The Golden Sparrow (2013)

This is the last in my Partition books series, until I relaunch myself into the era and genre sometime in the unspecified future. The Golden Sparrow by Ashok Malhotra was published in 2013 with Createspace, an Amazon company, and comprises of 336 pages and 36 chapters. A sequel, Echoes from Far, was published in 2014. The Golden Sparrow fictionalises the experiences of the author and his parents during this period of history. I will be looking at stylistic as well as thematic elements of the novel namely, the depiction of the Indian (Hindu, Punjabi) culture, the role of the British and the British Raj, some consequences of Partition addressed in the novel.

The tale is told from the perspective of a Hindu child, Vikram, who has a supernatural sixth sense. He is able to predict or "get a feeling" for future events. I must admit that the supernatural gift was not quite convincing to me, as the examples were generally unspectacular and the feat needed refining. Vikram simultaneously recounts his life, from pre-birth (including how his parents met) to being a school-going boy and the Partition of India and its effects on his life. It does seem strange that at one point the narrator is someone who has not yet been born nor conceived but this is done well. The use of the present tense to describe past events is significant as it brings the events to the forefront and, in a way, relives them.

The novel begins in Lahore, a Punjabi city now in Pakistan. He describes the Indian culture as well as Hindu traditions in a captivating fashion and, despite my familiarity with the culture and traditions, I still learnt quite a few new things, such as the initial reason and use for dowries in Hinduism. I enjoyed the frank and sweet insight to the world of arranged marriages, a subject that often garners negative press. However, that does not mean that he shies away from typical family politics and the roles expected to be shouldered. He also does not exclude an insight into the culture of favours, bribes and signification of hospitality. Malhotra cleverly decodes the culture's structures and traditions for a Western audience and in a way that still entertains someone who shares his background. Malhotra takes the reader through Kashmir and New Dehli too, exploring common Partition-novel locations.  

A valuable insight this novel provides more than most of the others, is the presence and effect of the British in India. Vikram's family is educated and his father, Surinder Mehra, is an English literature professor, nicknamed "Shakespearewala", due to his love of the writer and the British culture. It is through Surinder Mehra that we learn the love and respect some Indians hold towards the British and the extent of the "Englishification" of the Indian education system, their loyalties and fashion sense. Our narrator equally shows the reader how the British manipulate and take advantage of Indians (via flattery and by granting titles) for personal and political gain. The British, in this novel, are also privileged to have their own "safe trains" and transport in a climate of immense bloodshed. The relationships  with the British are complex; they are intimate and distantly removed at the same time. Ultimately the novel comes to the same conclusion as Gandhi: the British Raj as a system is problematic because of issues like white privilege and institutional racism but every individual British person is not bad, as they could stand against the injustices caused by the British rule.  

Some interesting issues raised in light of the Partition and removal of the British include the increased suspicion between Hindus and Muslims, a psychological consequence, the decision to use Hindi or English as national languages to either create a national identity or international position in the world, a linguistic consequence, and the continued yet hidden presence of the British in business, a political and economic consequence. Malhotra also notes the establishment of camps of lost children, illustrating the huge human effects of the Partition on all levels of society. 

Overall, this novel shares some characteristics with other Partition literature for example, child narrators/ perspectives, fantastical elements and pre-, during and post- experiences. It is not as explicitly violent as Train to Pakistan or Cracking India but it does not deny the violence of the time either nor the human cost. It was a pleasant read and had some vague resemblances to Rushdie's Midnight's Children but definitely on a different register and it tackles some different issues. I'm contemplating reading the sequel but have a few other books on my list to get through first!

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Have you read any Partition literature or even the books mentioned? Have you enjoyed this little series? Did you learn anything new? 

Post a comment with your thoughts! :)