WORLDS WITHIN WORLDS BY AJAY NAVARIA (TRANSLATED FROM THE HINDI NOVEL UDHAR KE LOG BY NITA KUMAR)

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BOOK NAME: WORLDS WITHIN WORLDS (TRANSLATED FROM THE HINDI NOVEL UDHAR KE LOG BY NITA KUMAR)

AUTHOR NAME: AJAY NAVARIA

GENRE: DOMESTIC/ POLITICAL FICTION

PUBLISHER: NIYOGI BOOKS

BOOK BUY LINK: https://www.amazon.in/worlds-within-Ajay-Navaria/dp/9391125808


BOOK COVER IMAGE




BOOK REVIEW

Worlds Within Worlds is a translated work of the Hindi novel Udhar Ke Log, which is about a Dalit man's journey through life and relationships. The protagonist is a professor at an unnamed university and has already suffered the loss of his wife. Though being a professor should have given him the blanket of protection against caste prejudices, he finds it only as extreme as before. The book also explores his interpersonal relationships, family dynamics and friendship between people with religious differences. After his wife's demise, he remarries only to land himself in soup because of his circumstances. Later, he meets Aisha, a sex worker whom he admires because of her nature and smartness. Sometimes, he hates her; other times, he adores her. But what he fails to do is to be brave enough to see her off when he has had enough. But he keeps her hanging around even when he is fighting to have his wife back. 


This book was really enlightening in terms of caste politics and prejudices. This was the first book I have read about Dalit oppression at the university level, where a protagonist belongs to an upper-middle-class family. I really liked how personal affairs were also touched upon, along with caste dynamics. The dimension of caste and religious politics was explored at many levels, starting from family, friends, colleagues and society, which was brilliant. The shortcomings of the book include a highly unlikable protagonist who is critical of every woman in his life. He finds it easy to blame everything on those women, even when the mistake is glaringly his. The translation was rough, and the dialogue and descriptions were abrupt and sharp. It is one of those books where you feel a lot has been lost in translation because of an overzealous translation, but it definitely is a book that makes you want to read the original work.


Worlds Within Worlds is worthy if you are looking for books on Dalit oppression, caste politics and complicated interpersonal relationships. 


MY REVIEW: 3.5/5

This post is a part of  Blogchatter’s #TBRchallenge

#penbooksandscalpel

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