Im re-reading A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry, a novel set in India circa 1975. The leading characters are two men of untouchable caste who have managed to break through and become tailors, but still struggle hopelessly throughout the book, suffering endlessly from government efforts to improve their lot. The author has been compared to Dickens, but in a way he reminds me of Orwell. At one point the protagonists are herded from their slum into buses in order to provide an audience for the Prime Ministers speech, a woman who is suspiciously reminiscent of Indira Gandhi. The speech is given in the heat of the day because the PMs astrologers found the timing propitious. The audience has to sit in the sun. There are a number of speeches as well by lesser functionaries. It goes on for hours. Excerpt: Near the end of his speech, he gave a hand signal to someone waiting in the wings with a walkie-talkie. Seconds later, coloured lights hidden in the floral proscenium arch began to flash powerfully enough to compete with the midday sun. The audience was impressed. The feeble mandatory clapping for the member of parliaments speech now became genuine applause for the visual display. While the flashing lights still dazzled, the noise of a helicopter filled the sky again, its whup-whup-whup approaching from behind the stage. Something dropped from the belly of the turbulent machine. Out of the package floated -- rose petals! The crowd cheered, but the pilot had mistimed it. Insteadmof showering the Prime Minister and dignataries, the petals fell in a pasture behind the stage. A goatherd who was grazing his animals thanked the heavens for the honour, then hurried home to tell his family about the miracle. The second package, intended for the VIP enclosure, landed on target but failed to open. Someone was carried away on a stretcher. By the time the third package was released over the general audience, the pilot had mastered the technique, and it was a perfect drop. An obliging breeze came up, scattering the petals generously. Children in the crowd had a lovely time chasing them down.
Posted on: Sun, 13 Jul 2014 06:05:55 +0000
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