Q: Now-a-days we find
literature of identity groups which borders on hatred more and has very little
to do with literature. What is your opinion?
A: Today we have
progressive writings called Dalit writings, Feminist writings etc. An
experienced and involved writer irrespective of the school, the ideology or the
genre to which he belongs does not use literature to vent out his anger. He
reveals only that anger that comes out from compassion. We cannot react to any
complex issue which has social and historical relevance in a simplistic or
reductive manner.
Ananthamurthy calls his
novel 'Samskara', a Magnum Opus. It depicts the life of the Brahmin society
belonging to Karnataka. The novel is based on the traditional and orthodox
beliefs of the Brahmin Sect and its hegemonical relationship with other groups
of the society. The protagonist Praneshachari is bound by the traditional values
of his community. He meets Chandri, a woman of low-caste and the novel brings
alive the turmoil and the struggle that he faces.
Q: The recent debates in
universities and seminars elsewhere tried to dismiss 'Samskara' as a movie which
deals with only a particular section of the society. They were of the view that
it not relevant to the whole society, more so to the contemporary society?
A: The fact that it
is being translated into many languages even now speaks volumes of its
relevance. I do not think "Samskara" can be restricted to the culture
of a particular caste of the society. I belong to an orthodox traditional
Brahmin family in Karnataka. The seeds for the novel were sown right in my
childhood. I wrote a story and it was published. I didn't want the people of my agrahara
to identify themselves with the story, so I wrote it in a metaphorical form.
When I was doing research for my Ph.D. my guide, Malcolm Brad Bary suggested
that this story can be presented as a novel. When a theme is based on real life
situation and content, however good the narration may be it is bound by
historical or contextual relevance. When the same theme is presented in the
metaphorical mode it travels beyond history. Such novels have different
implications and are amenable to different readings in any given context. That
is why 'Samskara' may be a novel based on a particular section of the society
but there is much more to it because of the narrative style.
Q: What is your
assessment of Pattabhi as a person and a writer?
A: "He never
came to a conclusion about anything in life. Two months before he passed away he
spent a considerable time with me discussing various issues." "He was
a great thinker. Sneha was an activist. Their's was an ideal companionship.
Pattabhi never preached anything or eulogized anyone. He used to sit hours
together whenever he used to come to my house, but would hardly speak a word or
two. He was a great listener. When he had to say something he would take care
not to sound like a preacher. He would only suggest! He was a great poet. I am
reminded of the 'negative - capability' of 'John Keats' when I think of him. A
poet according to Keats "describes a bird by nihilating his own identity
and assumes the form of the bird." T.S. Eliot says, 'Poetry is not the
expression of the personality. But it is escape from the personality". When
Pattabhi went to Shantiniketan, he couldn't acclamatize there. Rabindranath
believed in an 'egotistic-sublime' that "a poet should shoulder the
responsibility of humanity." Pattabhi couldn't identify with that
philosophy and came out of Shantiniketan. However, he was attracted towards
Aurobindo's 'Savithri'. He wanted to produce a movie on 'Savithri'. His
daughter-in-law has scripted a play on it. Pattabhi was advised by Ram Manohar
Lohia to produce the movie 'Samskara'. That is how the novel was produced as a
movie'.
Q: Poetry, Short Story,
Novel Essays - you have experimented with various genres. Do you choose the
genre according to the subject?
A: The genre doesn't
matter. I write about subjects that inspire me. Sometimes I end up writing a
story when I intend writing an essay. The theme chooses its genre of expression.
Q: You are now in news
for your views on classical languages.....
A: The trend today
is to declare every language as a classical language. This is a disturbing trend
resulting in inter - lingual conflicts. Classical language means a language that
was alive once. My argument is that all Indian languages are ancient and living
languages. They have not been static or dead. My opinion is that our languages
should be recognized as 'ancient and living languages'. We should strive to
enrich our languages rather than make the language issue a political issue.
Indians are basically familiar with many languages. We shouldn't forget that the
mother tongue of many Prominent Kannada writers is Marathi. IN a country like
ours we should have three languages. "Mane Mathu" (House language)
Beedhi Mathu (Local language) and Attada Mathu (The language that helps us to
grow). The first is the mother tongue, the second is the language of the place
where we live, and the third is that which helps us to be catholic and
comparative. The English speaking countries compulsorily expose their children
to their ancient poets. So also do the other progressive countries. They make
them their read their ancient poets and classics. That is lacking here. Our
languages have a continuity. We still use the words used by Pampa, the great
poet. If we have to revive our culture we need to have common schools. That is
the only way to create the necessary climate for the languages of our own.
Q: What do you think has
been the impact of globalization on our languages and literature?
A: Globalization is
destroying our languages. Our festivals are being destroyed. If we are not
careful, our languages would soon become extinct. The use of English was
restricted only to our offices in the past, but now it has encroached our
houses. Globalization is not only affecting the economy, but also our languages
and culture. It is now the responsibility of the writers to preserve our
languages. Coming to our economy, I feel that we should not give up the Gandhian
principles in our economic matters. Our economy should be need based but not
greed based.
Hyderabad - 10-7-2006
Courtesy: Gopa Raju
Narayana Rao
'Andhra Jyothi'.
