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Come, Before Evening Falls
SHORTLISTED FOR THE PRESTIGIOUS HINDU LITERARY PRIZE IN INDIAJugni’s life changes the year she turns sixteen. Her grandmother begins a determined search for a bridegroom for her. Her uncle, a village elder, embarks upon an ambitious plan to open the very first school for their tradition-bound Jat community. Her cousin, a soldier in the British India army, is charged with sedition. In the midst of all this is her growing attraction to Raakha, the newly arrived schoolmaster, with a deeply troubled past and with radical ideas for social change.Set in the year 1909, Come, Before Evening Falls is a gripping tale about the passion and perils of forbidden love, conflicting loyalties and devastating betrayal.PRAISE FOR COME, BEFORE EVENING FALLS" a story of Lolitaesque beauty and forbidden love enfolds in a smooth, fluid voice. " Verve magazine"The novel, Come, Before Evening Falls, takes you a hundred years back to the (same) badlands of the erstwhile Punjab province with a violent love story and tells it with sensitivity. Honour killing has certainly graduated from the inside pages of newspapers to literature. "Times Of India"The rise and fall in the story keeps readers gripped. The book has a dose of humour, adventure and romance. There are many stories, seamlessly entwined, to create a heart-warming read." Hindustan Times"Despite its depth and seriousness, it's a racy novel that anyone could enjoy." Midday, Mumbai"With her debut work, Manjul Bajaj has chosen to open a new domain in Indian writing in English..... Come, Before Evening Falls does not read like a first work of fiction. Its greatest strength is in Bajaj's ability to gently carry the reader. Buy the book, it makes for good reading." Business World"Come, Before Evening Falls is a well written novel with a nicely conceived plot." Deccan Herald “...it scores over regular love stories. The book is more engrossing because of the different milieu that it explores, the echoes of which sadly regularly hit headlines even now.” The Sunday Tribune‘Reminiscent of Khushwant Singh’s early work....” The Statesman“...there’s some top quality writing here, and the author’s passion and sincerity shine right through.” DESI PUNDIT.com“Manjul Bajaj’s debut novel is a strong, passionate story well told.... The subtle feminist approach works well with full blooded women juxtaposed against well fleshed out and likeable male characters.” KITAAB OnlineABOUT THE AUTHORManjul Bajaj worked in the field of environment and rural development before she became a writer. She is the author of Come, Before Evening Falls (shortlisted for the Hindu Literary Prize in 2010) and Another Man’s Wife (shortlisted for the Hindu Literary Prize in 2013). She has also written two books for children—Elbie’s Quest and Nargisa’s Adventures. Her recent novel In Search of Heer was listed for the prestigious JCB prize 2020, the Mathrubhumi Book of the Year 2020 prize, the Times of India AutHer award 2020 and the Atta Galatta Bangalore Literature Festival 2020 prizes. Her latest work is Locked Down, a collection of micro poems on her experience of the lockdown.
225 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2010
15 people are currently reading
357 people want to read
About the author
Manjul Bajaj
12 books124 followersManjul Bajaj is a writer from India. She graduated in Economics from Delhi University and then did a Masters in Rural Management and another in Environmental Science. For much of her adult life she worked in the field of rural development. India's seemingly sleepy villages, its seething beneath the surface small towns, the wisdom and courage of ordinary people living unimaginably difficult lives, the diversity, the complexity, the sheer depth of the Indian subcontinent's many traditions, rituals, philosophies and ways of life, its music, literature, crafts and performing arts, its varied languages - all of these fascinate her, as do the many conflicts and contradictions that arise as the country grows and modernizes. Through her fiction she attempts to explore and understand the beauty and confusion of India, and what being a modern person belonging to this very ancient civilization and culture entails.
She lives in Goa with her husband.
She lives in Goa with her husband.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
November 15, 2015
This debut work of Manjul Bajaj reaches far into the Haryana Jat culture, tackles the Khap Panchayat, patriarchy and honour killing.
It hardly reads like a debut novel. The prose is poetry in disguise. The reader is not at any point taken for granted, the tone is neither condescending nor patronising.
The story is set in the early 1900s but it is relevant even today. It portrays how far and deep caste, politics and identity crises reach into the people’s everyday life.
Though at the outset it looks like a love story of Jugni and Raakha, the novel is a very layered and nuanced. It is about how parents’ actions cast a shadow on their children, so dark and unchangeable in the face of a caste and community. It is about the unfairness of not being able to marry the person one loves. It is about the unbridled ruthlessness of trying to hold on to the power, for some, and love for others, unthinking of the consequences. It is about how much violence a layperson can bottle up and not show an inkling of it to another soul. It is about how even the littlest person in a family is conditioned when it comes to honour killing. At every turn of the page, the reader hopes that Jugni and Raakha unite at the end, by some crooked miracle, even though the reader knows for sure that their love is doomed.
Raakha, bristling with anger, shame and indefatigable urge to become somebody, and Jugni, mature and naïve at the same time, Tau, wanting to break the mediocrity of his people’s position in the caste hierarchy, Dadi, finding her position in the family weakening and trying to claim it back, Chaachi, having tasted power unexpectedly and not wanting to lose it, every character from Bittoo to Raakha’s mother is well-etched.
The ending leaves the reader breathless. Manjul Bajaj, with her novel, has established her position as one of the prominent Indian authors to look out for, for me.
It hardly reads like a debut novel. The prose is poetry in disguise. The reader is not at any point taken for granted, the tone is neither condescending nor patronising.
The story is set in the early 1900s but it is relevant even today. It portrays how far and deep caste, politics and identity crises reach into the people’s everyday life.
Though at the outset it looks like a love story of Jugni and Raakha, the novel is a very layered and nuanced. It is about how parents’ actions cast a shadow on their children, so dark and unchangeable in the face of a caste and community. It is about the unfairness of not being able to marry the person one loves. It is about the unbridled ruthlessness of trying to hold on to the power, for some, and love for others, unthinking of the consequences. It is about how much violence a layperson can bottle up and not show an inkling of it to another soul. It is about how even the littlest person in a family is conditioned when it comes to honour killing. At every turn of the page, the reader hopes that Jugni and Raakha unite at the end, by some crooked miracle, even though the reader knows for sure that their love is doomed.
Raakha, bristling with anger, shame and indefatigable urge to become somebody, and Jugni, mature and naïve at the same time, Tau, wanting to break the mediocrity of his people’s position in the caste hierarchy, Dadi, finding her position in the family weakening and trying to claim it back, Chaachi, having tasted power unexpectedly and not wanting to lose it, every character from Bittoo to Raakha’s mother is well-etched.
The ending leaves the reader breathless. Manjul Bajaj, with her novel, has established her position as one of the prominent Indian authors to look out for, for me.
January 30, 2014
As a first novel, I'd say it's really nice. The tone is very different from Manjul Bajaj's later work (I'm thinking particularly of Another Man's Wife ), and the mood seems rather non-militant. Which might be a result of the female protagonist's nature.
I liked the way the characters illumined and took the story forward. Tau, a venerable village patriarch and family man, enterprising and reasoning; Dadi, the conservative family matriarch, strong and proud in her own way; Chaachi, the vulnerable woman caught in her desire for power and security.
I really liked Raakha and Jugni, and the failure of their love affair seemed inevitable. Jugni is both naive and wise, and chooses to adhere to rules not out of fear of retribution, but out of love for family. While this may seem subversive, it's not. She actually has a mind of her own, which is, albeit, strongly influenced by a restrictive social setup. And in the end, her resilience carries her through.
Raakha is a failure in almost every count. He had so much potential to do something good, to stand up for himself, but he was consumed by his inner demons and attempted the very evil he had always condemned his father for. Also, I found his love for Jugni rather self-centered; he did not respect Jugni's identity or choices. He treated her like a toy, caressing her when in the mood, or rejecting her when angry or depressed; and when he wanted to make her a second wife, he did not once think of her dignity or self-esteem. He never succeeding in respecting women like the human beings they are. Inevitably, he returned to the patriarchal way of viewing women as meat, playthings, commodities.
On the whole, a really good read.
I liked the way the characters illumined and took the story forward. Tau, a venerable village patriarch and family man, enterprising and reasoning; Dadi, the conservative family matriarch, strong and proud in her own way; Chaachi, the vulnerable woman caught in her desire for power and security.
I really liked Raakha and Jugni, and the failure of their love affair seemed inevitable. Jugni is both naive and wise, and chooses to adhere to rules not out of fear of retribution, but out of love for family. While this may seem subversive, it's not. She actually has a mind of her own, which is, albeit, strongly influenced by a restrictive social setup. And in the end, her resilience carries her through.
Raakha is a failure in almost every count. He had so much potential to do something good, to stand up for himself, but he was consumed by his inner demons and attempted the very evil he had always condemned his father for. Also, I found his love for Jugni rather self-centered; he did not respect Jugni's identity or choices. He treated her like a toy, caressing her when in the mood, or rejecting her when angry or depressed; and when he wanted to make her a second wife, he did not once think of her dignity or self-esteem. He never succeeding in respecting women like the human beings they are. Inevitably, he returned to the patriarchal way of viewing women as meat, playthings, commodities.
On the whole, a really good read.
November 27, 2019
Come, Before Evening Falls by Manjul Bajaj is an Unhurried read written in an Unhurried style.
It does use any sharp hooks to pull you in, nor tries to grab your attention with exuberant imagery.
Set in pre Independence India at the start of the 20th century, this is a full bodied story of a particular period, of a place, of a people, of a person.. And of principles.
With it’s straightforward lucid descriptive manner, it steadily draws you in, gets you deeply engaged and leaves you thinking… About love and about life… And the loss and survival of both.
It does use any sharp hooks to pull you in, nor tries to grab your attention with exuberant imagery.
Set in pre Independence India at the start of the 20th century, this is a full bodied story of a particular period, of a place, of a people, of a person.. And of principles.
With it’s straightforward lucid descriptive manner, it steadily draws you in, gets you deeply engaged and leaves you thinking… About love and about life… And the loss and survival of both.
September 6, 2022
First ever book i found where there is a story about rohtak,
I loved a line from the book,
'katcha mazhab, their faith was not frozen and solidified into a slab of stone in a temple.'
I loved a line from the book,
'katcha mazhab, their faith was not frozen and solidified into a slab of stone in a temple.'
May 27, 2013
I am a 100% Haryanvi -- I love and belong to the land. And that came in the way as I read this book. The novel is set in a small, fictitious village near Rohtak, called Kala saand (literally, Black Bull).
I was hoping to experience the real rural life as not many have written about it. But it was not to be. The first inaccuracy was in the names – Jugni and Raakha. These names are non-Haryanvi. Plain and simple. Twisting Jugni to Jugniye – as Raakha, the wild and hot-tempered teacher at the village used to address Jugni with – took it further away. Second, odd temples might be dotting the rural landscape in today’s Haryana, but during the times the story is set in – 1909 – there certainly weren’t any. Having a Shivalaya is quite different than having a temple. Selection of words at some places was another avoidable, odd thing that jarred. I wish the writer had done more research. Ambi, Paranda etc. are the kind of words not known in Haryana, even to this day. These departures diluted my appreciation of the story. And the book.
That said, the narrative was smooth. More in the beginning, though it did turn slow and rambled towards the middle. The tautness caught on once again towards the end – the final 70 pages were compact and moved the narrative more desirably to my liking. The character of Jugni was well depicted. She seemed vulnerable yet an intrepid woman at the same time. There was an earthiness to her character, which stayed. Raakha had a sort of controlled edge to his character that I found intriguing, though his desire to bed many women as he did when he was studying at Lahore, seemed too far-fetched at a time when such tendencies were considered taboo for common folks. Dadi’s character was perhaps the closest to a real Haryanvi woman, in control of matters at home and in the areas surrounding her home. Tau and Chaachi were fillers but did send an image to my mind as I read along. There were flashes of literary brilliance that kept me at the book, though there were stretches which I thought would have worked better if they were more thoughtfully trimmed. Overall, ‘Come when evening falls’ is a good first novel, but doesn't represent the time and the place the story is set in as honestly. As a writer myself of fiction, I adored the fact that writer chose to spin the story in a distant past and about people whom she surely doesn’t know well – that’s a brave attempt.
I was hoping to experience the real rural life as not many have written about it. But it was not to be. The first inaccuracy was in the names – Jugni and Raakha. These names are non-Haryanvi. Plain and simple. Twisting Jugni to Jugniye – as Raakha, the wild and hot-tempered teacher at the village used to address Jugni with – took it further away. Second, odd temples might be dotting the rural landscape in today’s Haryana, but during the times the story is set in – 1909 – there certainly weren’t any. Having a Shivalaya is quite different than having a temple. Selection of words at some places was another avoidable, odd thing that jarred. I wish the writer had done more research. Ambi, Paranda etc. are the kind of words not known in Haryana, even to this day. These departures diluted my appreciation of the story. And the book.
That said, the narrative was smooth. More in the beginning, though it did turn slow and rambled towards the middle. The tautness caught on once again towards the end – the final 70 pages were compact and moved the narrative more desirably to my liking. The character of Jugni was well depicted. She seemed vulnerable yet an intrepid woman at the same time. There was an earthiness to her character, which stayed. Raakha had a sort of controlled edge to his character that I found intriguing, though his desire to bed many women as he did when he was studying at Lahore, seemed too far-fetched at a time when such tendencies were considered taboo for common folks. Dadi’s character was perhaps the closest to a real Haryanvi woman, in control of matters at home and in the areas surrounding her home. Tau and Chaachi were fillers but did send an image to my mind as I read along. There were flashes of literary brilliance that kept me at the book, though there were stretches which I thought would have worked better if they were more thoughtfully trimmed. Overall, ‘Come when evening falls’ is a good first novel, but doesn't represent the time and the place the story is set in as honestly. As a writer myself of fiction, I adored the fact that writer chose to spin the story in a distant past and about people whom she surely doesn’t know well – that’s a brave attempt.
October 6, 2012
With her debut work, Manjul Bajaj has chosen to open a new domain in the Indian writing
in English: the Haryana Jat culture. Though the culture is both loud and silent, at no point in
Come, Before Evening Falls do the facts become overwhelming or does the reader feel talked
down upon.
The story is located in the early twentieth century but is as relevant in today’s atmosphere
with its honour killing and struggle for identities. At one level Come, Before Evening Falls is
Raakha and Jugni’s love story. At another level it is an exploration of how the society frowns
upon a relationship which is outside its purview: the khap panchayat would not allow the
protagonists to marry. Beyond that it is a story of how the sins of the father are visited upon
the son and how Raakha turns on his head, like Iago and Othello fused into one. It is also a
story of a failed attempt to create a utopian society because the man who could change the
village in a few months is unable to rise above his own darkness.
Jugni glows in her own light. Using interior monologue to show her intensity, Manjul
penetrates into the heart of the women who remain behind a veil. Jugni chooses to conform
to what, according to her, is the right path. The other characters – Dadi, Tau, Raakha's
mother and the boys – are well etched. The Chaachi, once she tastes power, wants to retain
it at all cost and drives the action towards the end of the book where the plot twists and it
took me by surprise. Manjul is a poet and she uses language evocatively, retaining the gently
omniscient point of view.
Through inverting Nanak and King Ashoka she makes contemporary the fall in values thus
increasing the need to look at characters in their realistic ironies. I felt maybe the real horror
of the opponent, the khap panchayat should have been depicted somewhere earlier on in the
book. Also, the title of the book could have been hard hitting.
Come, Before Evening Falls does not read like a first work of fiction. Its greatest strength is
in Manjul’s ability to gently carry the reader to the dark inner recesses on village traditions –
good and bad.
in English: the Haryana Jat culture. Though the culture is both loud and silent, at no point in
Come, Before Evening Falls do the facts become overwhelming or does the reader feel talked
down upon.
The story is located in the early twentieth century but is as relevant in today’s atmosphere
with its honour killing and struggle for identities. At one level Come, Before Evening Falls is
Raakha and Jugni’s love story. At another level it is an exploration of how the society frowns
upon a relationship which is outside its purview: the khap panchayat would not allow the
protagonists to marry. Beyond that it is a story of how the sins of the father are visited upon
the son and how Raakha turns on his head, like Iago and Othello fused into one. It is also a
story of a failed attempt to create a utopian society because the man who could change the
village in a few months is unable to rise above his own darkness.
Jugni glows in her own light. Using interior monologue to show her intensity, Manjul
penetrates into the heart of the women who remain behind a veil. Jugni chooses to conform
to what, according to her, is the right path. The other characters – Dadi, Tau, Raakha's
mother and the boys – are well etched. The Chaachi, once she tastes power, wants to retain
it at all cost and drives the action towards the end of the book where the plot twists and it
took me by surprise. Manjul is a poet and she uses language evocatively, retaining the gently
omniscient point of view.
Through inverting Nanak and King Ashoka she makes contemporary the fall in values thus
increasing the need to look at characters in their realistic ironies. I felt maybe the real horror
of the opponent, the khap panchayat should have been depicted somewhere earlier on in the
book. Also, the title of the book could have been hard hitting.
Come, Before Evening Falls does not read like a first work of fiction. Its greatest strength is
in Manjul’s ability to gently carry the reader to the dark inner recesses on village traditions –
good and bad.
January 31, 2023
Honestly, if there is a time when I can't find the right words to describe how I exactly feel about a book, it's right now. I, for a moment, couldn’t think of any word to fill in the blank pages. But I have tried my best to do some justice to this book.
This poignantly beautiful book is a story of a forbidden love entangled in the mess of family honour, caste issues, childhood trauma and morality. Raakha, the new teacher in kala Saand, is a revolutionist trying to change his society. He is surrounded by a strong aura that pulls everyone towards him, men and women alike. They all want to be liked by him and steal moments just to be around him. But he is unable get over Jugni since their first encounter when they locked eyes and horns with each other. Jugni- his Jugniye, is an undaunted, fierce young girl who would do anything for her Tau, chachi and Dadi. Unlike Raakha, who would kill or die for her sake, Jugni is torn between her family's honour and her undying love for Raakha.
I wonder how I will elaborate on the mind baffled state I was in after finishing this fantastic piece of writing. The way my stomach knotted into multiple tangles with that gut-wrenching twisted ending. When I say the main writing revolves around love, it doesn't stop there with a forbidden love story or an enemies-to-lovers trope. The theme of the book is much deeper than that. It speaks about everything beyond love - of love and feminism, of subtle toxic masculinity, of betrayal and greed.
The organic chemistry between Raakha and Jugni, their soul-stirring relationship, and Jugni's strong-headed personality were like a breath of fresh air. But most importantly, the last page of the book was magical and powerful. It tended to all the wounds it left in my soul with its story. I will cherish the last few lines of the book forever.
If you must take one thing from goodreads today, then that is to read this book. It is saddening to see such a fantastic book have no traces of mention in popular platforms or receive no limelight at all which is stolen by some undeserving books.
This poignantly beautiful book is a story of a forbidden love entangled in the mess of family honour, caste issues, childhood trauma and morality. Raakha, the new teacher in kala Saand, is a revolutionist trying to change his society. He is surrounded by a strong aura that pulls everyone towards him, men and women alike. They all want to be liked by him and steal moments just to be around him. But he is unable get over Jugni since their first encounter when they locked eyes and horns with each other. Jugni- his Jugniye, is an undaunted, fierce young girl who would do anything for her Tau, chachi and Dadi. Unlike Raakha, who would kill or die for her sake, Jugni is torn between her family's honour and her undying love for Raakha.
I wonder how I will elaborate on the mind baffled state I was in after finishing this fantastic piece of writing. The way my stomach knotted into multiple tangles with that gut-wrenching twisted ending. When I say the main writing revolves around love, it doesn't stop there with a forbidden love story or an enemies-to-lovers trope. The theme of the book is much deeper than that. It speaks about everything beyond love - of love and feminism, of subtle toxic masculinity, of betrayal and greed.
The organic chemistry between Raakha and Jugni, their soul-stirring relationship, and Jugni's strong-headed personality were like a breath of fresh air. But most importantly, the last page of the book was magical and powerful. It tended to all the wounds it left in my soul with its story. I will cherish the last few lines of the book forever.
If you must take one thing from goodreads today, then that is to read this book. It is saddening to see such a fantastic book have no traces of mention in popular platforms or receive no limelight at all which is stolen by some undeserving books.
July 4, 2014
Indian English fiction usually focuses on urban life in India, leaving the rural for regional authors. This is a rare and captivating exploration of life in a Jat village in Haryana a century ago. Jugni's love story moves you deeply, more when you think not much has changed where the diktat of the khap panchyats is concerned. Her lover Raakha's complexities are skilfully etched and the author displays great insight in her depiction of Jugni's dilemma.
The book is a great read--the glimpses of Jat history were very interesting for me and Bajaj's storytelling kept me riveted till the very end.
The book is a great read--the glimpses of Jat history were very interesting for me and Bajaj's storytelling kept me riveted till the very end.
May 5, 2015
I loved Jugni. The girl on the cusp of womanhood whose fiery, loves old grandma stories and seems to be someone gifted with wisdom beyond years. She understands the meaning of being a girl in her world. Still she has the strength and risk appetite to give in to her passions. She's the main protagonist around whom the story revolves. And Rakha too. It's sad though how Rakha - who emerges as a strong rebel to the world finally succumbs to his upbringing in the end.
The story is set in a village in Haryana. The setting, the family and the characters are so well etched that the reader would be able to imagine them in flesh - maybe even as someone they know or once knew.
The story is set in a village in Haryana. The setting, the family and the characters are so well etched that the reader would be able to imagine them in flesh - maybe even as someone they know or once knew.
December 18, 2014
The way the character of Raakha has been built, with anger, complexities and edginess makes this book a treat to read. So does the interplay of politics and of emotions. A small rural village in the hinterlands and so much passion and power play.
I look forward to reading more from this author
I look forward to reading more from this author
October 28, 2018
The book starts off as a chic-lit, but gets to be quite profound as it proceeds. A really strong ending.
December 9, 2019
I did not really get into this story it just felt off to me not sure what it was.
October 5, 2012
A Powerful, passionate, emotionally rich and intense love story. The story is sort-of timeless although set in 1900s, in Punjab Jat community. The story telling style and setting is earthy-rustic-raw-passionate and natural and brings out the village close-knit community, stays till the end and lingers.
The story starts un- hurriedly. The rhythm sets in and it ended up as an intense-racy read. Manjul has done great with the mind-set of the community, how the open up to various issues, the changes that brings about in them and she defines them as a character-in-progress, they grow and evolve with the story. The unexpected end (the story is engrossing to expect) gives the story a knock-out punch that makes it irrefutable powerful love story and 'honor killing' sends a chill down the spine, although it is perfectly acceptable the way she has written it.
I carelessly stepped into Jugni’s shoes.
She is leading a simple good life, helping with household works and making cowpats. She had made peace with family turbulence and growing up with charming stories Dadi tells her. She is wise and matured. Manjul’s prose is filled with beautiful expressions. Often I paused to appreciate and in a way she gave me enough time to do with the racy story. She made the characters familiar, reachable and relatable.
The insights into the raw tempestuous emotions make the heart go lub-tub-lub-tub for Jugni. It isn't the same for the hero Raakha (GuruRaakha Singh), Raakha’s emotions could have had more mileage in the story, but then he is a man!. I have to admit she brings out the dilemmas, torment and his passions with a passion and Raakha’s flamboyancy and ferocity does shine. His identity, his need to become something, his mother's words and how they drive him and that overshadows "love" itself for him and how blind he is.
"Words. Words didn’t lose their point, their ability to pierce your heart and make you bleed, with the passage of years. They remained poisoned-tipped, sharp-pointed, shooting straight, their trajectory unwavering, headed directly for the part of you that you most want to protect. Becoming something then, she had raged at him."
(There are many excerpts that could be brought out from the book!)
Jat history and traditions of widow remarriage with another male within the family, honor, family traditions, marriage customs and politics are impressive. There are good recipes for cooking and that has medicinal values too. I am not complaining about the Hindi/Punjabi words, educated guess helped me to leap go the next.
Impactful and there is a strange familiarity. It was a pleasurable racy and intense read.
Good one !
The story starts un- hurriedly. The rhythm sets in and it ended up as an intense-racy read. Manjul has done great with the mind-set of the community, how the open up to various issues, the changes that brings about in them and she defines them as a character-in-progress, they grow and evolve with the story. The unexpected end (the story is engrossing to expect) gives the story a knock-out punch that makes it irrefutable powerful love story and 'honor killing' sends a chill down the spine, although it is perfectly acceptable the way she has written it.
I carelessly stepped into Jugni’s shoes.
She is leading a simple good life, helping with household works and making cowpats. She had made peace with family turbulence and growing up with charming stories Dadi tells her. She is wise and matured. Manjul’s prose is filled with beautiful expressions. Often I paused to appreciate and in a way she gave me enough time to do with the racy story. She made the characters familiar, reachable and relatable.
The insights into the raw tempestuous emotions make the heart go lub-tub-lub-tub for Jugni. It isn't the same for the hero Raakha (GuruRaakha Singh), Raakha’s emotions could have had more mileage in the story, but then he is a man!. I have to admit she brings out the dilemmas, torment and his passions with a passion and Raakha’s flamboyancy and ferocity does shine. His identity, his need to become something, his mother's words and how they drive him and that overshadows "love" itself for him and how blind he is.
"Words. Words didn’t lose their point, their ability to pierce your heart and make you bleed, with the passage of years. They remained poisoned-tipped, sharp-pointed, shooting straight, their trajectory unwavering, headed directly for the part of you that you most want to protect. Becoming something then, she had raged at him."
(There are many excerpts that could be brought out from the book!)
Jat history and traditions of widow remarriage with another male within the family, honor, family traditions, marriage customs and politics are impressive. There are good recipes for cooking and that has medicinal values too. I am not complaining about the Hindi/Punjabi words, educated guess helped me to leap go the next.
Impactful and there is a strange familiarity. It was a pleasurable racy and intense read.
Good one !
December 4, 2012
I enjoyed this book. Some of the imagery was foreign to me, as this book takes place in rural India in the early 1900's, but it was quite a moving story. Jugni is a young girl who is confused by her emotions towards Raakha, the new School Master. Complications arise due to her heritage and traditions. Overall, I thought the book was very good. It kept me interested from the first page till the last. The characters were engaging and the plot was well written. Even though this was written with a lot of Indian words and concepts, only a few things/words I ended up having to look up to understand the meaning. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in Indian culture, arranged marriages, forbidden love, and just a good read :)
July 29, 2016
3.5 stars. This is a haunting story of forbidden love, set in the Rohtak in British India. Though the story takes place in the early 20th century, what is terrifyingly disturbing is that, take the dates away, and it would ring just as true in the present day. Full review here.
April 27, 2014
Loved the book .Very well etched characters .You can completely identify with them .
July 24, 2015
Honour, tradition, love and death: A story set in a Jat village in British India about travails of forbidden love.
February 24, 2016
Great read!
Manjul Bajaj has captured love in it's many forms with the characters in this novel. Familial and romantic, this work keeps you turning pages.
Manjul Bajaj has captured love in it's many forms with the characters in this novel. Familial and romantic, this work keeps you turning pages.
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