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Kazakkinte Ithihaasam
Accolades of Praises have been penned about the Legend
and about his Legendary Masterpiece. Sri O.V.Vijayan and his 'Kazakkinte
Ithihaasam' (The Legends of Kazak). Out of fear, like not to wanting to
develop an inferiority complex, in not understanding this book, never
attempted to read it. But in want of writing the review(Thanks to
Snehatheeram),read it and Lo! ashamed was I in not reading it earlier. Not
sure whether I can do full justice to the novel, but attempting I am! The
Book first Published in 1970 depicts about the Legends of Kazak, the
border of Palakkad and Coimbatore.
The fear, grim and dirt, the revolution
of education and the 'colourful' pictures of poverty are the legends of
the Novel. It will be hard to find a Kerala village like that now, but
given the 1970 stature of Kerala Villages, Sri Vijayan takes us to the
minds of Khaaliyaar, Madavan, Ravi and the others with much ease, you feel
you are there. One tends to talk, argue and feel with the characters in
this novel. I was exploring Ravi's mind, trying to figure out the reason
beneath his absconding. Unanswered were so many questions in my mind, Sri
Vijayan wants us to complete the novel, to continue with the process which
is pure unadulterated torture for a reader's mind .You do not get outside
of the novel even after days of reading it. The novel has many characters
intertwined, many untold stories.... Yet, you never loose the grip of
anyone and you do not need and introduction of them again. There lies the
beauty of writing and of a masterpiece in making.
The village of Kazak is
completely transplanted through his pen and through those words and
letters. The colloquial dialogues did make me go through them over and
over again for understanding them, but then that gives you the pulse of
the village. There is greed in me and hence disappointment in not giving
me more, not pleasing my mind and eyes more, since the book is of very few
pages. By the end, am comfortable in conversing with them in their own
language, comfortable in exploring Kazak's myths and stories, the novel
ends with me urging for more and frantically reading it again and again. A
must read for the malayalee book reader and a must buy for the bookshelf.
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