TUM NE TO AAAKASH DE DAALA,
MERE NANGE PAIRON MAIN ZAMEEN HAI.
PAAKE BHI KYU TERI AARZOO HAI,
SHAYAD YAHI ZINDAGI HAI.
The lines summarize the feelings of the protagonist in the novel “Gently falls the Bakula” by Sudha Murthy. A beautiful story of a relationship that slowly falls apart with time. A marriage that loses its spark when ambition and success take their toll. How expectations can affect love and commitment.
The story revolves around Shrikant and Shrimati who, once school mates in a small town of Hubli, go on to be husband and wife. From being competitors in the class, to good friends, then life partners and again strangers in the end, the story moves on the lines of Shrimati’s journey of life. The bakula flower is the symbol of their love and the title signifies the breaking of this relationship and bond with time.
Shrimati is a sensitive human being. She portrays the typical Indian woman who sacrifices her career in lieu of a happy family life. She marries for love but her love turns to dust. The novel talks about an unspoken truth that love fades with time. It dies a slow death when it faces the harsh realities of life. Often we ignore the people we love so much and tend to take them for granted. We do not realise that a single act of insensitivity can leave a deep scar in a relationship. Srikant’s callous attitude about his inconsiderate mother and her attitude towards Shrimati leaves a deep hurt in his relationship. To add to it, his unresponsiveness makes a void that slowly becomes impossible to be filled with time.
As for Shrikant, he plays an ambitious bright young man, in pursuit of his dreams. Success is addictable. The ones who get addicted; go for it even at the cost of love and family. It is here when ignorance becomes a habit and not knowingly, one becomes a victim of it. One can relate the character of Srikant with most of the successful people. The people who achieve everything in life at the cost of relationships. People who become machines with time, incapable of thinking about others who have equal share in their success.
It makes us question reality. Does love really exist in this world? I have seen the greatest of relationships breaking with time. The deepest of emotions losing their spark and shine. Change is the essence of life. People change with time and so do relationships. If I would have written this review 10 years back, it would have been totally different. My heart would have definitely ruled my mind. But my perspective has changed today. Experience and age enable you to look into reality with a broader spectrum.
One thing which I did not like about the book is the age old norm of wives cribbing that their husbands do not give them time. When will the Indian woman grow up? There is a world beyond husbands too. Srikant being a broad minded person gave all the liberties to his wife. She was free to pursue her studies and career. She had money to spend at her discretion. She was not living with her in-laws. She had the independence to go on a historical tour with her professor. How many women get such luxuries in life? And yet the only thing she craved was her husband’s time. Something I could not relate to. The end seemed to be an exaggeration too. Infact, if she would have wanted to go to US for her career, her husband would never have forbidden her to do that.
Overall the book is an interesting read. Sudha Murthy’s narration is very simple and the book catches your interest right from the first chapter. Finally the novel gives the moral “Relationships are easy to get into, but difficult to nurture. A bit of time, perseverance, selflessness, patience and care is all it needs to preserve them.”
MERE NANGE PAIRON MAIN ZAMEEN HAI.
PAAKE BHI KYU TERI AARZOO HAI,
SHAYAD YAHI ZINDAGI HAI.
The lines summarize the feelings of the protagonist in the novel “Gently falls the Bakula” by Sudha Murthy. A beautiful story of a relationship that slowly falls apart with time. A marriage that loses its spark when ambition and success take their toll. How expectations can affect love and commitment.
The story revolves around Shrikant and Shrimati who, once school mates in a small town of Hubli, go on to be husband and wife. From being competitors in the class, to good friends, then life partners and again strangers in the end, the story moves on the lines of Shrimati’s journey of life. The bakula flower is the symbol of their love and the title signifies the breaking of this relationship and bond with time.
Shrimati is a sensitive human being. She portrays the typical Indian woman who sacrifices her career in lieu of a happy family life. She marries for love but her love turns to dust. The novel talks about an unspoken truth that love fades with time. It dies a slow death when it faces the harsh realities of life. Often we ignore the people we love so much and tend to take them for granted. We do not realise that a single act of insensitivity can leave a deep scar in a relationship. Srikant’s callous attitude about his inconsiderate mother and her attitude towards Shrimati leaves a deep hurt in his relationship. To add to it, his unresponsiveness makes a void that slowly becomes impossible to be filled with time.
As for Shrikant, he plays an ambitious bright young man, in pursuit of his dreams. Success is addictable. The ones who get addicted; go for it even at the cost of love and family. It is here when ignorance becomes a habit and not knowingly, one becomes a victim of it. One can relate the character of Srikant with most of the successful people. The people who achieve everything in life at the cost of relationships. People who become machines with time, incapable of thinking about others who have equal share in their success.
It makes us question reality. Does love really exist in this world? I have seen the greatest of relationships breaking with time. The deepest of emotions losing their spark and shine. Change is the essence of life. People change with time and so do relationships. If I would have written this review 10 years back, it would have been totally different. My heart would have definitely ruled my mind. But my perspective has changed today. Experience and age enable you to look into reality with a broader spectrum.
One thing which I did not like about the book is the age old norm of wives cribbing that their husbands do not give them time. When will the Indian woman grow up? There is a world beyond husbands too. Srikant being a broad minded person gave all the liberties to his wife. She was free to pursue her studies and career. She had money to spend at her discretion. She was not living with her in-laws. She had the independence to go on a historical tour with her professor. How many women get such luxuries in life? And yet the only thing she craved was her husband’s time. Something I could not relate to. The end seemed to be an exaggeration too. Infact, if she would have wanted to go to US for her career, her husband would never have forbidden her to do that.
Overall the book is an interesting read. Sudha Murthy’s narration is very simple and the book catches your interest right from the first chapter. Finally the novel gives the moral “Relationships are easy to get into, but difficult to nurture. A bit of time, perseverance, selflessness, patience and care is all it needs to preserve them.”
