Page 62 - English Tehelka Issue 1&2

Book review

‘Only a few books Bringing alive the Partition tween his characters that a reader

sitting in Kerala or Uttar Pradesh or
on diversity for kids’ and those who suffered it even beyond will connect to Puran-
apur and its people and their lives.
Quoting these lines from this
book to relay what I’m trying to
In his new book, Balraj Khanna takes readers right into put across — “Balla’s grandmother,
Amar Dai, worked a street bhatti, on
the lanes and fields of a border village to peep into the which she roasted people’s grain
ground realities of those times, clubbing the personal with and turned their yellow corn into
Priya Mahadevan is an author over 20 years and being steeped in look like them per se but are very fluffy white popcorn. Her bhatti was
of two illustrated children’s books both cultures personally, I thought much like them. the political, writes Humra QuraisHi an eighteen-inch wide hole in the
published in the USA. She began her it might be a good idea to give them ground with a two-foot iron wok
career as a political journalist and a peek into our Indian culture and Are you planning to publish in hough London-based covering its mouth. The wok was a
now she is also a chef. Her first book traditions. the Indian market? artist Balraj Khanna is quarter full of grey sand from the
Princesses Only Wear Putta-Puttas, The second book Fey Fey Says YES!!! This is the most important famous for his abstract Ravi Canal. Logs of fire underneath
a wonderful story about what it is No is a family effort to help Little focus for me — to find an Indian paintings, in his latest it, from another hole, heated up
like for a child to be exposed to two Fey Fey understand that it does publisher to take these books novel - Line of Blood the sand and the hot sand turned
cultures, has been selected for the not always work to her advantage and publish them for the Indian T — he writes about the corn into popcorn in a matter of sec-
2017 VA Festival of the Book. Below to say no and rather than banning audience. Partition with such heady details as onds. A large sieve did the rest. The
are edited excerpts from an interview the word or getting upset, help her though he had witnessed them from likeable old woman was popular.
conducted via email by Tehelka. What’s your next plan after close quarters and is well aware of Her fee was one anna, one sixteenth
these two books? Can we look the upheavals that took place dur- of a rupee, or a good two handfuls of
edited excerptS From An interView • forward to more adventures of ing those turbulent times. There are wheat or corn that people brought …’
Fey Fey? no abstract relays or indirect refer- Khanna’s forte lies in the fact that
Tell us about your two books. Since I come from a journalism ences. On the contrary, he chooses a he has managed to weave the po-
Princesses Only Wear Putta Puttas and communications background, locale in the undivided Punjab, Pu- litical buildups with personal inputs
follows a little girl, Fey Fey, from writing has always been my ranapur, where his characters come to those living in that little town-
Charlottesville to Chennai where mainstay. I have run a vegetarian alive along with the connecting ship and around. This webbing and
she is visiting for the first time. food blog since 2010 which helped offshoots of the prevailing political inter-webbing of the political with
She is entranced by the sights and me start a business venture under scenario — the religious strains and the personal holds out throughout
sounds of India and takes a great the name of Suvaiyana with my the Hindu-Muslim factor. this book. And this strategy works…
liking to the traditional skirt-blouse own line of products — spices, Of course, hundreds of volumes works wonders! It keeps the reader
worn in the south — Pavadai Chattai soups and catering. I have have been written on the Partition ‘Line of BLood’ connected to the tale right till the
— which she abbreviates to Putta written at least 75 poems and each writer has portrayed that by balraj Khanna very end.
Puttas. When she returns to her which I hope to publish phase from his or her perspective, Palimpsest Over with reading this book, how
home in USA she wants to keep as a compilation some based either on personal experi- 238 pp; 250 I wish Khanna writes another book
her princess outfit on and continue figure out when to use day. I consider myself a ences or narratives or a combina- on the ongoing Partitioning that’s
being an Indian Princesses as she the word effectively. social activist especially tion of the two. Perhaps, the only on right now in 2018 in this coun-
has taken to calling herself! in children’s causes and I common thread is that the Partition try. Aren’t there sufficient relays
My idea for this book is to get What was the write about the issues that had brought about disasters of such that pinpoint to the fact that we are
away from the common notion inspiration behind affect our children. I have severity that they linger on till date, going through upheavals, as com-
of ‘princess’. My protagonist is a these books? a couple of manuscripts hovering not just around the lives of about this book which makes one munally charged politics is holding
bespectacled little girl who loves to The dearth of books on that are ready to go, one those living on the subcontinent but think of Tolstoy…” sway? Today there are no colonial-
romp around the yard. This is also diversity is sorely lacking and there which is a continuation of the Fey also denting the political climate. Also, Khanna’s descriptions of ists around to provoke us to kill each
an effort to showcase the bi-cultural is plenty of scope for new literature Fey series, the other a poem which I In his book, Khanna manages Punjab are heady, taking the reader other. It’s the political mafia holding
life so many Americans lead. Many that tried to bring the East to the would like illustrated for a children’s to portray the phase of Partition right into the lanes and fields of Pu- sway which is making us hate and
of us come from very rich cultural West rather than always allowing book. I am also working on ideas through mastery of dialogues and ranapur and with that into the lives kill one another. Yes, bloodied are
heritage and it is not something you the flow to go from West to East. for making some of our beautiful human interactions. There are of the characters. Not missing out our forms as violence in the name
want to give up, but rather you want This is especially true of children’s Indian fables more mainstream in none of those hackneyed sermons on the minutest details, he manages of religion and region goes about
to imbibe the best of both worlds. book genre. Educating people the western world. I look forward or dissections, yet ground realities to hold out an array of images — all unabated. Don’t know when will this
While many of us in India have about diversity is a very interesting to connecting with some Indian hold strong. Little wonder that liter- very middle-class, brimming with uncontrolled communal frenzy end!
been exposed to the western world, challenge. Kids are so open to new publishers. ary giant Paul Pickering has hailed that essential connect. Such is the Or will it not end!
the same cannot be said of the ideas, exploring new worlds and Khanna’s book with these rather apt power of his descriptive passages
Americans. Having lived in US for learning about people who don’t letters@tehelka.com words — “There is a magnificence and also of the conversations be- letters@tehelka.com

Tehelka / 31 january 2018 62 www.Tehelka.com Tehelka / 31 january 2018 63 www.Tehelka.com

62 Q&A Books.indd 2 12/01/18 4:16 PM 63 Book Review.indd 3 12/01/18 4:17 PM