admit the fact that she is afraid. The lion comes closer to
her and sniffs allover her body but moves away from her
without hurting her. This incident even though she claims
was reported ln the newspapers without giving the name of
the girl, is incredible. The book ends with her coming back
to Nalapat house during summer vacation at the age of
fourteen. Hence out of these three books dealing wi th the
incidents of childhood, this one seems to be the last one as
Kamala Das puts on end to her childhood when she gets
married at the age of fifteen. The Memories of Childhood
deals with the incidents of early childhood. It is followed
by Years Ago and When The Pomegranate Bloomed.
Even though the incidents are different, thematic
resemblance and repetition can be
example, the social conventions,
noticed often.
especially the
For
bad
traditions of that age that prevailed in the Nair Society
are repeated in all the three books. In Childhood Memories,
-362-
she goes into details of the bad deeds of the then society.
"Some protected with silence their husbands and
bro thers (who were the evil-doers). A t las t when
their own daughters were attacked, they, too,
broke down and cried." 22
She has compared tha t bad time wi th the presen t day
atmosphere. She feels that the present day girls are
luckier. (Memories of Childhood, p. 110). The same point is
repeated through the conversations of the servants in Years
Ago (pp. 106-107). Again it is repeated In When The
Pomegranate Bloomed (p. 33). This is an extension of her
poems "Nani" and "Honour" where the same protest against the
Nayar conventional society is projected. Kamala's affection
for her class teacher, Miss Laha, is discussed in detail in
the last chapter of Years Ago (pp. 215-216). It is again
repeated in When The Pomegranate Bloomed (p. 166).
The technique used is mainly a return to the past,
identifying herself as the young girl, Kamala. At times she
comes back to the present as is seen in the characterisation
of Cherappan, the bang Ie - seller. Af ter talking abou t the
la t ter' s vis i t to Nalapa t when she was a child, she comes
back to the present and recollects meeting him in 1975 as a
middle aged woman. (Memories of Childhood, pp.89-93). In
When The Pomegranate Bloomed, she comes back to the present
-363-
often. This technique of narration is conspicuous when she
compares the atmosphere of her village Punnayur Kulam during
her childhood with the present day conditions. (pp.37-38)
The same type of comparison of the old times with the
present times is seen when she talks about her family
history (pp. 69-70) and her mother's sorrow when she became
a widow (p. 238). Except for such occasional digressions,
the three books take the readers to the innocence of her
childhood. The 'pomegranate tree' of Nalapat house stands as
a symbol of her affection at Nalapat where she enjoyed
maximum freedom and securi ty of life. The flowers, leaves
and branches of the tree are the sweet memories of her life.
When the tree blossoms, the flowers make the atmosphere
fragrant. So also those experiences make Kamala's life
fragrant throughout.
The dialect used In these
consideration. The conversation
three books needs special
is the essence of these
books through which the writer has developed the incident.
To present the conversation of an educated person is not as
difficult as presenting the conversations of the many
uneducated servants and dependants of an aristocratic
family. Kamala Das has won the esteem of her readers for her
ability to express this type of conversation without losing
its essence in the least. The Malabar dialect of Malayalam
language with its special accent is wonderfully reproduced
in all the three books.
-354-
Even J.n the same locality, people of different
religions speak the same language in different ways. These
differences have also been effectively shown by Kamala Das.
The conversation of Ponnamma, a Christian lady, represents
the particular way of speaking Malayalam by Christians
(Memories of Childhood pp. 115-119) whereas her friend
Kayyavi's conversation (pp. 151-157) is a representation of
the Muslim way of talking. Kamala Das has been very
successful J.n identifying herself with every character of
her childhood.
P. P. Raveendran considers the language of these books
as 'absolutely fascinating'. ("Of Masks and Memories - An
Interview with Kamala Das " - Indian Literature, p. 155).
Memories of Childhood does not show any clear-cut
division of the chapters whereas in Years Ago, the chapters
are titled according to its contents. When The Pomegranate
Bloomed does not have titles for its chapters but its
chapters are numbered.
Udaykumar says J.n connection with Years Ago:
"Those who read Years Ago, go on reading it after
a few pages wi th a sense of con tinui ty tha t is
impossible to ignore. This is due to too much of a
of· 0 0 h 0,,23 personJ. J.catJ.on J.n t e conversatJ.on.
-365-
But a doubt arises in the minds of the readers about
the difference between facts and fantasies. To go back to
one's own childhood and recollect some of the incidents
after about fifty years is itself not very easy. Here Kamala
Das has described the minutest details of the actions and
though ts of the charac ters. For example the grandmo ther' s
preparation of the soap in the kitchen can be a real memory.
But minute details of the great grandmother's walking on the
corridor with enthusiasm and grand uncle's mother's lack of
optimism for making soap at home, etc. are likely to be her
own imaginings. Even the minute details regarding the fate
of Parvathy, the dhobi's daughter, the reaction of each and
every servant when the cow at Nalapat delivers, her visit to
Peggy's house, etc., (When the Pomegrana te Bloomed) seem to
be decorated with fantasies. Kamala Das is herself aware of
this ability in her, when she says :
"Only the servants expressed their readiness to be
my listeners. I created imaginary stories to catch
hold of their attention and to retain it. A
concept of 'I' that is away from real i ty, grew
slowly and gradually through my words. Gradually
the servants of my house started believing that I
am a brave girl capable of even making the
24 teachers of my school abide by my orders."
This ability to add fiction to facts 1S conspicuous in
-366-
all these three books. However, Kamala Das would not admit
that there is any fiction in these books.
In answer to P. P. Raveendran IS ques tion, whether she
would consider these books metaficitional, she says :
"There is no fiction ln Balyakala Smaranakal and
Neermathalam Pootha Kalam. It is all real. You
have most of the characters still alive, although
very old, and it will be very easy to ask them.
1 I . ld 1· " 25 Peop e lke Amma, and many 0 re atlons.
While analysing his own thoughts on the books Years
~ Udaykumar explains the difference between description
and conversation. Accord ing to him, if description crea tes
the intensity of experience through the special
personification of the object, conversation attains it
through the concreteness of language (Woman, Identity,
Society, p. 51).
Undoubtedly the language in these books have helped
Kamala Das in winning the admiration of her readers and
critics. If read together, it creates an impression of
repetition, but if read separately, each one provides
excellent reading.
Her books, Fear,My Nightgown and Diary Notes, too,
-367-
require a special mention when her non-fictional prose works
are considered.
Fear, My Nightgown is a collection of essays with poems
1n between. These poems in Malayalam read like prose. They
do not show the same charm that is seen in her poems 1n
English. The introduction by V. Rajakrishnan starts with a
poem tha tis the trans la tion of a few lines of "A Requiem
for My Father". (Collected Poems, Vol. 1., p. 40).
"Krishnan" (p.7S) is a translation of "Krishna" (The Best of
Kamala Das, p. 54). "Greeshmam" (p. 79) is a translation of
"Au tumn Leaves" (The Bes t of Kama la Das, p. 75), "Pazhaya
Mavu" is a translation of "The Ancient Mango Tree" (The Best
of Kamala Das, p. 93).
The prose section begins with her intense feeling of
loneliness during her soli tary walk through the moun tain
roads. The last paragraph reads like a summary of her
"Anamalai Poem VI". The essays are of a miscellaneous
nature. As this appears to be written soon after her defeat
1n the Parliamentary elections, the essays reflect her
disappointment and frustrations 1n her defeat. Moreover
unlike her usual subjective
swi tched over to objective
themes, she has, for a change,
style of wri ting showing her
interest in the political problems also. Two essays are
written as a tribute to Indira Gandhi, describing her
association with her and expressing the shock at her
-368-
assasination. Her political essays deal with her idea of
secularism. She strongly feels that for a better tomorrow
religion should be banished. She says
"India is not at all secular, it is not a
completely perfect democraQY here ................. .
Kill the religion - Instead of killing the leaders
and innocent poeple, kill all the religions that
are being propagated in India. Don't let the virus
of religion enter into the twenty first century.
I hope that Rajiv Gandhi will have the courage and
patriotism to put these procedures into . ,,26 practlce.
Here, too, the subjective approach is dominant over her
other thoughts. Even though she deals with various political
topics these essays mainly concern with Indira Gandhi's
assassination and then her own defeat and disappointment. As
usual, again she comes back to her own subjective thoughts
and her Nalapat house and her grand-mother's love. The
pomegranate tree is at the background in her thoughts. The
essay on how her golden silk umbrella was stolen provides an
interesting reading. With a sense of humour and pathos, she
concludes the essay:
"That umbrella is my friend which had proteced me
from headache many times. My eyes fill with tears
-369-
when I think about it. I will not accept any other
umbrella in its place. The people at my house know
that the happiness of my life is very much
dependant on such objects as my umbrella, my
brush, my spectacles etc. The silk case of my silk
umbrella is with me. Dear thief, you can take that
1 ,,27
a so.
Every essay or poem in this book is sui tably ti tIed,
throwing light on its contents.
Diary Notes, as the name suggests, is agaIn a
reflection of her thoughts and experiences in life. About
these jottings, the introductory remark says
"These diary notes show the intelligence of
Madhavikutty that floats both on the physical
a tmosphere and spiri tual a tmosphere a t the same . ,,28 tIme.
This collection of though ts runs into sixty-one
chapters. There is no inter-connection between one chapter
and the other. As usual, she talks about various aspects of
her life. But the main background here is her house at
Trivandrum where she lives with her husband and her mother.
Here, she says that she is actually living to hear the words
of praise from her mother and her husband thereby showing
-370-
her attachment to both. (p. 73). She talks about her various
official trips to places both inside and outside the
country, her close association with other well-known writers
and the problems she is facing as a writer. In between,
again she goes back to her Nalapa t house and her dear
grandmother. (pp.78-80, p.122, p.125, p. 134). Chapter 25
deals with her dear elder brother's illness and chapter 29,
his death and its subsequent reactions. Chapter 28 describes
the reaction of her family members and others when the photo
of Satya Saibaba) presented by a friend l started producing
'Vibhuthi'. The other chapters mainly describe her official
as well as non-official matters with her own comments on it.
The cone luding chapter explains her in ten tion in wri ting
such a book.
"I am putting an end to my diary notes along with
this. This is the sixty-first article. I had been
opening all the doors and windows of my life
happily for the readers. I have tried my best not
to hide anything from them. I have presented all
my powers and my weaknesses before them. • • •
. . . . . . Two people live within
myself. One who praises my actions and one who
hates my actions. When one opens the wings to fly
along with the wind, the other one pulls her down
to the earth by catching hold of her toes." 29
-371-
Unlike the other three prose works,
technique in which conversation is
narration.
these two adopt a
subordinated to
Repe ti tion is a rna] or drawback 1n all the prose works
of Kamala Das. The same theme is repeated often. Her grand
uncle's mother's death is narrated in detail in Memories of
Childhood (p.45) and in When The Pomegranate Bloomed (p.16).
In both these books she has described her grand-uncle's
extreme sorrow at her death. Her grandmother's wish to talk
to her alone and her disinterested attitude 1n it, is
explained in Diary Notes (p. 134) and 1n When The
Pomegranate Bloomed (p. 297) almost 1n the same way.
Kamala's ability, even at the age of three, to narrate
stories is admired by different people, once in Diary Notes,
(p. 151) and again in Years Ago (p.37). Even in the same
book, Diary Notes her aversion to eXhibiting some cruel
scenes 1n the television is narrated at two different
places. The scene is that of a middle-aged man beating up a
boy with a gun and killing him. In both, she criticises the
censors who gave permission to exhibit such cruel incidents.
(Diary Notes p. 144, p. 178.)
Protest against the cruelty of the society is often a
repeated theme. Recollections of the past when the children
were wi th her and of the pain 1n their separa tion (Diary
Notes pp.168-169) are similar in theme to her poem "My
-372-
Sons".
Some chapters begin with one thought but soon deviate
to other thoughts which have little connection with it. For
example, chapter 48 begins with her thoughts on Pavanan's
book on his memories of childhood. Then it flits to the
practice of tattooing and from there to her classmates at
Calcutta (pp. 147-149).
One of her latest prose works that is being serialised
ln the Malayala Manorama Weekly titled "Ottayatipatha"
("The Footpath") also follow~ the style of the Diary Notes.
This is also a recollection of her thoughts and experiences
in life. Her love for her dog 'Anna' is expressed in Diary
Notes (pp. 21 and 42). The same dog 'Anna' is fondly
remembered in this series of articles, too. She has des
cribed in detail her affection to this dog in her article in
"The Foot Path" (Malayala Manorama Weekly, Vol. XL, No. VII
(18 February, 1995), p. 19). Apart from this repetition of
ideas and themes, her prose works provide really interesting
reading. Her style in all her prose works has transparen t
simplici ty.
Vatsalan Vatusseri quoting a part of her poem
"Maarjaram" ("The Cat") in Fear, My Night Gown (p. 26) ln
which Kamala Das describes the 'other one' ln her
personality that makes her half a woman and the other half a
-373-
cat, says :-
"It is this 'twin' which is inside the personality
of Madhavikutty that appears as the heroine of
protest against society in her creations. It is
this half cat that ties Madhavikutty's
many confusions that cannot be analysed."
life
30
to
Kamala Das undoubtedly has made the readers aware of
the presence of this 'other one' in her personality both in
prose and ln poetry. The two selves struggling to get the
better of each other exist simultaneously within her.
* * * *
-374-
,'.
SEC T ION - 111
"I~~~I~ lIf;\'t~~A
1/ "1"''1.
lOtI '~ ., ,1 ~, ._-------....
A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE
PROSE WORKS OF BALAMANI AMMA AND
KAMALA DAS.
As 1n poetry, the difference between the two is more
conspicuous than the similarity even in their prose works.
Balamani Amma's essays reflect a calm and collected mind of
the au thor. One can eas i ly come across the powerful and
benign personality of her that moves alone 1n mature dignity
1n unhurried ease. The reader absorbs the authentic
sinceri ty behind her words and hence is receptive to her
wisdom. A deep insight is seen in all the essays. She writes
about herself as well as others who are dear and near to
her. Objective writing comes to her effortlessly. Her essays
cover various topics 1n personal, general, political,
scientific and philosophical categories. The knowledge
acquired by wide reading and profound thinking adorns all
these well informed essays.
Kamala Das is very much a subjective writer
concen tra ting only on her problems, frustrations and
disappointments. Seldom does she venture into other fields.
Even when she does, she analyses these themes only from
-375-
her point of VIew. And within no time she comes back to her
personal and subjective themes. Extreme sensitivity is the
maIn characteristic of her works. Vrinda Nabar, In her
preface to The Endless Female Hungers - A Study of Kamala
Das, remarks :
"Meeting Kamala, one is for a while almost
hypnotised by her intensity, her outspoken
sincerity. She is warm, gentle, almost seductive,
but one notices also a tendency towards extreme
. 1 d· . " 31 reactIons to peop e an sItuatIons.
Kamala Das herself IS aware of the strangeness In her
due to the presence of the 'other one' in her dual persona-
lity which always pulls her down to the earth, when the real
one tries to fly along with the wind. (Diary Notes, p. 183).
This unsteadiness acts as a sharp contrast to her mother's
steady and strong personality. Perhaps this is why the
contrast In their writing, too, appears to be more striking
than the similarities.
But one cannot deny the fact that there are simila-
rities in thoughts and expression that could be noticed in
their prose works, too.
Both of them have expressed their anxieties regarding
the present day problems in the field of education. Balamani
Amma says
-376-
"School education is a social matter. It has its
own limitations. The opportunity to study only the
subject each individual likes, is absent there. It
is no t proper to have it, too. I t is the
birthright of every child to know the essence of
the knowledge that man has acquired from ancient
times till now. He should be able to make use of
it. The present syllabus is arranged accordingly.
. . . . . . . Then the problem in education is how to create the
ability in children to concentrate on every
subject they learn." 32
For this, she points out on many occasions, the
importance of maintaining a healthy atmosphere both at home
and in the school which will enable the future generation to
keep away from violence.
The same stream of though t, tha t 1S, the anxie ty to
create a better future generation is seen in Kamala Das when
she says
"The time to reorganise the text book committees
and the censor board is already expired. The
political leaders should be kept away from the
-377-
schools. They should not be allowed to glve
lecture in such premises. Let the children not
learn the false game that is misunderstood as
politics.
The thinking section among the people will grow
only if the ordinary parents unite together with
a firm determination to prevent the politicising
. d d d" 33 process belng con ucte on the stu ents.
Both the mother and the daughter aim at the welfare of
the future generation.
There is simi lari ty of though t when both of them on
different occasions express their sorrow in losing a great
leader of their times. Balamani Amma, in the essay "The Last
Sight", recollects the achievements of the leader K. P.
Kesava Menon, while paying tribute to him. (The Mother's
World, pp. 23-25).
In the same way in her essay "A Kiss to Priyadarshini",
Kamala Das pays tribute to Indira Gandhi (Fear, ~ Nightgown
pp. 7 to 13).
Both of them show their respect to these departed
leaders, while assessing their contributions to the country.
The quality of admiring their contemporary leaders remain
the same. But the difference between the admired heroes
-378-
naturally also characterises the admirers.
In religious rna t ters, the con tras t is more striking
than the similarity. Balamani Amma is not superstitious even
though she believes in worshipping in temples. Temples are
considered by her only as meeting places where people
worship together, forgetting their inequalities. Even the
poets, artists, old people, all can get together ln the
temples to share their feelings and experiences. Children
can play in the compound breathing fresh air. But she is
against constructing new temples wherever idols are found.
she says :
"The spiri tual fragrance that fi lIs the temples,
makes it
devotees."
noble. 34
This should come from the
She is also against the temple being misused for
political lectures or as a training ground for practising
weapons. Temples should teach 'dharma'. It should not
promote rivalries.
It is doubtful whether Kamala Das has ever thought
about the importance of religon or places of worship in a
similar way. She is much against using places of worship for
religious lectures. According to her, religion itself
obstructs the progress of mankind. She fe~ that love
should be the only religion in our country. But it looks
-379-
silly when she writes that no one bothered to advise Indira
Gandhi about the importance of the religion of love and that
is why she was assassinated. She wants the virus of religion
to be destroyed from this country. It appears that she has
never thought about the usefulness of temples. It is clear
that she disapproves of the public places of worship and
congregations. Consider the following
"One can pray or worship In one's own house. But
prayer, prayer meeting and religious lectures
should not be conducted at public places! Then the
progress that could not be achieved by means of
family planning, making of bombs and the non
alignment policy will be achieved by our nation
automatically. Everyone will be Indians only." 35
Here, the similarity IS only In their belief In the
powers of the Almighty. Their attitudes towards devotion a~ ,
very much different from each others.
Both the mother and the daughter have expressed their
beliefs in rebirth In their respective prose works. As
mentioned in section-i of this chapter, Balamani Amma has
devoted one full essay for this, ti tIed "If I get One More
Birth", in her prose work. She imagines her own life as well
as the state of affairs in the world at that time. According
to her, the scholars believe that abilities increase in
-380-
every birth and if it is so, she doesn't have to worry about
her livelihood. But she will try to develop her
intelligence. Her sorrows are her own creations and so there
is nothing to complain about this birth. She is not very
particular to become a poet in the next birth, too. But if
that helps her to corne closer to God and nature she would
like to have it.
says
She wants to be more kind and affectionate. She
"I have heard that in other births also, the same
characters only, may be in different connections,
will be taking part 1n one's drama of life. Like
that the debt of love and hatredness is paid back.
I don't have any debt of hatredness. I will be
happy if get a chance to correct the minor
mistakes in the love I gave and to give more and
more
more
love. My aim
softly." 36
at that time will be to behave
The sincerity 1n the above words 1S convincing.
Kamala Das, even though a believer 1n rebirth,
feels different in what she wants to be in the next birth.
-381-
"I feel that those whom I am acquainted with 1n
this birth, will not be with me in the next birth.
My colour, my face, my body structure all this
will be different. When the burnt earth blooms
again, I will be reappear1ng in the form of a
k h " 37 coc roac or an ant.
Kamala Das wants to sleep only with the stars if she
ge ts ano ther birth. She wi 11 stay wi th deers, horses, dogs
and peacocks. She will swim in the river and lie down
floating in the water. Her language will not be similar to
that of a human being. She will sleep on the petals of
flowers.
The characters of their dreams of next birth define the
characters of the dreamers. Balamani Amma, it may safely be
said, is hardly a dreamer of the ordinary sort. She is a
serious believer and wants to make use of her next birth,
too, for the welfare of mankind. She has experienced only
the blessings in this life.
The daughter is unmindful of the blessings of this life
and has no wish to take birth as a human being again. Her
dream is dreamy indeed. It is all poetry ethereal, beautiful
and lyrical, though it lacks the mother's moral and
philosophical stuff which is less lyrical.
-382-
As In poetry, both of them have written about their
life In big cities in their prose works, too. Balamani Amma
talks about the various aspects of city life as viewed by
her while sitting on the top floor of a building in a great
city. She observes the sea, the children who play in the
open place and the labourers who make temporary huts to stay
till their construction work gets over. Their happiness
teaches her the lesson that one can derive satisfaction from
any type of circums tances, if one tries to (The Mother's
World, pp. 62-63).At another place, too, she has recollected
her life at Calcutta and Calicut.(p.65.)
Kamala Das has written a lot about her life at Calcutta
as a young girl in all the books of reminiscences of
childhood. In Diary Notes, her life at Trivandrum is also
discussed.
The difference IS very conspicuous here as Kamala Das
has nothing but complaints about this city also. She says
that because she has written once that Trivandrum is a cruel
city, her readers visit her with expensive gifts to prove
that she is wrong (Diary Notes, p. 140). Even on another
occasion, she talks about her unhappiness:
"I don't have any friends In this city. I have
only the cri tics and the advisers. The pries ts,
saints and social workers work tirelessly to
convert me to a good person, to make me a fairy
-383-
and a saint. Good people try sincerely to convert
me to a coward. It is sure that I am not living.
1 d . " 38 But I am not comp etely YIng, too.
The concept of city life exists In both the writers.
But their approach to it is totally different. For the
mother, everything and everybody around her is good to her
but for the daughter, the suspicion that everybody treats
her cruelly, forces her to react in a different way. It is a
contrast between positive and negative attitudes to life.
This is the basic difference between the two.
Both of them have fondly remembered their good old
ances tral house in their respective prose works. Balamani
Amma has not written much about her life at Nalapat even
though she has spent more years in this house enjoying the
love and guidance of the elders in the family. But, for a
person who feels the pleasure of love wherever she stays, a
special elaborate discussion of one particular place alone
appears to be improper. Hence she has limited her words In
The Mother's World (pp.64-65).
Kamala Das talks about this house and her life over
there, more eloquently in all the prose works. Whatever she
writes especially In prose, deals with this topic always.
This is mainly due to her desire to compare this happy phase
of life with the unhappy, frustrated life anywhere else.
-384-
Along with the house, both the mother and the daughter
have fondly remembered Nalapat Narayana Menon with love and
respect in their respective prose works. The essays "Open
Portico", "What the Life Taught" and "The Stolen Spectacles"
talk volumes of Balamani Amma's affection towards him.
Kamala Das, while tracing the family tree has given a
prominent place to her grand-uncle. (When the Pomegranate
Bloomed, pp. 8-17). She has described in detail his special
character traits and habits. The various categories of
visitors coming to discuss various topics with him are
discussed in detail in Memories of Childhood (pp. 43-46).
Both the writers have written about their teachers,
too, in their respective prose works. Balamani Amma had only
one teacher, the tutor who used to teach her at home. She
has devoted one full essay entitled " My Teacher" In her
book. Her respect is reflected throughout the essay.
Kamala Das, too, has wri tten a 10 t abou t her various
teachers and tutors In all the three books, spread out in
different chapters. But there is no respect shown anywhere.
To some she has a blind admiration and to others a total
indifference. Balamani Amma says :
"Our grandmothers taught us to respect our teacher
and told us not only not to talk ill about him but
-385-
also not to think ill about him even. If we do so,
we will not be able to remember the things we have
learned; even if we remember, it will be in
. ,,39 va1n.
Consider the following lines of Kamala Das
"May be because I didn't get enough love at horne,
I might have had a very close relationship with my
English teacher Sneha Laha, on those days. She was
for ty- two. Her muscles had already become weak.
Yet I felt that she was a beautiful woman. Out of
all the beautiful women I saw J she was the most
b . f 1 " 40 eautl u •
There is no respect ln the above words. When she talks
abou t the poems and Ie t ters she used to wri te to this
teacher (Years Ago, pp. 215-216) it appears to be the
actions of an immature person.
Wi th a sorrowful heart, Balamani Amma recollects her
long association withher husband in her essay" Journey to
Eternity" (pp. 57-61). A widow's painful memories are
reflected here even though the thoughts of a balanced mind,
too, are expressed along with them.
Kamala Das deals with the same theme ln one of her
-386-
recent articles, "The Ringing of the Bell of Death", which
is among a series of articles entitled "The Foot Path". She
consoles herself :
"I couldn't g1ve birth to girls. But I forgot that
inability during my husband's last days. I was
surprised at the way these three girls showered
love on him. He died as a lucky man. He could de-
h d by all. " 41 part as one w 0 was wante
A sense of loss at the sorrowful departure of their
respective life partners is seen 1n both. But Balamani
Amma's devotion to her husband is constant. Kamala Das's for
her husband is only occasional.
Both of them have dealt with the theft of a valuable
object from their house in their respective prose works. In
The Mother's World, the essay titled "The Stolen Specta-
cles" deals wi th the disappearance of her uncle's pair of
spectacles and the recovery of it later on (pp. 70-73).
It was Kamala Das' s precious silk umbrella that was
stolen. The essay, "The Golden Silk Umbrella" in Fear, My
Nightgown, (pp. 40-41) deals with her attachment to this
precious gift of her husband. But here the stolen article is
not recovered.
-387-
An interesting similarity is noticed when both of them
show their sympa thy to the thieves. They are no tat all
angry and are not anxious to see the thief punished. In the
mother's case there is happiness ln getting back the
spectacles. The daughter,instead of feeling unhappy in not
getting her valuable umbrella back, even asks the thief to
come and take the golden silk case of the umbrella, too, to
protect it ! Sympathy to fellow-beings, even to the ones who
do them harm is a common feature of both the essays.
Even in the narrative technique both Balamani Amma and
Kamala Das show similarity when they often exhibit a
tendency to digress from one topic to another in the same
essay. But as discussed earlier, this practice is justified
as prose allows more freedom to the writer than poetry.
Both, the mother and the daughter remain great writers.
That the flavours and savours of one are diametrically
opposed to those of the other does not matter at all. Both
alike make delightful reading.
* * *
-388-
NOTES AND REFERENCES
SECTION - 1
1. Krishna Chaitanya, "Evolution of Prose-Trilingual
Ferment", A History of Malayalam Literature, p. 158.
2. Balamani Amma, "Preface", Ammayute Lokam (The Mother's
World) (Trichur: Priya Publishers,
(Original 190; Appendix I)
1982), p. 6
3. Balamani Amma,The Mother's World, p. 10. (Original
191).
4. Ibid., p. 41. (Original 192)
5. K. Thankam, "Grandmother", Balamani Amma
Shashtripoorthy Commemoration Volume,p. 43.
(Original 193).
6. Balamani Amma, The Mother's World, p.46.
(Original 194).
7. Ibid., pp. 19-20.(Original 195).
-3g9-
8. Anup, "The World Without Much Colours" , Kalakaumudi
Onam Issue, No. 992 (18 September, 1994), p. 29.
(Original 196).
9. Balamani Amma, The Mother's World, p.26.(Original 197).
SECTION - ii
10. Quoted from P. P. Raveendran, "Of Masks and Memories-An
interview with Kamala Das", Indian Literature: 155,
pp. 154-155.
11. Madhavikutty, Memories Of Childhood (Kottayam: D. C.
Books, 1987), p. 44. (Original 198).
12. Ibid., pp. 21-22. (Original 199).
13. Ibid., pp. 114.(Original 200).
14. Ibid., pp. 170-172.(Original 201).
15. Madhavikutty, Years Ago (Trichur: Current Books, 1989),
p. 20. (Original 202)
16. Ibid., p. 49. (Original 203).
-390-
17. Ibid., p. 56. (Original 204).
18. Ibid., p. 213. (Original 205).
19. Ibid., p. 146. (Original 206).
20. Madhavikutty, When the Pomegranate Bloomed (Kottayam:
D. C. Books, 1993), p. 36. (Original 207).
21. Ibid., pp. 98-99. (Original 208).
22. Madhavikutty, Memories of Childhood, p. 109.
(Original 209).
23. Udaykumar, "Smarana, A tmaka thakhyanam, S tree: Some
Thoughts Based on Years Ago", In Woman, Identity,
Society: Studies on Madhavikutty, p. 49. (Original 210)
24. Madhavikutty, When the Pomegranate Bloomed, p. 236.
(Original 211).
25. Quoted from P. P. Raveendran, "Of Masks and Memories",
Indian Literature, p. 155.
26. Kamala Das, "Towards the Twenty-first Century", Fear My
Nightgown (Calicut : The Mathrllbhllmi Printing &
Publishing Co. Ltd., 1986), p. 57. (Original 212).
-391-
27. Ibid., p. 41.(Original 213).
28. Madhavikutty, Diary Notes (Kottayam: Current Books,
1992), p. 5. (Original 214).
29. Ibid., p. 183. (Original 215).
30. Vatsalan Vatusseri, "The Stories of Dual Personality",
Woman, Identity, Society: Studies on Madhavikutty,
p.90. (Original 216).
SECTION-iii
31. Vrinda Nabar, "Preface", The Endless Female Hungers - A
Study of Kamala Das ( New Delhi: Sterling Publishers
Private Limited, 1994), p. VI.
32. Balamani Amma, The Mother's World, p.40.(Original 217).
33. Kamala Das, Diary Notes, p. 178. (Original 218).
34. Balamani Amma, The Mother's World,p.20.(Original 219).
35. Kamala Das, Fear, My Nightgown, p.13. (Original 220).
36. Balamani Amma, The Mother's World, p.78.(Original 221).
-392-
37. Kamala Das, When the Pomegrana te Bloomed, p. 71.
(Original 222).
38. Kamala Das, Fear My Nightgown, p. 66. (Original 223).
39. Balamani Amma, The Mother's World, p.75.(Original 224).
40. Kamala Das, Years Ago, p. 215.(Original 225).
41. Kamala Das, "The Ringing Of the Bell Of Death-The Foot
Path, "Malayala Manorama Weekly, Vol. XL No. XII
(25 March, 1995), p. 18. (Original 226).
* * *