Mahbub reviews Raj Naiksatam’s The Cloudburst

A review of Raj Naiksatam’s novel The Cloudburst

By Mahbub

The Cloudburst by Rajesh Naiksatam is a novel that lives up to its title gradually, developing with an excellent form, style and line of thought. It reveals the past and present exploitation and persecution of India’s common people by both Indian nationals and foreigners. But nature is the best healer when all things within and outside us cleanse us, giving us a hope for starting anew. The author was born and brought up in Mumbai, India. So, his knowledge of the country runs through this story, taking place all over India and the Indian subcontinent. The characters are international, from all corners of the world.

Editor’s note: here’s a summary of Mahbub’s view of Rajesh Naiksatam’s The Cloudburst! 

E.M. Forster’s A Passage to India illustrated colonial attitudes towards Indian culture in 1924: the people’s behavior and attitudes, how the rulers treated the commoners. Now, nearly one hundred years later, Rajesh Naiksatam’s The Cloudburst pulls off a similar feat with a different type of setting, a fresh style and characters, and lucid and colloquial language. 

Mahbub, a Bangladeshi author and English teacher

Continue reading Mahbub’s summary/review here.

 

There are some important serials mentioned here though more to refer.

  • Sense of Nationalism
  • Political background
  • Vanity of love shown to the poor people living in the slums
  • Colonial scenario
  • Learning by doing
  • Role of a teacher
  • Unity is strength
  • Mitigates the gap between the bosses and the subordinates turning them into closer
  • Nature’s action to the misuse regarding the rules in human nature and outside world

(10) Survival of the fittest

 

It begins with the beautiful sight of the rain-washed green old trees in Bandra Kurla Complex, a suburb of Mumbai. It’s a new construction area. But the construction work has been stopped owing to rain. And a nice description has been given of the place where we see a two lane road, some dilapidated houses and from different viewpoints we see a bus stop near a decrepit house, an old school called Gokul Vidyalaya, a few general stores though not yet open under one of the newly constructed buildings, a police station to the southeast, down the hill about a mile away.

It is morning but the day starts not with the chirping or flying of birds though the old trees look so green and gleaming. A few dogs are gathering next to the bus stop. This unnatural behavior of the birds or animals indicates unknown strange event to happen. This is the excellent setting of the novel.

It was Ganpu Aapla, a smart looking; friendly and pleasant smiling boy with his father Rama just entered the house “Takloo Chai Shop” fifteen feet above the ground. Savitri is Ganpu’s mother. They speak in Marathi. Their dress, appearance and mood appear that they are working class people. Sometimes the parents can’t fulfill the demand of their son, as Ganpu wants from his father ——“Please bring me a new model airplane when you come back. Remember, one made of wood only.” His father assures him with a broken smile. It was his utmost trial to buy a wood made airplane for his loving son but he does not know whether he would be able to buy or not. He is talent, innovative, intelligent, patient and a nature lover kid.

“Every day he asks me for a new airplane, and every day we only bring him excuses,” Rama says dejectedly. “Let’s try to buy him a small wooden airplane today! He’s our only son and he is missing out on his childhood,” Savitri suggests enthusiastically.

Who can turn back his face from fulfilling his son’s demand? Sometimes it is hardship that stands as a bar though the wants are very small. Rama recollects the happy memory of his past life in Katalveldurwadi, Dabhol. He blames the government for selling them to the foreigners.

All he thinks is that like the East India Company or Enron Electric Company the rich always play gamble with the poor and pay so little that they can hardly maintain their family. He looks back in anger to get back his past beautiful life in Dabhol. His wife consoles him not to be sad and guilty.

When Ganpu’s parents go out, he brings back the umbrella to them and he assures them not to be worried about him. Rama, feeling so good to his son’s behavior holds him, kisses him and gives him some coin and suggests him to collect some for buying airplane. Rama speaks out, ‘Baba-re’. How touching it sounds to a son! It goes without saying a father’s heart. He goes away confirming him to come back soon and till then to take care of him.

Gokul Vidyalaya, a school where Javed, a twelve years old and four feet, eleven inches tall boy in his school dress get down from a black Mercedes with his father Hussain. Wearing a gold necklace and three gold rings on his right hand fingers, Hussain is introduced here as a CEO and owner of a top construction company headquartered in Mumbai, with offices in Pune, Delhi, Chennai and Bengaluru. Xinmin, a fourteen years old kid, from Beijing in China, with same height and school dress of Javed thanks Hussain for his ride. At the same time Siva, twelve years old fat and short boy in his school uniform also reaches the school. Thinking in mind his mother will pick him up after school he gives farewell to the driver. It is noticeable that most of the kids come of the higher class of families from different parts of the world.

Mrs. Iyer, Siva’s mom in her modern, expensive dress and glamorous appearance stands on the stage at the banquet room of a five-star hotel like a real politician. Though she is an actress, she has an ambition for being a politician. She goes on with her speech for the poor slum dwelling people who live under the poverty line and most of them are taxi drivers or doing other menial jobs. She claims that they can’t be destroyed in the name of progress. At her speech to love for the poor people living in slums Anu, a teacher, with an air of her frustration expresses to Shella, a reporter and her roommate ;

“It’s the same blah-blah everywhere she goes. Why do you bring me to these events? It’s as if she had a good writer pen the speech and must use it everywhere she goes, like the speech writer put an expiration date on it or something.”

“Yeah, I don’t understand. If she feels so strongly for these poor people, why doesn’t she put them in her own mansion or at least visit the slums in person once in a while,” Sheela concurs.

“The fact is, she needs the slums to make speeches to keep up her celebrity status and her political ambitions. We need the slums for people to work in our houses cooking and cleaning for cheap,” says Anu.

And RR Iyer, her husband has an organic fertilizer factory in Chennai, but has been stuck here in Mumbai though he needs to go to Singapore for his huge shipment. And he cancels all his flights to go back to Chennai. He feels very distressed in this cloudy weather for his son Siva.

Hussain’s mentality to earn money anyhow not judging wrong or right comes out if we observe his conversation with Rane, his chief engineer:

 

“It is about time she went on a diet. The way she’s going, this stupid woman is going to gain too much weight, and she’ll ruin my construction plans along the slums.” “You know, sir, there are mangroves along the slums; we can’t really build there,” Rane voices his concern.

Ticked off at Rane’s response, Hussain retorts, “You have been telling me this for years now. You don’t tell me what’s what, okay? I don’t care about a stupid bird sanctuary, mangroves, shamgro, or the environment. All that is rubbish talk made up to scare people. I don’t care.”

“But how can you not care about the environment, sir? The people—how then can you expect people to care for you? Who will look after your needs in hard times?” Rane counters.

 

Not only that Hussain rebukes Rane again and again for his academic qualifications though he completed his engineering course from a top class engineering college with a gold medal. Rane has been selected for the post of a chief engineer here without any recommendation or any note from any politician. Hussain wants to get profit from his planning the buildings destroying the mangroves around the slums when Rane says it’s a bird sanctuary where there are many trees, birds come, sing and fly keeping the nature in balance. Instead of nature or natural elements Hussain thinks for money that can help him in his hard times. Does it go with the nature in human heart? We know from Joel’s speech, the people of India once were very simple and they had little knowledge about international commerce and business. They were divided by the trivial things like caste, religion, the size and shape of their noses and the thieves took the advantages pretending to be the guests. They believed in ‘Atithi devo bhava’ meaning, ‘Be one for whom the guest is God.’

 

On the other side we see that a group of kids (four international students) are ready to go on a tour to the Elephanta Caves, one of Mumbai’s UNESCO World Heritage sites guided by Amol.

Julie, a girl of fourteen years old and five feet tall from Paris in French wears so modern dress and the name of his father is Joel Lambert.

Five-foot-tall and fourteen years old Saira, a girl from Iran speaks with a heavy Middle Eastern accent and Mohamed Irshad is her father. James, a fifteen years old athletic white boy from Colorado in the United States speaks with a heavy Southern American accent. Fourteen years old Rick, a Scottish black kid is about five feet tall and Dr. Megan Ford Patel is his mother.

 

The boatman taps Amol’s shoulder and tells something to Amol in Marathi as he is navigating through the hurricane-like winds. The weather is worsening and he would not like to take any risk on the sea though it is only half an hour to reach the destination. When Amol charges the money that his madam pays him, the boatman gives Amol all the money back as he would not like to move any more for the destination. In the hotel The Taj Mahal Palace, Amol and the kids are waiting outside the restaurant.

 

When the kids are in the midst of this rough weather and on their way back, Sally, mother of James performs her dance on the stage at a concert stadium in Andheri. Joel is talking over the phone to Sally about his promoting and selling the cars. Sally also calls a phone to Megan and discuss about the situation of the kids and she suggests her to take kids at Joel’s apartment on Marine Drive. Amol’s phone battery is getting low. So he speaks little over phone. The kids are discussing about the timetable of the Mumbai train, how the word Mumbai and Bombay come and they like to see the maps about the location where they are. From Joel and Mohamed’s conversation we come to know that here in India there are so many talented people to work for the country as NASA employs sixty five percent people of Indian origin. All major companies in the US and other countries are run by people of Indian descent. When other countries import and export other things like food, steel or other goods, India exports only smart and talented people in every corner of the world. Instead of repairing cars government could employ talented people to make their own cars and develop the infrastructures of the cities. The conditions of the roads are mainly responsible for damaging the cars and by repairing them the car companies earn a lot of money and side by side the government is also getting benefitted with the money. But what’s the government’s action for the welfare of the country? The country needs a strong leader for its glorious culture, heritage and people.

Ganpu as usual remains busy doing some new things. For example, we see how he passes his time with the car and bicycle tire playing on the ground. Gonpu can make chai and vada pao very tasty. When the construction workers taste these foods, one of them says he makes the best chai and vada pao in Mumbai and again says Zakkas bhau meaning excellent brother. Ganpu loves to work or attentive to his work, does the thing what he likes to do, to feed others, flying kites with rhythmic-making machine rolling down the street etc. and has an excellent quality for mixing with other kids or adults.

All the kids gather together in front of the police station and they are in a frightened mood why and how they are here. Here Ganpu along with his friend Shakil makes fun and create serious situation with the constable Dophe. Anu, leaning against one of the posts in front of the bus stop, meets the three kids, Siva, Javed, and Xinmin on the arrival of a bus. They are waiting here for the next bus to come and would go home soon. In the meantime rain continues to pour down heavily. Just at that time a hotel tour van stops on the middle of the road. The engine of the van has gone disorder. The four kids jump out and gather near Anu. Amol takes departure from here fleeing from one store to the next. There are clouds all around the sky and rain pours down in torrents. At that moment Anu looks back the kids and they are now ankle-deep in water. She hurries down and takes them upstairs to the shop. When Anu asks the permission to enter into the shop, Javed expresses his attitude toward Ganpu uttering in this way that he need not take any permission from this loser because his father owns the territory. His father’s colonial mentality expressed here in Javed’s speech while Faizal, Javed’s mother claims to his husband why he does not send any person or driver to bring him back. At least they pray for him. Rick, James and Saira always fawn at the place, The Chai Shop where they take shelter in this rain. Saira expects the rain will stop soon and Amol will come and take her back. The kids come here as the guests waiting for the rain but they always hate Ganpu’s poor condition in different talks and gestures. As for example:

At the chai shop when Ganpu goes to clear the mess on the cots Saira sneers in this way, “Don’t expect me to sit on this filth, you boy. I’d rather stand till my father comes to rescue me.”

Again opening a battered trunk Gunpu offers a few towel to James and the other kids to dry themselves, all refuses to take and James speaks out:

“You must be the saddest kid I’ve ever met. You have no clue what you are asking us to do, do you?” As a teacher Anu observes all and she takes one and dries her hands.

We see the proud attitude or behavior of the kids towards Ganpu. As for example when Ganpu gives Pakodas to Rick, he looks at them like the warms served on a dirty plate. Again we see Javed tell that he would not like to die in such dirty place. He is called hawker also. On the other hand, Ganpu ignores all the vain glory of them and serves them always to be a patient and tolerant host.

The novel deals with a great teaching especially for the learners. Anyone must have preparation to face any challenge in every sphere of life. They must be attentive to the classes and be able to answer the questions in the classroom, in the examination hall and outside world though the questions may be out of syllabus. From Anu and her student’s dialogue:

“Some questions were not from the syllabus, teacher.” Anu, a bit defensive, says, “But I covered them in class. You must pay attention and prepare yourself. Life doesn’t come with a syllabus, you know. You just have to pay attention.”“No syllabus? Then how do we prepare, teacher?” “If you pay attention and take good notes, life can teach you a lot.”

 

Life is made up of sorrows and sufferings. But a teacher should overcome all these things when he/she stands before the students in the classroom. Anu, as a teacher, tries to check her emotion when she finds her mobile dead by the rain water pouring from the roof. At first she could not suppress her emotion. She felt like crying like a little child but she realizing the situation stopped and joined the kids. Anu, bearing one of the teacher’s characteristics here plays the role of a guide or philosopher.

 

A teacher plays the role of a motivator also. In this dangerous atmosphere Anu tries to motivate the kids by uniting them together and make an environment to get introduced with one another. What we learn from books we learn the theory to keep pace with the practical world. If we gain success in this challenge, it is a great achievement. Here at this place Anu has nothing to place before the kids without encouraging them. Sometimes this encouragement acts as a power to proceed. James was looking outside the window and the roads were just flowing like a gushing river. It was darkening and electricity was off. Ganpu, along with Saira was trying to light his Petromax lantern when all were expecting for help to come. A helicopter flew over head. All stood together and raised their voice as high as possible with the sound ‘HELP’. It was the roaring sound of wind and rain that did not permit their voice to reach anyone in the helicopter.

Not losing the hope in mind for the help to come Anu makes a space for the kids to share their summer vacation stories. A few days ago James and Saira attended a fun wedding from which James shows the video on the LCD screen to enjoy the song and dance. When all are passing their time in this gloomy and depressed mood, this video song enables to beat heart tension free.

Then Siva starts his story. One summer he went to visit his father’s organic fertilizer factory in Chennai. A field trip arranged by a school joined them. While his father was discussing the processes one by one and asked questions to know about the information whether they understand or not, a kid Raman not only answer the questions but also he would make situation to go to the next process. To see such talent and intelligence in the boy, Siva’s father gave him a thousand rupees and offered him a job in the factory if he is interested after his graduation from college.

Then his father says that every living being has one’s own talent and if one tries to find out where the talent lies and does the duties accordingly then one day the whole world will bow down in appreciation. From then Siva is in search of his talent.

Then it’s Javed’s turn. He described how he went up the tenth floor with the help of a crane to see the beauty of nature and enjoyed the breeze but at the time of his getting down from that place he had to face problems overcome by his talent and intelligence.

Xinmin once got out hiking with his parents, uncle and aunt in the mountains in Matheran, the smallest hill station in all of India. When he was enjoying the flowers and butterflies along the trail everybody with him went ahead. His father yelled him again and again and when he rushed to follow his father’s call he confronted a buffalo. He became scared and couldn’t understand what to do. At that time his father suggested him to have courage in mind to pass the animal without making any sound. He followed his father’s advice ‘commit and learn’ and at last he succeeds. From this he learnt that all living beings are connected to each other with an unknown power. So the buffalo respected his life and made a chance for him to pass the way. He was able to experience this teaching of mutual respect among all living beings through this ordeal with the buffalo.

Then Rick and Julie respectively finished their summer vacation stories from real life situation. All the stories here spark as the stars twinkling in the dark sky to move forward. The stories are not only the stories but also they make it understand how to commit and learn in our practical life bearing the thought ‘Life Skill’.

 

The lantern flickers and except Anu and Ganpu all feel tired and drowsy. As Anu felt emotional support, she came closer to Ganpu and wanted to hear from him any vacation story. Ganpu’s story exposes love for the nation from the dialogue between Ganpu and James. This story is told from his real life experience. This is practical and pathetic. It was American electric company Enron’s police who destroyed everything of his five hundred ancestral homes. He describes how inhuman torture his father, mother, sister including himself and others had to go through. At this severe torture they were bound to take shelter here at Mumbai from Katalveldurwadi, Dabhol. They lived there with much care and love for they had rice, ground-nut farms, the mango trees, guava, betel nut, papaya, pomegranate, jabul, chikoo, dalchini trees, and cardamom plants. From then they struggle to get their house back.

James retorts, “BECAUSE WE CAN. We have the power to make misery anywhere in the world in the name of progress.” Rick interrupts him. “I read before you it was the Europeans who were good at spreading misery in the name of civilization.”

James again says, “Today we make misery and then we make countries buy medicines from us to cure the bad effects of those miseries. All this we do just so we can drive big SUVs and Hummers, live in huge houses, and watch sports and wars happening around the world on our giant TVs, and the most tragic thing is that to protect all this big stuff we make guns and hand them to our war-game-addicted kids.”

Though all these things are said not with an air of positive view, it evolves the page of the history the Europeans carved in the world. As he is an English kid, James protects Ganpu in this sentiment. Love-touch for the native land expressed in the soft and agitated mind of the kids.

Then Ganpu changes the tone of his telling story and we can know from his story how his father behaved with him, learnt how to swim from his grandfather, how he helped his father in the household works and according to his father’s advice he made a boat with his cousin and others. And from then he made a practice of regular study and always stood first in the examination. This is the glorious time he spent in Dabhol.

 

The discrimination between the rulers and the subordinates diminishes when the situation demands. Joel, Mohamed, Sally, Hussain, Mrs, Lyer are out to find out their kids. People say, ‘Necessity knows no law’. All the guardians finding no way to move any further in this rain and traffic they decide to go back to their respective places. At one point Faizal, Hussain’s wife reminds him if he has taken with him the blood pressure medicine. As he did not have any medicine with him his driver offers him the same blood pressure medicine. At first Hussain wonders his seventy two years old driver offers him such medicine that he takes. All his pride dashed down to the ground when he finally took the medicine by eating from his lunch box before taking the medicine. On the way in same condition Mrs. Iyer took the blood sugar medicine from her driver and ate a pack of chips and the bread and vegetables from his lunch box though she at first would not like to receive all the things. The kids at Ganpu’s Chai shop became so hungry that they also took the vada paos and tea with much interest though firstly most of them would not like to touch the foods at the chai shop. Some call it Mumbai hot dogs; some call it Ganpu’s veggie dogs. In this dangerous situation any one can devour any kind of food he/she gets in hand. It is the time of reconciliation that marks time, place and matter, of course a teaching, not to brag.

As the buildings are constructed by Hussain’s construction company his face turns pale when he hears from his driver that the buildings surrounding the Mithi River, a deathtrap. Only for this reason his two engineer sons bought separate flats in Andheri West in lieu of Mithi River.

 

In the meantime Ganpu and Anu felt the shop jerking to the rush of the wind and the flowing current of the rain water. James and other kids also see this dangerous strong current through the window. James comments on, “Look, even Olympic champion Michael Phelps couldn’t survive the strength of this water.”

It is said that Unity is strength and there is no time to wait for help. Two pillars of the shop have already been broken and it’s only one hour left to fall the shop apart. Ganpu thinks of his past that once he made a float with his father. Anu organizing the whole thing managed to make a float by the kids with the things they have in the shop such as knives, strings from the cots, crowbar, wooden fallee/planks of the shop etc. and bringing the logs under the two houses swimming and diving along fifty and seventy feet away from the shop. After so many struggles they were able to make a float under Ganpu’s leadership and this team work was a resort for them that they were doing something for their survival even if they would die.

 

Knocked down by Javed, Ganpu falling flat on the bottom step, he needed to do CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation), because he could not move for losing his sense. Anu brought him upstairs and felt hurt within her that she did not learn how to do CPR in her school life. Saira informs James knows how to do CPR. Feeling guilty Javed taking risk jumped on the water though he did not know how to swim. He tied an empty oilcan on his back and moved to bring back James. James pumped his chest and Ganpu woke up. This kind of lifesaving procedure James performs here successfully. At this time all the kids seem to be very sympathetic to one another.

Hussain counts his time for his son in his luxurious, expensive, spacious office on the fifth floor of a building and he stares through the window and wipes the sweat off his forehead. He feels too much to talk to his chief engineer, Rane. Arguing with Rane at one point Hussain says, “Authorities! Everyone in authority is a hyena. We throw bones they are only happy to grab. Hell with the authority. Go ahead, be honest with me. Talk to me, like a friend.”

When Rane describes all the things how the projects on landfill over the Mithi River are causing a huge dam with bad concrete, how the birds used to migrate here are losing their food and shelter, how the people become so helpless by washing away their flats in seconds, creating traffic hell in this heavy rain like today and he would never like this type of enjoyment living in these luxurious buildings, suddenly he collapses.

Life’s critical moments can never be forgotten that we can find here in the flow of the stories. It was Megan’s life known from Sally. Her husband was shot to death by the hooligans at the time of their wandering and enjoying the hillside in Lancaster, Britain. She chose her single life keeping her son, Rick in her parents’ house in Scotland. She struggled hard rearing her child, obtaining her medical degree and she loved the people around him like a family.

Saira’s mother, a journalist was killed in a suicide bomb in Iraq. She did not like her father for letting her keep the job for long time. Ganpu’s efforts made her realize how her mother gave her life for the people. Wiping her tears she continues, she had gone through much difficulty and fought with her father and feeling so lonely she started chatting over the internet from Iran with James and they knew each other. She expects his suicidal concept will be removed in the efforts of making a float for their survival.

It is Sally who wanted to be independent and a working woman to spend more time outside home, earning money and enjoying the good moments with her friends. So following a woman’s advice she divorced her husband and kept her son James in custody. Now she thinks she is independent only from her husband but everywhere she is dependent; dependent on her lawyer, boss, cook, gardener etc.

 

When all the guardians lost in prayer, kids are floating under the cloudy sky on this vast rain water. Ganpu’s Radha Krishna picture and the petromax lantern on the water show the house has already been collapsed. It is as if the only waning moon was guarding them. They all fell in deep sleep. Rescued by a military helicopter, they found themselves in a hospital not far from the Bandra Kurla Complex. Nurses running here and there with the stretchers in hands, doctors giving treatment to the patients from all sides, made the place so noisy and busy. What a pathetic experience of the stormy rain! A realization for giving birth to the new sunny morning in the blue sky where birds can fly freely and the river can flow without any bar or overflowing the land.

A boy, Ganpu is presented in this novel as an active, heroic and humanitarian character. He is supportive in every case to his family, making the float, helping the old lady in the hospital by handing her the lost stick and to the last stage he performs for the donation successfully. His friend Shakil is also struggling from his very childhood. His father was cheated by his uncle and lost all their properties. Since then he engaged himself as a child labour. Man is for man’s shake. Skakil proved it at the time when Ganpu entered the hospital canteen where Shakil worked as a waiter and supported Ganpu to work with him as he could make the delicious vada pao. Not only that when Joel and Mohamed came to receive Ganpu at the canteen he would not like to leave Ganpu till he was sure of the voice of Ganpu’s parents and only then he took the gifted money from Joel.

From the conversation between Rick and Siva lying on the hospital bed we see Rick talk about the mystery of creation that he hears from his grandfather. He tries to make understand like this;

“Think of it this way: we are like these drops in this IV tube, being born one by one at different times, basic nature is to heal others. Drops born in your tube are in a different space than mine, but you know they are from the same source, right?”

Really the world is hung in an untouchable magnetic power of love. And the color of all human blood is red. If we stop the flow of the color or power, we must go to dust. It is natural.

So corruption, pride, greed, misuse of power cannot go so long without any break. They must stop today or tomorrow. There is another world outside our heart that surrounds us to raise our conscience.

So a change needs here for the people, a great change choosing the country’s leadership. Sheela speaks out at one point while talking to Mrs. Iyer:

“Look, this is a democracy, the people’s rule, but it seems after sixty years of independence we have learned nothing. We want everything but don’t want to commit to this country.”

Those who are responsible for the cloudburst destruction here all get together and confirm it to rebuild the houses and give back the lands to the people from where they come. It’s one of the basic needs to life for them. They will try it by getting permission from the authority.

Mrs Iyer proposes five crore rupees to clean up the Mithi River. She brings a lot of toys for Ganpu. But Ganpu refuses to receive. He wants only two things; one is his parents’ house in Dubhol and one model airplane made of wood. Made of wood because wood gives us life and plastic kills the life. A kid like Ganpu can think it but sometimes the adults like us forget this. Hussain offers Ganpu a set of keys for a three-bedroom flat in Khar and he is going to donate a big amount to this restoration effort. Ganpu overwhelms with joy and expresses his gratitude to Anu. All the kids feel so excited and cry in joy. The total amount including the biggest donation from the TV Program will be spent on rebuilding the houses in Katalveldurwadi and the neighboring villages in Dabhol. Life can find a glory of new hopes and lights, a reach to the bond of love.

To sum up, ‘A passage to India’ (1924) by E.M. Forster also spins the colonial thought, the culture of Indian people, their behavior, attitude, how the rulers play their roles to the commoners. On the other hand nearly a period of one hundred years later ‘The Cloudburst’(2018) by Rajesh Naiksatam signs a different type of setting, style, characters, language-lucid and colloquial regarding the basic throw what it means to with its own identification.

 

 

 

2 thoughts on “Mahbub reviews Raj Naiksatam’s The Cloudburst

  1. Hello Mr Mahbub

    Thank you for your review of my book ” The Cloudburst “

  2. Pingback: Synchronized Chaos September 2019: True Character Revealed | SYNCHRONIZED CHAOS

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