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Missing
It is the summer of 2012. A young girl is molested in Guwahati in India’s Northeast, journalists take photographs and make videos of the incident, but no one tries to rescue her. The monsoons have arrived, and Assam is flooded, as it is every year.
In Siliguri, Kobita, a fifty four-year-old activist, married to Nayan, a blind poet, decides to travel to Guwahati to search for the molested girl who has gone missing. Before she takes off she leaves instructions to have a new bed made. Because of his disability, Nayan has no option but to depend on the carpenter and his family to trace his wife after her phone calls stop coming.
There is a riot in lower Assam from where Kobita last called her husband.
While Nayan grows desperate for news about his missing wife, their son, Kabir, is in England, absorbed in his research about Hill Cart Road, the highway that connects Siliguri to Darjeeling and the eastern Himalayas.
Missing is about seven days in the lives of these people. It is a study of the modern marriage, played out against the awareness of the question that gave birth to the Indian subcontinent’s first epic, the Ramayana: What happens when a wife goes missing?
In Siliguri, Kobita, a fifty four-year-old activist, married to Nayan, a blind poet, decides to travel to Guwahati to search for the molested girl who has gone missing. Before she takes off she leaves instructions to have a new bed made. Because of his disability, Nayan has no option but to depend on the carpenter and his family to trace his wife after her phone calls stop coming.
There is a riot in lower Assam from where Kobita last called her husband.
While Nayan grows desperate for news about his missing wife, their son, Kabir, is in England, absorbed in his research about Hill Cart Road, the highway that connects Siliguri to Darjeeling and the eastern Himalayas.
Missing is about seven days in the lives of these people. It is a study of the modern marriage, played out against the awareness of the question that gave birth to the Indian subcontinent’s first epic, the Ramayana: What happens when a wife goes missing?
- GenresFiction
267 pages, ebook
First published April 1, 2018
4 people are currently reading
109 people want to read
About the author
Sumana Roy
14 books81 followersSumana Roy writes from Siliguri, a small town in sub-Himalayan Bengal.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
July 8, 2018
In 2012, a social activist named Kobita leaves her home in Siliguri for Guwahati, to investigate the case of a girl who was molested. Kobita goes, and as the days go by, goes off the radar. Floods sweep through Assam; Bodoland agitations and riots throw not just Assam but its adjoining territories into turmoil. Amid the thousands of people scuttling about, homeless and desperate and injured, is there perhaps Kobita too?
Sumana Roy’s debut novel Missing centres around a woman gone missing, but it’s not about the woman so much as the people she leaves behind. The strong-willed, independent Kobita (so independent that she will be furious if she finds that her disappearance has been reported to the police) never appears in person in the book about her, but her shadow is there throughout. In the deep ache and longing of her husband, the blind poet Nayan, who misses everything about her, from their conversation to the small, everyday tasks she did for him, like reading out the newspaper or removing the bones from the fish on his plate. In the new bed that the acerbic old carpenter Bimal-da is making, having been commissioned to do so by Kobita before she left. In the worry that begins to build within Kobita and Nayan’s son, Kabir, who sits far away in London, searching the archives to unearth the mystery surrounding an obscure Britisher who helped lay Siliguri’s Hill Cart Road.
It is not just Kobita and all she represents—tangible and not—that goes missing. Missing, too, are other elements, other people. The local girl whom that long-ago Englishman had fallen in love with and whom he writes about in his letters. The Siliguri that once was, the North-Eastern India that once was. Nayan’s poetry (appropriately enough, with Kobita’s vanishing, his kobita—his poetry—seems to desert Nayan too).
It isn’t the story of Missing that is exceptional: what makes this book so readable is the way its characters, in particular the ones that surround Nayan in his home in Siliguri, come alive. Kabir, tucked away in London, is somewhat colourless, but in contrast, his father and the entourage he attracts—all mostly as a result, direct or indirect, of Kobita’s disappearance—are brilliantly etched. Bimal-da, the carpenter; his granddaughter Tushi, whom Nayan employs to read the newspaper; Bimal-da’s assistant, Ahmed. Each emerges as a very real, very believable character through dialogue and through the unseeing Nayan’s perceptiveness. Nayan wondered what made Bimal-da feel superior to everyone around him. His vegetarianism? His age? Or was it a knack that he had cultivated over time?
At the same time, Missing is a comment on contemporary India, its schisms and politics. It is, too, a book about human beings, about what makes us what we are. Roy’s book is lyrical at times, dryly humorous at others, insightful, sometimes informative—and always readable. A fine book and a fine debut in the novel form.
(From my review for The New Indian Express, July 8, 2018: http://www.newindianexpress.com/lifes...
- and no, the author's misspelt name in the title of the article is none of my doing!)
Sumana Roy’s debut novel Missing centres around a woman gone missing, but it’s not about the woman so much as the people she leaves behind. The strong-willed, independent Kobita (so independent that she will be furious if she finds that her disappearance has been reported to the police) never appears in person in the book about her, but her shadow is there throughout. In the deep ache and longing of her husband, the blind poet Nayan, who misses everything about her, from their conversation to the small, everyday tasks she did for him, like reading out the newspaper or removing the bones from the fish on his plate. In the new bed that the acerbic old carpenter Bimal-da is making, having been commissioned to do so by Kobita before she left. In the worry that begins to build within Kobita and Nayan’s son, Kabir, who sits far away in London, searching the archives to unearth the mystery surrounding an obscure Britisher who helped lay Siliguri’s Hill Cart Road.
It is not just Kobita and all she represents—tangible and not—that goes missing. Missing, too, are other elements, other people. The local girl whom that long-ago Englishman had fallen in love with and whom he writes about in his letters. The Siliguri that once was, the North-Eastern India that once was. Nayan’s poetry (appropriately enough, with Kobita’s vanishing, his kobita—his poetry—seems to desert Nayan too).
It isn’t the story of Missing that is exceptional: what makes this book so readable is the way its characters, in particular the ones that surround Nayan in his home in Siliguri, come alive. Kabir, tucked away in London, is somewhat colourless, but in contrast, his father and the entourage he attracts—all mostly as a result, direct or indirect, of Kobita’s disappearance—are brilliantly etched. Bimal-da, the carpenter; his granddaughter Tushi, whom Nayan employs to read the newspaper; Bimal-da’s assistant, Ahmed. Each emerges as a very real, very believable character through dialogue and through the unseeing Nayan’s perceptiveness. Nayan wondered what made Bimal-da feel superior to everyone around him. His vegetarianism? His age? Or was it a knack that he had cultivated over time?
At the same time, Missing is a comment on contemporary India, its schisms and politics. It is, too, a book about human beings, about what makes us what we are. Roy’s book is lyrical at times, dryly humorous at others, insightful, sometimes informative—and always readable. A fine book and a fine debut in the novel form.
(From my review for The New Indian Express, July 8, 2018: http://www.newindianexpress.com/lifes...
- and no, the author's misspelt name in the title of the article is none of my doing!)
May 7, 2018
The story 'Missing' is set in Siliguri. The story revolves around Protagonists Nayan who is a poet but unfortunately blind and his wife Kobita who is activist. His wife Kobita leaves to Guwahati in order to help a molested girl to get justice. When after 7 days, Kobita doesn't come back home, Nayan and their son Kabir gets worried as they are unable to receive any information about Kobita. During that time in July 2012, the Assam is flooded in monsoons and this adds to the worry of Nayan and Kabir.
Most of the conversations in this story are between Nayan and Carpenter Bimal Dada, his helper Ahmed, his driver Shibu and Bimal da's grand daughter Tushi.
Nayan is unable to get any news about Kobita when she goes missing. Nayan gives a job of reading newspaper to Tushi. Tushi observes this old man and feels sad for him. Nayan's love for Kobita, his dependence on her and his anxiety when his beloved goes missing is very well expressed by the Author. Nayan hears expected phone calls from Kobita in his sleep. He becomes restless and all his thoughts are only about Kobita only.
In this story we also get to know how differently people think and what assumptions they make, when a woman who is a wife or a mother stays away from home for her work and how this society start making comments on her.
What I loved in this story the most is Kobita's bold character, how shes goes out of the way to help a molested girl risking her own life, her decision of marrying a blind man and showering all her love on him and how she makes Nayan feel so dependant on her and who she loves her beautiful role in Nayan's life. Tushi's role is also very interesting in this book and you'll know it when you'll read the book.
The language used by the author is simple and easy to understand. The title of the book is apt, the book cover is attractive. I completely enjoyed reading this book.
If you want to read a different story then I would highly recommend this book to everyone and I am sure you all will love it.
I would rate it 5/5
Most of the conversations in this story are between Nayan and Carpenter Bimal Dada, his helper Ahmed, his driver Shibu and Bimal da's grand daughter Tushi.
Nayan is unable to get any news about Kobita when she goes missing. Nayan gives a job of reading newspaper to Tushi. Tushi observes this old man and feels sad for him. Nayan's love for Kobita, his dependence on her and his anxiety when his beloved goes missing is very well expressed by the Author. Nayan hears expected phone calls from Kobita in his sleep. He becomes restless and all his thoughts are only about Kobita only.
In this story we also get to know how differently people think and what assumptions they make, when a woman who is a wife or a mother stays away from home for her work and how this society start making comments on her.
What I loved in this story the most is Kobita's bold character, how shes goes out of the way to help a molested girl risking her own life, her decision of marrying a blind man and showering all her love on him and how she makes Nayan feel so dependant on her and who she loves her beautiful role in Nayan's life. Tushi's role is also very interesting in this book and you'll know it when you'll read the book.
The language used by the author is simple and easy to understand. The title of the book is apt, the book cover is attractive. I completely enjoyed reading this book.
If you want to read a different story then I would highly recommend this book to everyone and I am sure you all will love it.
I would rate it 5/5
May 24, 2018
Read The Full Review Here : https://poesyinchrysalis.wordpress.co...
REVIEWED BY SOHINEE DEY
Sometimes, you read a book that leaves you in awe. Even after you have finished reading the book, it still sticks with you for a very long time and you keep processing the story over and over again. ‘Missing’ by Sumana Roy was one such book for me.
As for the story, the well-written blurb pretty much gives away what the book is about. Published by Aleph Book Company, ‘Missing’ tells the story of Nayan, a blind poet, his activist wife, Kobita and their son Kabir. Set in Siliguri, the father-son duo is left to worry about Kobita’s whereabouts when she leaves for Assam, particularly, Guwahati to search for the molested girl who had gone missing. Being an activist, she takes social issues very seriously and as her family likes to put it, she often times is much more concerned about strangers rather than her near and dear ones. Before leaving for Guwahati, Kobita left instructions for a new bed to be made.
When there’s no contact with his wife, visually-impaired Nayan doesn’t know where to begin searching for Kobita. Being blind, he has always been severely dependent on his wife Kobita. He is even unsure about whether or not he should lodge a complaint of her going missing but then he remembers her disapproval the time he had lodged a complaint in the local police station of her gone missing.
At first glance when I first read the title, ‘Missing’ to me was a crime/thriller of sorts with a fifty four year old woman gone missing while searching for the molested girl who had also gone missing. Now that I have read the book, I can see that ‘Missing’ here is more about a husband missing his wife.
A research scholar, Kabir is settled in England. Seemingly unaffected by the news of his mother gone missing on the surface, he doubts if his father is involved in her going missing and living in the 21st century, he takes to the internet hoping that he would find some news of his mother.
The whole story unfurls over a week, i.e., July 24 to July 30. Everything that happens in the book, happens in this week’s time.
The narrative portrays beautifully connects reality with fiction and hence, it was so easy to get into the characters’ shoes. Being acquainted with the places also helps. While Nayan comes across as a loving and caring husband and was also the most developed character in the book; for an activist, Kobita comes across a bit aloof and dominating, maybe because she was missing in half of the story. Even when through the narrative we get to know that Nayan and Kobita have had a good marriage, it isn’t exactly shown.
The pace of the book is relaxed and steady. Nowhere, does the pace quicken, it stays the same throughout the story. The narrative leaves off a feeling of melancholy.
POESY IN CHRYSALIS RATING : ⭐⭐⭐.8 / ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
For more reviews and bookish posts, follow my blog at www.poesyinchrysalis.wordpress.com. For review enquiries, write to me at query.sohinee@gmail.com
April 30, 2018
“Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans read the book. And then there are books, which you can’t tell people about, books so special and rare and yours, that advertising your affection feels like betrayal”, John Green.
After much long-waited anticipation, when I finally finished reading Sumana Roy’s new book, ‘Missing’, my emotions were almost similar to what John Green wrote about books. I was convinced that this book would induce some change in every one who reads it. But at the same time, I was unable to detach myself or rather ‘come out’ of the book completely so as to write about it. I had internalized this book or rather the book had engulfed me completely by the time I finished reading it.
About the author:
Sumana Roy is a writer and academic who lives in Siliguri in sub-Himalayan Bengal and has numerous poems and essays to her credit. Her first book, ‘How I became a tree’ was fabulous with original and brilliant observations about tree life. Her new novel, Missing is no different.
Setting of the novel:
‘Missing’ is set in Siliguri, which is a ‘city’ (according to Wikipedia) on the banks of river Mahananda. I have never visited Siliguri and my impression of the place was exclusively based on Sumana Roy’s words in an essay, as a ‘tiny town in north Bengal which had never found a home in any book she had read’. As far as I am concerned, this is the first book that I am reading about Siliguri. I did not know that Siliguri was the gateway to the North Eastern states nor was I aware of Siliguri Corridor or Chicken’s neck, a narrow stretch of land connecting the rest of India to the North Eastern states. (I studied History only till 10th class and I was foolish to believe what was taught and ended up equating West Bengal only with Kolkata). The author clearly knows that ‘devil is in the detail’ and with her efforts Siliguri has found a permanent place in a reader’s heart. (I am sure about mine!).
The story:
The story is about a blind poet, Nayan, who is waiting to hear from his wife, Kobita, after she leaves to Guwahati in an effort to render justice to a molested girl. They have a son, Kabir, who is doing ‘research’ in England, on Hill Cart road, which connects Siliguri to Darjeeling. The story evolves slowly as conversations and interactions between Nayan and others in the house, like carpenter Bimal- da, his granddaughter Tushi, helper Ahmed and driver Shibu. The novel is not a thriller, but it does evoke a sense of anxiety in the reader making it difficult to abandon it mid way even for a few minutes. The novel is a detailed depiction of events that happen over 7 days in the month of July, in 2012.
Kobita:
In the novel, the reader does not come ‘face to face’ with Kobita except when she appears in somebody else’s thoughts. Kobita ‘was’ (because Kobita goes missing in the novel from the beginning and everything we understand about her becomes her past) an academic who believed in the goodness of human beings. She never hesitated to employ even migrants and was concerned about everybody’s well being. I feel the author has rightly named the blind poet’s wife as Kobita. Kobita means poetry and perhaps for Nayan the poet, poetry and Kobita served as the only links to the outside world. But when she went missing, even her ‘liberal’ husband, Nayan, ended up thinking, “People who want justice for the world are the ones who are most unjust at home” and got angry with her for having gone away. When a woman goes missing, people start speculating about the cause and find contentment in identifying a cause which suits their imagination. Bimal- da, the carpenter, does not hesitate to point his fingers at Nayan for letting his wife go to Guwahati in spite of the floods and violent situation there. He even ends up telling, ‘ See what disobedience did to Sita. A wise husband must draw that line for his wife. This is also a form of love’. This book raises some existential questions about love, marriage and relationships. Can restricting or limiting an adult be considered as an action of love? Is ‘youthful spontaneous parenting’ more beneficial than conventional safe parenting? Is there a need to analyze every single thought logically? Is dying less interesting compared to disappearing?
What I loved about Missing:
Sumana Roy has effortlessly portrayed the new age obsession with ‘news’ and information. What is fed to us as truth is not even a reflection of truth and there is no way to know the ‘absolute truth’ in any situation. What comes printed in a newspaper comes after being filtered at multiple levels. Imagination of a single person could end up creating news. The novel ends with Kabir quoting his mother, Kobita, “Hardly anything that is published in the newspaper these days is true”.
The author has taken ample effort to document the lives, thoughts and conversations of otherwise ‘unremarkable’ people whose stories usually get diluted in the stories of ‘more important’ people. The book demands a discussion on issues like migration and social stigmatization based on caste, religion, nationality, skin disease (leukoderma) and disability. In many instances, the novel serves as a mirror to our own conscience.
The deliberate slow pace of story telling makes the reader experience the restlessness and anxiety of Nayan, while waiting for his wife to return. Even in a grave situation like that, there is a scope for genuine humour, which Sumana Roy has utilized well. The tone of narration is even and does not judge anybody based on what they think.
I would have loved to see a simple pictorial representation of Siliguri with the roads, shops and market places marked. I feel, there is an underrepresentation of conversations between two women in this novel. I am wondering what Tushi would have spoken to her grandmother and Shibu’s wife. A change in the colour scheme of the book cover would have prevented the author’s name ‘appear missing’ from it!
After much long-waited anticipation, when I finally finished reading Sumana Roy’s new book, ‘Missing’, my emotions were almost similar to what John Green wrote about books. I was convinced that this book would induce some change in every one who reads it. But at the same time, I was unable to detach myself or rather ‘come out’ of the book completely so as to write about it. I had internalized this book or rather the book had engulfed me completely by the time I finished reading it.
About the author:
Sumana Roy is a writer and academic who lives in Siliguri in sub-Himalayan Bengal and has numerous poems and essays to her credit. Her first book, ‘How I became a tree’ was fabulous with original and brilliant observations about tree life. Her new novel, Missing is no different.
Setting of the novel:
‘Missing’ is set in Siliguri, which is a ‘city’ (according to Wikipedia) on the banks of river Mahananda. I have never visited Siliguri and my impression of the place was exclusively based on Sumana Roy’s words in an essay, as a ‘tiny town in north Bengal which had never found a home in any book she had read’. As far as I am concerned, this is the first book that I am reading about Siliguri. I did not know that Siliguri was the gateway to the North Eastern states nor was I aware of Siliguri Corridor or Chicken’s neck, a narrow stretch of land connecting the rest of India to the North Eastern states. (I studied History only till 10th class and I was foolish to believe what was taught and ended up equating West Bengal only with Kolkata). The author clearly knows that ‘devil is in the detail’ and with her efforts Siliguri has found a permanent place in a reader’s heart. (I am sure about mine!).
The story:
The story is about a blind poet, Nayan, who is waiting to hear from his wife, Kobita, after she leaves to Guwahati in an effort to render justice to a molested girl. They have a son, Kabir, who is doing ‘research’ in England, on Hill Cart road, which connects Siliguri to Darjeeling. The story evolves slowly as conversations and interactions between Nayan and others in the house, like carpenter Bimal- da, his granddaughter Tushi, helper Ahmed and driver Shibu. The novel is not a thriller, but it does evoke a sense of anxiety in the reader making it difficult to abandon it mid way even for a few minutes. The novel is a detailed depiction of events that happen over 7 days in the month of July, in 2012.
Kobita:
In the novel, the reader does not come ‘face to face’ with Kobita except when she appears in somebody else’s thoughts. Kobita ‘was’ (because Kobita goes missing in the novel from the beginning and everything we understand about her becomes her past) an academic who believed in the goodness of human beings. She never hesitated to employ even migrants and was concerned about everybody’s well being. I feel the author has rightly named the blind poet’s wife as Kobita. Kobita means poetry and perhaps for Nayan the poet, poetry and Kobita served as the only links to the outside world. But when she went missing, even her ‘liberal’ husband, Nayan, ended up thinking, “People who want justice for the world are the ones who are most unjust at home” and got angry with her for having gone away. When a woman goes missing, people start speculating about the cause and find contentment in identifying a cause which suits their imagination. Bimal- da, the carpenter, does not hesitate to point his fingers at Nayan for letting his wife go to Guwahati in spite of the floods and violent situation there. He even ends up telling, ‘ See what disobedience did to Sita. A wise husband must draw that line for his wife. This is also a form of love’. This book raises some existential questions about love, marriage and relationships. Can restricting or limiting an adult be considered as an action of love? Is ‘youthful spontaneous parenting’ more beneficial than conventional safe parenting? Is there a need to analyze every single thought logically? Is dying less interesting compared to disappearing?
What I loved about Missing:
Sumana Roy has effortlessly portrayed the new age obsession with ‘news’ and information. What is fed to us as truth is not even a reflection of truth and there is no way to know the ‘absolute truth’ in any situation. What comes printed in a newspaper comes after being filtered at multiple levels. Imagination of a single person could end up creating news. The novel ends with Kabir quoting his mother, Kobita, “Hardly anything that is published in the newspaper these days is true”.
The author has taken ample effort to document the lives, thoughts and conversations of otherwise ‘unremarkable’ people whose stories usually get diluted in the stories of ‘more important’ people. The book demands a discussion on issues like migration and social stigmatization based on caste, religion, nationality, skin disease (leukoderma) and disability. In many instances, the novel serves as a mirror to our own conscience.
The deliberate slow pace of story telling makes the reader experience the restlessness and anxiety of Nayan, while waiting for his wife to return. Even in a grave situation like that, there is a scope for genuine humour, which Sumana Roy has utilized well. The tone of narration is even and does not judge anybody based on what they think.
I would have loved to see a simple pictorial representation of Siliguri with the roads, shops and market places marked. I feel, there is an underrepresentation of conversations between two women in this novel. I am wondering what Tushi would have spoken to her grandmother and Shibu’s wife. A change in the colour scheme of the book cover would have prevented the author’s name ‘appear missing’ from it!
July 19, 2018
Missing is an account of 7 days in the life of a blind poet, named Nayan, while his wife goes missing. Set in Bengal, Missing is a study of the relationships and the society that is constituted of these relationships.
The premises of the novel is very interesting. It is quite enticing and one expects a very compelling and engrossing narrative. And so it is, at least till the mid of the novel. But after that point, one starts losing interest because nothing crucial happens- there is no news of Kobita. But somehow the reader is still eager to discover Kobita and Nayan’s fate and so one keeps on reading.
There’s very little that the story has to offer. But it is the commentary on the social and political system that the author makes in the process of telling this story that forms the core of this novel. She shows how newspapers have become so unreliable and a mere tool for propagating political agendas. By taking the readers into the house of a common man- a blind common man, she presents a perspective that is seldom found anywhere.
Besides the 3-4 characters mentioned in the blurb, there are some other important characters too. More than the characters, it is their words that are important- the words that establish them as a representative of some social group and thus provide a social critique of sorts. So if you expect this book to be just a story about a blind man whose wife goes missing, while his son is studying abroad, then you are mistaken. And so I was.
To be honest, I didn’t enjoy this book much. Because it turned out to be something different from what I expected it to be. The one thing that I really wanted to know more about is the research project of Kabir and the whole story associated with it. But it was abandoned just like our own projects are abandoned when something life altering happens.
Throughout the novel, there runs a parallel between Sita and Kobita. This whole thing makes us question our interprestaion of theRamayana. What I liked the most about the book is the author’s writing style. I don’t think I have read something like this before. So I think one should go into this novel without paying much attention to the blurb.
My Rating: ****(3.5/5)
The premises of the novel is very interesting. It is quite enticing and one expects a very compelling and engrossing narrative. And so it is, at least till the mid of the novel. But after that point, one starts losing interest because nothing crucial happens- there is no news of Kobita. But somehow the reader is still eager to discover Kobita and Nayan’s fate and so one keeps on reading.
There’s very little that the story has to offer. But it is the commentary on the social and political system that the author makes in the process of telling this story that forms the core of this novel. She shows how newspapers have become so unreliable and a mere tool for propagating political agendas. By taking the readers into the house of a common man- a blind common man, she presents a perspective that is seldom found anywhere.
Besides the 3-4 characters mentioned in the blurb, there are some other important characters too. More than the characters, it is their words that are important- the words that establish them as a representative of some social group and thus provide a social critique of sorts. So if you expect this book to be just a story about a blind man whose wife goes missing, while his son is studying abroad, then you are mistaken. And so I was.
To be honest, I didn’t enjoy this book much. Because it turned out to be something different from what I expected it to be. The one thing that I really wanted to know more about is the research project of Kabir and the whole story associated with it. But it was abandoned just like our own projects are abandoned when something life altering happens.
Throughout the novel, there runs a parallel between Sita and Kobita. This whole thing makes us question our interprestaion of theRamayana. What I liked the most about the book is the author’s writing style. I don’t think I have read something like this before. So I think one should go into this novel without paying much attention to the blurb.
My Rating: ****(3.5/5)
August 13, 2018
Never judge a book by it's cover and by it's TITLE. When I first picked up Missing , I felt this would be a crime fiction where the main protagonist goes missing and we are on a lookout. The blurb pretty much cleared my imagination but as the story progressed and I went on flipping pages , I realized how deceptive titles can be. But does that mean I didn't like the book ? Read further to find out.
The blurb blows out a lot and frames an image in your mind of what you can expect in the book. The narration starts in 2012 when Kobita , a social activist woman travels to Guwahati from Siliguri in search of a missing girl who was molested leaving behind Nayan , her husband and a visually impaired poet. She also leaves behind some set of instructions to be followed for the carpenter to make a new bed before she comes back. Nayan , due to his condition has to blindly depend on other people.
And one fine day , Kobita stops calling. A tensed rather scared Nayan wants to find out about his wife but it can't do so without the help of people around him. He knows how much his wife would have dismissed the idea of lodging a missing complaint in the police station and he resorts to informing his son Kabir who stays in England about the same. The whole story runs in seven days and throughout the story the main element that we have is "missing" . The story is not about the girl who went missing or Kobita who went missing but the feeling that Nayan feels while Kobita is away. Yes , it's about Nayan missing Kobita.
The pace and the lucidity in the story remains constant with no major change in the narrative or the tension brewing up. The story goes on calmly and we sense Kobita in the whole plot yet we never hear from her. The characterization of each character has a crucial role to play and together they form the whole story , bit by bit. I loved the character of Nayan , a dearly loving husband and a strong male. Kobita , on the other hand is a dominating woman which goes perfectly with the nature of her job of being a social activist.
A beautifully crafted story and written in a way that the novel will leave an ever lasting absorbing impact on you. Must pick this one. Recommended.
The blurb blows out a lot and frames an image in your mind of what you can expect in the book. The narration starts in 2012 when Kobita , a social activist woman travels to Guwahati from Siliguri in search of a missing girl who was molested leaving behind Nayan , her husband and a visually impaired poet. She also leaves behind some set of instructions to be followed for the carpenter to make a new bed before she comes back. Nayan , due to his condition has to blindly depend on other people.
And one fine day , Kobita stops calling. A tensed rather scared Nayan wants to find out about his wife but it can't do so without the help of people around him. He knows how much his wife would have dismissed the idea of lodging a missing complaint in the police station and he resorts to informing his son Kabir who stays in England about the same. The whole story runs in seven days and throughout the story the main element that we have is "missing" . The story is not about the girl who went missing or Kobita who went missing but the feeling that Nayan feels while Kobita is away. Yes , it's about Nayan missing Kobita.
The pace and the lucidity in the story remains constant with no major change in the narrative or the tension brewing up. The story goes on calmly and we sense Kobita in the whole plot yet we never hear from her. The characterization of each character has a crucial role to play and together they form the whole story , bit by bit. I loved the character of Nayan , a dearly loving husband and a strong male. Kobita , on the other hand is a dominating woman which goes perfectly with the nature of her job of being a social activist.
A beautifully crafted story and written in a way that the novel will leave an ever lasting absorbing impact on you. Must pick this one. Recommended.
March 14, 2019
This will become a classic in the years to come.
September 30, 2019
An interesting story about relationship between an older couple, the woman goes out to take up a cause, is missing for 12 days, and how the husband, the son and others around them interpret the relationship
April 20, 2018
Are you a feminist ? If yes, read it.If not, do read it.
এই লেখাটির মাধ্যমে খুব সহজেই সুমনা রায় অনেক বিষয় পরিষ্কার করে দিয়েছে | দৈনন্দিন জীবনে ঘটে যাওয়া অনেক ঘটনা এবং আমাদের কে ঘিরে প্রতিনিয়ত একটা বাণিজ্য ও বিপণনের খেলা চলছে তার অদ্ভুত একটা উদাহরণ "missing" | এই বাণিজ্য/বিপণন/প্রপাগান্ডায় ঘেরা দুনিয়া শুধু বেচা-কেনার খেলা নই, হাট-বাজার, সকালের চা, রবিবারের মাংস নই-এতে ক্রমে হারিয়ে যাচ্ছে মনুষত্ব এবং ধীরে ধীরে মানুষ ও তার মূল্যবোধ |
লেখাটার প্রেক্ষাপট শিলিগুড়ি এবং তার আসে পাশের অঞ্চল নিয়ে | প্রতিটি পাতা কিন্তু পাঠক বন্ধুদের একটা প্রশ্নের মুখে ফেলে দেবে | সত্যি কি নিরুদ্দেশ হয়ে যায় একজন মানুষ না হারিয়ে যাই একটা সত্তা, একটা মূল্যবোধ, ভাবনা | এখানে আমরা দেখতে পাই এক উচ্চ মধ্য বিত্ত পরিবারের গল্প | নয়নের(A blind poet) স্ত্রী কবিতা নিখোঁজ, পাওয়া যাচ্ছে না তাকে (আসামে দাঙ্গা লাগার পর থেকে) | কবিতা কে ঘিরে নয়ন'র জীবন , এবং তার অনুপস্তিথি কি ভাবে তাড়িয়ে বেড়াচ্ছে তাকে | তা কি শুধুই একজন অন্ধ মানুষের অসহায়তা না হটাৎ অভ্যেসের বাইরের জীবনে এসে অবলম্বনকে ফিরিয়ে আনার একটা অক্লান্ত প্রয়াস |
রামায়ণ 'র দিক দিয়ে বিচার করলে- আমরা দেখতে পাই নারী জাতিকে এবং তাকে ঘিরে অজস্র পুরুষকে | সেখানে রাম আছে, সীতা আছে(যে এখানে নিখোঁজ) এবং আছে বানর সেনা ও তাদের অজস্র মতদেশ | তাদের আচার-আচরণ আলাদা, ধর্ম আলাদা, রূপ-বস্ত্র আলাদা কিন্তু তাদের ভাবনা চিন্তা একজন নারী কে নিয়ে, তার আধিকার কে নিয়ে, তার ব্যবহার নিয়ে কোথাও যেন একই ভাবে ভাবিয়ে তোলে , এক ঝটকায় ফিরিয়ে আনে পাঠকদের বর্তমানে | এই কবির, বিমলদা, আহমেদ, শিবু যেন সব চেনা | আজকের দিনে দাঁড়িয়ে এই লেখা যথেষ্ট প্রযোজ্য এবং প্রাসঙ্গিক | লেখার মাধ্যমে আমরা ভিবিন্ন বিষয় জানতেও পারি, সুমনা রায়'র লেখার মধ্যে অদ্ভুত একটা প্রাণ শক্তি আছে | এই উপন্যাসে সেটা আরো বিশাল ভাবে দেখা গেছে | এখানে ক্যারেক্টার গুলো খুব জীবন্ত, এই না-বাচক জীবনটা আমাদের আষ্টে-পিষ্টে ধরেছে, ঠিক আমাদের আসে-পাশের অনেক চেনা-শোনা লোকের মতো, তাদের ওঠা বসা, রোজকার ঘেন্না, স্বাজাতিকতা, বর্ণ-বিদ্বেষ, খোশামোদ খুব সহজেই আমাদের বাস্তবের সাথে পরিচয় করিয়ে দেয় | সেখানে পুরুষ জাতির জীবনের প্রধান কর্তব্য হিসেবে মেয়েদের প্রতিদিনের শিখিয়ে দেওয়া বাধ্যবাধকতা,আচরণ বিধি চোখে আঙ্গুল দিয়ে দেখিয়ে দেয় শুধু শিলিগুড়ি নই এ আমাদের সমাজের গল্প, সমাজের প্রতিটি স্তরের গল্প, শিক্ষিত-অশিক্ষিত'র গল্প | এর কোনো শেষ নাই, এর কোনো সীমানা নাই | নিখোঁজ হয়েছে আমাদের সত্তা, আমাদের মনুষত্ব ; কবিতার মতো হাজার হাজার মেয়ে, টুশির মতো অনেক মেয়েরই স্বপ্ন ভেঙে গেছে খুব গোড়াতেই | তার কোনো হাদিস পাওয়া যাই নি, বা খুব সহজেই মরে গিয়েও বেঁচে থাকে তারা সমাজের মধ্যেই-একজন অস্তিত্বহীন সত্তা হিসেবে |
লেখার কিছু কিছু বিশেষ জায়গা উল্লেখ করতেই হয়-
কবিরের বিদেশে গিয়ে পিএইচডি করা নিয়ে, এবং তাও হিল-কোর্ট রোড'র উপর | বাস্তব জীবন থেকে অনেকটা দূরে থাকা একটা মানুষ কে নিয়ে, অনেকটা সময় তাকে দেখা গেছে ফিলিপ'র জীবন , তার চিঠি নিয়ে বেশি ব্যস্ত থাকায় | থিসিস বিষয় বস্তু ক্রমশ তাকে রিয়ালিটি থেকে দূরে ঠেলে দিয়েছে, দোষারোপের খেলায় সে যেন একাই লভ-কুশ |
প্রতিদিনের বেঁচে থাকায় সংগীতের একটা বিশেষ গুরুত্ব আছে এবং সেটা এই গল্পে খুব সুন্দর ভাবেই বুঝিয়েছেন লেখক | অমিত চৌধুরীর কথা মনে পড়ে যায় |
বাঙালির জীবনে সময়-অসময়ে ভোজন-বিলাসীর মূল্যটা(আরতি মিষ্টান্ন ভান্ডার পড়ে মনটা কেমন করে উঠেছিল) , সমাজে জীবিকা, নাম, ধর্ম দিয়ে চেনা মানুষদের প্রতি আমাদের পূর্ব কল্পিত ধারণা গুলো , এবং অবশ্যই সাংবাদিকতা ও তাকে ঘিরে ঠিক-বেঠিকের একটা গোলক ধাঁধা |
বইটি পড়বেন গল্পের জন্য নই, ছুটির দিনে কোনো থ্রিলার জন্য নই, আসে পাশের মানুষগুলো, প্রতিদিনের মানুষ গুলো, ভালোবাসার মানুষ গুলো কে আরেকটু বেশি করে চেনার জন্য |
ঠিক যেন সীতার মতনই,বা আমার চেনা-জানা অনেক মেয়ের মুখ ভেসে উঠছে আর মনে পড়ছে এই লেখাটা(এই বই থেকেই )-
"I'd like to live underwater' she said, suddenly turning back to face them ,'I've lived on land for far too long "
এই লেখাটির মাধ্যমে খুব সহজেই সুমনা রায় অনেক বিষয় পরিষ্কার করে দিয়েছে | দৈনন্দিন জীবনে ঘটে যাওয়া অনেক ঘটনা এবং আমাদের কে ঘিরে প্রতিনিয়ত একটা বাণিজ্য ও বিপণনের খেলা চলছে তার অদ্ভুত একটা উদাহরণ "missing" | এই বাণিজ্য/বিপণন/প্রপাগান্ডায় ঘেরা দুনিয়া শুধু বেচা-কেনার খেলা নই, হাট-বাজার, সকালের চা, রবিবারের মাংস নই-এতে ক্রমে হারিয়ে যাচ্ছে মনুষত্ব এবং ধীরে ধীরে মানুষ ও তার মূল্যবোধ |
লেখাটার প্রেক্ষাপট শিলিগুড়ি এবং তার আসে পাশের অঞ্চল নিয়ে | প্রতিটি পাতা কিন্তু পাঠক বন্ধুদের একটা প্রশ্নের মুখে ফেলে দেবে | সত্যি কি নিরুদ্দেশ হয়ে যায় একজন মানুষ না হারিয়ে যাই একটা সত্তা, একটা মূল্যবোধ, ভাবনা | এখানে আমরা দেখতে পাই এক উচ্চ মধ্য বিত্ত পরিবারের গল্প | নয়নের(A blind poet) স্ত্রী কবিতা নিখোঁজ, পাওয়া যাচ্ছে না তাকে (আসামে দাঙ্গা লাগার পর থেকে) | কবিতা কে ঘিরে নয়ন'র জীবন , এবং তার অনুপস্তিথি কি ভাবে তাড়িয়ে বেড়াচ্ছে তাকে | তা কি শুধুই একজন অন্ধ মানুষের অসহায়তা না হটাৎ অভ্যেসের বাইরের জীবনে এসে অবলম্বনকে ফিরিয়ে আনার একটা অক্লান্ত প্রয়াস |
রামায়ণ 'র দিক দিয়ে বিচার করলে- আমরা দেখতে পাই নারী জাতিকে এবং তাকে ঘিরে অজস্র পুরুষকে | সেখানে রাম আছে, সীতা আছে(যে এখানে নিখোঁজ) এবং আছে বানর সেনা ও তাদের অজস্র মতদেশ | তাদের আচার-আচরণ আলাদা, ধর্ম আলাদা, রূপ-বস্ত্র আলাদা কিন্তু তাদের ভাবনা চিন্তা একজন নারী কে নিয়ে, তার আধিকার কে নিয়ে, তার ব্যবহার নিয়ে কোথাও যেন একই ভাবে ভাবিয়ে তোলে , এক ঝটকায় ফিরিয়ে আনে পাঠকদের বর্তমানে | এই কবির, বিমলদা, আহমেদ, শিবু যেন সব চেনা | আজকের দিনে দাঁড়িয়ে এই লেখা যথেষ্ট প্রযোজ্য এবং প্রাসঙ্গিক | লেখার মাধ্যমে আমরা ভিবিন্ন বিষয় জানতেও পারি, সুমনা রায়'র লেখার মধ্যে অদ্ভুত একটা প্রাণ শক্তি আছে | এই উপন্যাসে সেটা আরো বিশাল ভাবে দেখা গেছে | এখানে ক্যারেক্টার গুলো খুব জীবন্ত, এই না-বাচক জীবনটা আমাদের আষ্টে-পিষ্টে ধরেছে, ঠিক আমাদের আসে-পাশের অনেক চেনা-শোনা লোকের মতো, তাদের ওঠা বসা, রোজকার ঘেন্না, স্বাজাতিকতা, বর্ণ-বিদ্বেষ, খোশামোদ খুব সহজেই আমাদের বাস্তবের সাথে পরিচয় করিয়ে দেয় | সেখানে পুরুষ জাতির জীবনের প্রধান কর্তব্য হিসেবে মেয়েদের প্রতিদিনের শিখিয়ে দেওয়া বাধ্যবাধকতা,আচরণ বিধি চোখে আঙ্গুল দিয়ে দেখিয়ে দেয় শুধু শিলিগুড়ি নই এ আমাদের সমাজের গল্প, সমাজের প্রতিটি স্তরের গল্প, শিক্ষিত-অশিক্ষিত'র গল্প | এর কোনো শেষ নাই, এর কোনো সীমানা নাই | নিখোঁজ হয়েছে আমাদের সত্তা, আমাদের মনুষত্ব ; কবিতার মতো হাজার হাজার মেয়ে, টুশির মতো অনেক মেয়েরই স্বপ্ন ভেঙে গেছে খুব গোড়াতেই | তার কোনো হাদিস পাওয়া যাই নি, বা খুব সহজেই মরে গিয়েও বেঁচে থাকে তারা সমাজের মধ্যেই-একজন অস্তিত্বহীন সত্তা হিসেবে |
লেখার কিছু কিছু বিশেষ জায়গা উল্লেখ করতেই হয়-
কবিরের বিদেশে গিয়ে পিএইচডি করা নিয়ে, এবং তাও হিল-কোর্ট রোড'র উপর | বাস্তব জীবন থেকে অনেকটা দূরে থাকা একটা মানুষ কে নিয়ে, অনেকটা সময় তাকে দেখা গেছে ফিলিপ'র জীবন , তার চিঠি নিয়ে বেশি ব্যস্ত থাকায় | থিসিস বিষয় বস্তু ক্রমশ তাকে রিয়ালিটি থেকে দূরে ঠেলে দিয়েছে, দোষারোপের খেলায় সে যেন একাই লভ-কুশ |
প্রতিদিনের বেঁচে থাকায় সংগীতের একটা বিশেষ গুরুত্ব আছে এবং সেটা এই গল্পে খুব সুন্দর ভাবেই বুঝিয়েছেন লেখক | অমিত চৌধুরীর কথা মনে পড়ে যায় |
বাঙালির জীবনে সময়-অসময়ে ভোজন-বিলাসীর মূল্যটা(আরতি মিষ্টান্ন ভান্ডার পড়ে মনটা কেমন করে উঠেছিল) , সমাজে জীবিকা, নাম, ধর্ম দিয়ে চেনা মানুষদের প্রতি আমাদের পূর্ব কল্পিত ধারণা গুলো , এবং অবশ্যই সাংবাদিকতা ও তাকে ঘিরে ঠিক-বেঠিকের একটা গোলক ধাঁধা |
বইটি পড়বেন গল্পের জন্য নই, ছুটির দিনে কোনো থ্রিলার জন্য নই, আসে পাশের মানুষগুলো, প্রতিদিনের মানুষ গুলো, ভালোবাসার মানুষ গুলো কে আরেকটু বেশি করে চেনার জন্য |
ঠিক যেন সীতার মতনই,বা আমার চেনা-জানা অনেক মেয়ের মুখ ভেসে উঠছে আর মনে পড়ছে এই লেখাটা(এই বই থেকেই )-
"I'd like to live underwater' she said, suddenly turning back to face them ,'I've lived on land for far too long "
July 6, 2024
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