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Ghachar Ghochar : The tyranny of the mundane and my pseudo-language barriers

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A big frustration of mine is that I can read my mother tongue, Kannada. I spent my early years learning Hindi and English and only speaking Kannada at home and with family. This is hugely annoying for me, especially because I know that Kannada literature has so many rich stories to offer. It also really annoys me that I can’t read street signs, shop signs, truck signs etc. etc. (which is actually a weird pass-time of mine) when I’m back in India. The overall effect of being so well versed with the narrative of a language but being blind to its writing and physical language is a disorienting one.

So I was really happy when I stumbled upon a translated version of Vivek Shanbag’s Ghachar Gochar. Maybe it’s a way to get around my pseudo-language barrier?

Just like it’s title Gachar Gochar (GG) tells a quirky and unique story. GG is a very short read that managed to hungrily gobbled up on a seemingly endless train journey from Rome to Pisa. Originally written in Kannada (<3) Shanbag’s story shows us how even mundane everyday things and lives take powerful and dramatic turns. Our unamed narrator gives us a fishbowl view of his nuclear family politics and what its like to be stuck in and swept away by life’s day to day events.

Shanbag’s down-to-earth and broad range of characters reminded me R K Narayan’s Malgudi days. GG has the same deliberative narrative style which focuses on the iconic South Indian surroundings and lifestyle but doesn’t linger on this nostalgia. Instead, what distinguishes Shanbag, is that his story is about the future, it focuses on the upward journey to middle class India and the paradoxes it brings. You never expect the turn that this story is going to take! It will definitely leave you wanting more.

I’m so glad I stumbled upon this book, it has got me thinking about and searching for other translated works from the Indian subcontinent/diaspora. I feel like this could be an interesting sub-genre in itself, its interesting to see what nuances can come through into the English language and what gets left of. All in all, a hidden gem and a must read!

 

 

12 thoughts on “Ghachar Ghochar : The tyranny of the mundane and my pseudo-language barriers”

  1. The language barrier must be so frustrating. But I’m glad to see you will be hunting out translations. I love reading translations. They aren’t all perfect, and I’m certain that some of the original text magic is missing, but I find that translations share a world I never would have even imagined. I learn so much from this. Thanks for the great review!

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    1. Hi Jackie! Thanks for stopping by. Yes, thats one of my concerns- that a lot of the nuances might be missed but I think it’s one way of addressing the lack of diverse/ own voices or making the solution a more comprehensive one!

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      2. Actually my grandmother is visiting us from India, so I might force her to tea me the alphabets atleast! But I definitely want to learn to read it at some point. Also I think translations as useful in a different way, to get a sense of the culture etc. So I will do both!

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  2. What a difficult place to be in! You know you’re the second blogger I know who can converse in their first language but not read it well! I hope you’ll reconnect with the help of your grandmother. This book also sounds fantastic, I’ve read Narayan and Chughta but not much other Indian lit and am especially lacking in knowledge if the different subgenres and languages.

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    1. I think it’s becoming more common now, even for people living in India to loose he written language. And I’ve recently discovered some translations and I’m absolutely love them – look at titled axis publishers. They are new and committed to WOC diversity in publishing (if you haven’t already 🙂

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  3. Absolutely loved Ghochar Gochar. I have been fan or RK Narayan and been longing for someone who takes same style and writes in today’s world. Vivek writes with same authencity and simplicity. Further in any book what usually stands out is the way humour is treated. This was short read and absolute delight !

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