Remembrance of fading dreams

‘Remembrance’ holds the same relationship to ‘Recalcitrance’ as the two words would in a dictionary sequence: remembrance comes after recalcitrance. In simple and comprehensible words, ‘Remembrance’ is a sequel to ‘Recalcitrance’. A work of Mr. Anurag Kumar—who was generous enough to offer me a copy of ‘Remembrance’ that I obviously rejected since I wished to buy it myself—seeks to build over his previous work. You can read my review of ‘Recalcitrance’ here.

Remembrance of fading dreams

Starting with the physical appeal, it is certainly not like those “very bulky in appearance” books. The cover of the book carries a photograph—old, black and white with a rusty feel—of “Chattar Manzil” which one discovers to be a single picture if one holds the book wide open and not to read it but just to see its cover. ‘Remembrance of fading dreams’ carries a signature of the author on its first page then a tribute to “all those who gave up their lives in 1857” and then on the third page we are into action with no content page briefing us about its chapters. We are projected in a time three years after the “Great Uprising of 1857” had ended. The writer starts with a brief overview of the political situation, market scene, the lack of “fun and frolic” and the degradation of poetry.  We soon see appearance of familiar characters of ‘Recalcitrance’. The story starts to take shape around its protagonist, Chote Bhaiya. We also know that “the spark of recalcitrance in Chote Bhaiya could become a raging fire again”.

Along with the usual flow of story in the form of chapters, we are constantly upgraded with the political environment of the post-war period. Sometimes through the mark of respect by the use of the term ‘gora sahabs’ instead of ‘firangees’,at other times by reminding that “real nawabs are now in the South”. The writer also mentions some craziness involved in the Revolution through the visit of Chote Bhaiya to ‘Satichaura Ghat’ and ‘Bibighar’ while at the same time contrasting it with the benevolence of ‘ Acche Nawab’ who sheltered the pregnant Rosemary. I think the introduction of Rosemary and Stanley and their story achieves two purposes here. On the one hand it retrospectively describes the siege of Residency in Lucknow that was mainly covered in ‘Recalcitrance’ while on the other it introduces the humanly behavior of both ‘Acche Nawab’ and Stanley.

Although I am not sure whether the main revolutionary plot in which Chote Baiya, Ahsanul Mulk: to whom gun powder was like perfume, Mohtasim: a pseudo-eunuch or a beautiful Englishwoman or a master of disguise, Walter Sahab’s cousin and other revolutionaries took part is a true historical event, I can certainly say it was definitely intriguing and most thrilling part of the novel. We are also influenced by the Ulfat Jahan’s character whose sensuality did not spare even Chote Bhaiya who is normally “largely immune to feminine charms”. Even the fact of being married to a religious girl and thoughtfully dedicated to another girl named Farheen, could not stop him from ascending the steps of Ulfat Jahan’s house. Substantial coverage has been given to all the main characters this time, including Narenderlal, which was a little bit absent in ‘Recalcitrance’.

The novel has been beautifully spread over thirty-one chapters with a glossary of Hindustani words at the end. This being helpful in case you are not aware of some of the Indian language terms. However, I found that some of the Hindustani words were not described either in the end or at the point where they were used. One other thing I found pretty much to my displeasure was the absence of chapter names, difficulty being compounded while writing review because you couldn’t feature at an instant what the chapter was about. A few spelling mistakes, which I definitely know were introduced on the publishing end, made some romantic moments a little comical: Ulfat Jahan resting her head on Chote Bhaiya’s “soldier” and not his “shoulder” was one such light moment; though holding the writer responsible for such errors is little too harsh.

In the end I would say that ‘Remembrance of fading dreams’ is a wonderful read especially if you have read ‘Recalcitrance’; and even if you have not, ‘Remembrance’ can stand alone and turn out to be an amazing piece combining the revolutionary zeal of a major event with how that fervour transcended the commoners.