Books Beyond Stories- Book Reviews

Devdas by Saratchandra Chattopadhyay

Devdas is originally a novella written by Saratchandra Chattopadhyay. The story of Devdas needs no prelude. There is hardly any Indian who isn't aware of this iconic story, a love triangle between Devdas, Paro and Chandramukhi. However, this story is more popular because of the famous Bollywood movies based on it. I've heard of three movie based on this story. The first one is the old version of Devdas, which sadly I'm not very familiar with. The second version of the movie was Sanjay Leela Bhansali's exorbitant one which is much more popular in our age thanks to its poetic dialogue and some amazing performances by Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri Dixit. The third version was an eyebrow raiser and a bold attempt to recreate a cult famous movie, by Anurag Kashyap with the name Dev D.Devdas is a story that has remained popular through generations. Each new generation has their own version of Devdas, which makes this story popular. Take any child from any gully of India and ask him or her if he knows the story of Devdas, chances are he'd know the story even if he doesn't know who wrote it. 

The story of Devdas goes like- Devdas  a spoilt brat  is attached to Paro, the young girl who lived in his neighborhood. Just when their childhood friendship seems to be blossoming into love, Dev is sent away for his studies. After he returns, things aren't the same between him and Paro. While she remains devoted to him, he is largely indifferent towards her. Paro asks him to marry her, which he refuses. Paro decides to get married to the man her family searches for her and eventually forgest Dev and becomes a dutiful wife. Dev on the other hand has a sort of realization that he always loved Paro; it hits him that it is too late for him to do anything now. Doomed, he turns to all kinds of vices to forget Paro that range from alcohol to women. He ends up being rescued by Chandramukhi, a prostitute who falls in love with Dev. He tries to forget Paro by getting close to Chandramukhi but it fails. Eventually his liver fails due to excessive alcohol and he dies but he dies in an attempt to see Paro for one last time.

All the adaptations of this story are based on this rough outline. However, the details in the book are somewhat different from its Bollywood counterparts; they're subtler in nature. The original reason why Devdas and Paro couldn't marry was because during those times, in Bengal it was a custom forbidding a marriage between neighbours because they grew up together making them like siblings. In the book the rejection of Paro's marriage alliance with Devdas is very subtle unlike the dramatic scene shown in all adaptations. Also, Paro appears to be stronger in the book where undeterred by rejection, she went to Dev's room at night and confessed her love to him asking him if he was willing to marry her. It was he who refused, which obviously he later regretted. Also, in the book more emphasis is paid to the societal customs and norms of Bengal in 1900s with an emphasis to intellectual awakening and social changes occurring due to it. Paro is a way more complicated character in the book, which Anurag Kashyap's version  depicts pretty accurately. I found it interesting that in the book, Chandramukhi left prostitution when she fell in love with Devdas and was almost on the verge of starving and dying until Devdas rescued her. It was a really touching scene. 

Devdas has a darker aspect to it too. The relationship between Dev and Paro was less of an innocent childhood love but more a BDSM kind of relationship. This is a story that makes you think and explore the mind games in a relationship. Dev kept on constantly blowing hot and cold towards Paro, tossing his affections like a treat when he deemed her worthy.  Dev and Paro had a Dominant-Submissive relationship where Paro, was the submissive who needed his validation. It is a love story but it isn't really a depiction of love, rather it depicts a power struggle between them. When Paro asserts her freedom by asking Dev to marry her, she no longer is submissive and changes the dynamics. It is that portrayal of freedom that leads Dev to fall in love with her. Sure, this is an old story but the themes are pretty modern. The Dominant-Submissive dynamics of relationship, is depicted here in a mature and realistic way, centuries before 50 shades arrived and sexualised and glorified a form of emotional abuse. My opinion may bring some opposition but a large part of Devdas was about sexuality. Dev's same pattern of sexually toxic relationship repeats with Chandramukhi. He tries to find a new Submissive in her to cover up the loss of Paro. It shows a lot about the gender roles in a relationship. 

The story is always considered as an example of how alcohol addiction ruins someone's life. But, I think this story should be an example of how narcissism ruins someone's life. Dev was too full of himself, even when he pined for Paro he was just full of himself. He focused on his woes, his troubles and worries. Never once did he think about Paro. He was too full of himself when she proposed him. He was too full of himself to deal with heartbreak. To escape his own emptiness, he turned to a life of drinking. Had he been a little less full of himself, he'd have been able to perhaps love Chandramukhi. I feel sad because she deserved better. He made her fall in love and in a way ruined her life as well. 

All the characters are contrasts; Dev's narcissism contrasts to Chandramukhi's selflessness. Paro's assertivenes contrasts to Dev's cowardice. Chandramukhi and Paro too were opposite to each other, one was shown as a pious lady and other a fallen woman. Yet, it was Paro who spent her life with an alien man who she didn't love but it was Chandramukhi who remained true to her love, even if it pained her. It raises the question about society's standards on women and what excatly is a fallen woman? Is it the one who remains true to her heart or the one who remains true to the society? 

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Quotes-

(Sorry no quotes for this story since I read this story in my junior college from a library book called "Saratchandra Omnibus" which was roughly 2-3 years ago so I cannot recall the quotes. This story is originally in Bengali and I read an english translation of it. I cannot remember any quotes, if you do find some, please mention it.

Recommended for-

1) For all those silly people who think teenagers can only write fanfiction and write mature stories. Saratchandra Chattopadhyay was 17 when he wrote this story which turned out to be one of the most famous stories of all the time.

2) Anyone who loves Tagore's works and the distinct charm of Bengali literature.

3) Any one who loved the movie adaptations.

4) Everyone should read it .

Special Note-

Devdas has a special place in my heart because it is a deeply touching story. The grandeur of the movies might be missing but the story has its own intricate and subtle charm. Saratchandra Chattopadhyay was an inspiration because he wrote Devdas and Parineeta, two novellas, at the age of 17, which are critically and artistically acclaimed till date. 

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A/N:

So this is the first time I've tried to venture into Indian literature so I wanted to start with a novella rather than a novel. I'm not that well acquainted with Indian novels as I am with Russian ones so I'm starting it slow. But, I promise there would be more of Indian books that I'd review. If you can think of a good Indian book please feel free to suggest in the comment below.

I'm sorry for not updating last Sunday. I was on a writing break.

I couldn't find a proper image of Devdas as a separate book so I decided to post a picture of the version of Saratchandra Omnibus that  I read Devdas in.

Thank you for reading.

Love and Regards,
Gautami