{"id":3546,"date":"2017-08-28T18:43:09","date_gmt":"2017-08-28T13:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/fableandi.com\/?p=3546"},"modified":"2020-03-10T15:25:02","modified_gmt":"2020-03-10T09:55:02","slug":"ghachar-ghochar-vivek-shanbhag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thebooksatchel.com\/ghachar-ghochar-vivek-shanbhag\/","title":{"rendered":"Ghachar Ghochar- A Brilliant Novel not ‘Made-Indian’ to Attract a Foreign Audience"},"content":{"rendered":"
Ghachar Ghochar<\/em> by Vivek Shanbhag is a story about a family who becomes rich overnight, thanks to a flourishing business, and how the money eats into their lives; like ants.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201c…it\u2019s not we who control money, it\u2019s the money that controls us. When there\u2019s only a little, it behaves meekly; when it grows, it becomes brash and has its way with us<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n There are two kinds of Indian novels- the ones that are Indian to please the readers, especially the foreign ones, and the ones that are actually Indian. Ghachar Ghochar<\/em> falls into the latter category. I am amazed how Shanbhag managed to do this in such brevity and clarity. The book felt so real, the scenes right out of life.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n A lower middle class family of modest means comes across new money when they start a business of spices. This alters their life style as well relationships between one another. They move into a better neighbourhood as the first step. Slowly, new changes appear in the family due to the new wealth. Once, the father of our narrator was the sole bread winner. The family was a close knit family; they did not go out and eat at restaurants; they used to keep a note of their expenditure; and think twice about lighting a gas stove.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n But once the uncle, Chikkappa, starts the business, money kept pouring in and they began to enjoy . Only the father seems hesitant to enjoy the new found riches – “Appa enjoys our current prosperity with considerable hesitation, as if it were undeserved. He\u2019s given to quoting a proverb that says wealth shouldn\u2019t strike suddenly like a visitation, but instead grow gradually like a tree.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n When the narrator\u2019s sister stays out most of the time and keeps eating at restaurants, it feels odd to the shells of their past lives but normal to their new way of living.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n When I read the last page of the book, I realized I did not know the name of the narrator. The novel starts with our narrator in a coffee house, observing the happenings around and swimming in his thoughts. I felt as if I was sitting in the same coffeehouse and he was pouring out his heart to me. The narrator tells us how money just gets deposited in his account every month without him having to do anything. He was very happy about this arrangement until he gets married and the need to put up a false fa\u00e7ade arises.<\/p>\n <\/p>\nQuintessentially Indian<\/h3>\n
Encroaching money<\/h3>\n
The unnamed narrator<\/h3>\n