What do you think?
Rate this book
Half the Night is Gone
The celebrated Hindi novelist Vishwanath is heartbroken by the recent loss of his son in an accident. The tragedy spurs him to write a novel set in the household of Lala Motichand. It follows the lives of the wealthy lala and his three sons: Self-confident Dinanath, the true heir to Motichand’s mercantile temperament, lonely Diwanchand, uninterested in business and steeped in poetry; and illegitimate Makhan Lal, a Marx-loving schoolteacher kept to the periphery of his father’s life. In an illuminating act of self-reflection, Vishwanath, the son of a cook for a rich sethji, also tells the story of the lala’s personal servant, Mange Ram and his son, Parsadi. Fatherhood, brotherhood and childhood, love, loyalty and poetry all come to the fore as sons and servants await the lala’s death. By writing about mortality and family, Vishwanath confronts the wreckage of his own life while seeking to make sense of the new India that came into being after independence. Spellbinding and penetrating, Half the Night Is Gone raises questions of religion, literature and society that speak to our fractured times.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published June 30, 2018
49 people are currently reading
2009 people want to read
About the author
Amitabha Bagchi
13 books65 followersAmitabha Bagchi was born in Delhi and went to school there. The last few years of school was a blur of exams - Junior Science Talent Search, National Talent Search, Annual Maths and Physics Olympiads - and coaching classes to prepare for those exams. He finally found himself at IIT Delhi in the summer of 1992 thinking that the worst was over. It wasn't.
Belying the expectations raised by his uninspriring performance at IIT, Amitabha got his PhD in Computer Science in 2002. Then, after loitering around for a couple of years with the nebulous designation of post-doc, he returned to IIT Delhi where he is currently employed as an assistant professor.
Belying the expectations raised by his uninspriring performance at IIT, Amitabha got his PhD in Computer Science in 2002. Then, after loitering around for a couple of years with the nebulous designation of post-doc, he returned to IIT Delhi where he is currently employed as an assistant professor.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 29 of 90 reviews
August 21, 2021
Owing to the hype of this book and it's beautiful cover, as much as I wanted to like and enjoy this book, I was super bored while reading it. I couldn't finish it beyond 50% and I did want to drag myself through a book which I am not enjoying reading.
The writing style is very naïve according to me and felt like I am reading a story from one of the Panchatantra books. :( Did not enjoy this one at all. The characters - Diwanchand & Vishwanath were also annoying to read after a point.
The writing style is very naïve according to me and felt like I am reading a story from one of the Panchatantra books. :( Did not enjoy this one at all. The characters - Diwanchand & Vishwanath were also annoying to read after a point.
April 24, 2020
Half the Night is Gone by Amitabha Bagchi is a gem. No wonder it won the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature last year, and also scored a nomination for the JCB Prize for Literature an year before that. The book revolves around themes of family, love, and forgiveness.
The title is a reference to a famous verse in the Ramcharitmanas, wherein Lord Ram is waiting for Lord Hanuman to return with the 'sanjeevani booti' to save his younger brother's life, saying that it is already past midnight and he hasn't come yet. This specific verse, and the Manas itself, is largely ingrained in the plot of this novel.
Speaking about the plot, it is a story within a story, in which an acclaimed satirist is trying to write a book in a different genre. The book that our protagonist is writing revolves around the family of a rich feudal landlord based in Delhi and his household during the pre-independence era, including the family of a wrestler-turned-servant. On the other hand, the protagonist's life, set in post-independent India, takes a turn when his son turns up dead.
Apart from Tulsidas' epic work, the plot quotes several other works from the Awadhi, Hindi, and Urdu literature. For a lover of poetry, it is like icing on cake!
Verdict: Highly recommended.
The title is a reference to a famous verse in the Ramcharitmanas, wherein Lord Ram is waiting for Lord Hanuman to return with the 'sanjeevani booti' to save his younger brother's life, saying that it is already past midnight and he hasn't come yet. This specific verse, and the Manas itself, is largely ingrained in the plot of this novel.
Speaking about the plot, it is a story within a story, in which an acclaimed satirist is trying to write a book in a different genre. The book that our protagonist is writing revolves around the family of a rich feudal landlord based in Delhi and his household during the pre-independence era, including the family of a wrestler-turned-servant. On the other hand, the protagonist's life, set in post-independent India, takes a turn when his son turns up dead.
Apart from Tulsidas' epic work, the plot quotes several other works from the Awadhi, Hindi, and Urdu literature. For a lover of poetry, it is like icing on cake!
Verdict: Highly recommended.
August 5, 2018
It is after a long time that I am reading a book by an Indian author that is set in the past. This book moves surprisingly fast, ensuring that I finished it in a day.
It is remarkably sensitive in its portrayal of several characters too, and the parallel stories it seeks to narrate work well. I especially liked Amitabha Bagchi's choice of Hindi / Urdu verses that he decided to strew about in the book - they are all both relevant and poetic, and Bagchi does not fall into the trap of seeming to force-fit these verses into his narrative (which alas, is something that happens far too often).
Having completed the book however, I am now left with a feeling that many of its stories are unfinished. The book gave me no closure. This is partly because Bagchi has tried to cover so many themes, spanning more than a century, that it was perhaps not possible to delve into each one of them and create more depth.
However, he has managed to convey beautifully, and with an economy of words, through the eyes of the landlord Lala Motichand, the ideas of family and lineage in his context. The later analogy of the Banyan tree further augments this concept. While things are changing, and such concepts may not be relevant to the extent they were, this still provides a very good peek into the lives and minds of people from a different time and circumstance.
Overall a very engaging read, even if it did leave me feeling a bit disappointed owing to its lack of explanations or closure.
It is remarkably sensitive in its portrayal of several characters too, and the parallel stories it seeks to narrate work well. I especially liked Amitabha Bagchi's choice of Hindi / Urdu verses that he decided to strew about in the book - they are all both relevant and poetic, and Bagchi does not fall into the trap of seeming to force-fit these verses into his narrative (which alas, is something that happens far too often).
Having completed the book however, I am now left with a feeling that many of its stories are unfinished. The book gave me no closure. This is partly because Bagchi has tried to cover so many themes, spanning more than a century, that it was perhaps not possible to delve into each one of them and create more depth.
However, he has managed to convey beautifully, and with an economy of words, through the eyes of the landlord Lala Motichand, the ideas of family and lineage in his context. The later analogy of the Banyan tree further augments this concept. While things are changing, and such concepts may not be relevant to the extent they were, this still provides a very good peek into the lives and minds of people from a different time and circumstance.
Overall a very engaging read, even if it did leave me feeling a bit disappointed owing to its lack of explanations or closure.
November 14, 2019
This is a story within a story:acclaimed Hindi writer Vishwanath is writing his next novel, a shift from his usual writing genre – satire. We are taken through the world of fiction that Vishwanath weaves, a story of a rich feudal landlord and the members of his family and household, set in the years leading to the last vestige of the British rule in India. On another level, Vishwanath’s life unfolds, warts and all and we see him struggling for redemption and forgiveness from the people he has hurt the most: his brother whom he has distanced himself from and his wife who he has burdened with as he pursued his writing.
Dwelling on the nature of family ties and forgiveness, both narratives have common strands: social distinctions, women as victims of social norms and then again,as those who can scheme to get things going their way. The nature of literature and language is another common theme: in the fictional world that Vishwanath creates, much of the narrative revolves around the Ram Charit Manas and the takeaways of love, brotherhood, familial ties, duty and forgiveness while Vishwanath himself dwells on the writings of various Hindi writing stalwarts.
Reading this made me want to really understand the nuances of Hindi literature. A book that has left me searching for the right words to describe, all I can say is read this for sure and enjoy the stories that unravel.
Dwelling on the nature of family ties and forgiveness, both narratives have common strands: social distinctions, women as victims of social norms and then again,as those who can scheme to get things going their way. The nature of literature and language is another common theme: in the fictional world that Vishwanath creates, much of the narrative revolves around the Ram Charit Manas and the takeaways of love, brotherhood, familial ties, duty and forgiveness while Vishwanath himself dwells on the writings of various Hindi writing stalwarts.
Reading this made me want to really understand the nuances of Hindi literature. A book that has left me searching for the right words to describe, all I can say is read this for sure and enjoy the stories that unravel.
Read
July 28, 2018https://indianexpress.com/article/lif...
Is Vishwanath telling a lightly fictionalised story of his own family? We cannot be sure. But there are parts of himself in all those characters, as there must be in the work of any writer. The story of two brothers, but these are not the same two brothers.
The foundations of 20th century India are revealed through the fractures within these twin narratives. We read the story of two families and a nation, of its classes and its schisms, of religious texts and poetry, and its place in the minds of people. The Ramcharitmanas (referred to just as Manas) is at the centre of the narrative, much like the figure of Ram himself has been central to the storm raging through the heart of the nation since the 1980s.
Is Vishwanath telling a lightly fictionalised story of his own family? We cannot be sure. But there are parts of himself in all those characters, as there must be in the work of any writer. The story of two brothers, but these are not the same two brothers.
The foundations of 20th century India are revealed through the fractures within these twin narratives. We read the story of two families and a nation, of its classes and its schisms, of religious texts and poetry, and its place in the minds of people. The Ramcharitmanas (referred to just as Manas) is at the centre of the narrative, much like the figure of Ram himself has been central to the storm raging through the heart of the nation since the 1980s.
September 22, 2018
Half the Night is gone tells the story of the Sahitya Academy winner, Vishwanath who is mourning the death of his son. He is currently writing a story centered around a merchant, Lala Motichand and his household. The author's life as well his story is interweaved in the pages of this book. .
The narration is beautiful, there was never a dull moment. I usually don't like much descriptions, but I loved this. I don't think I can write a review which will do justice to the book 😍😍😍😍. It was easy to connect to the characters.This story will remain close to my heart
The narration is beautiful, there was never a dull moment. I usually don't like much descriptions, but I loved this. I don't think I can write a review which will do justice to the book 😍😍😍😍. It was easy to connect to the characters.This story will remain close to my heart
December 22, 2018
35th Book of 2018
Quote from the Book I Liked - 'Acclaim is the sun that a plant needs to give the flower, perhaps, but if its roots are not nourished in the Darkness below, the same sun will shivel the plant and kill it.' (Page 33)
Rating - 5 Stars
Plot Summary - The celebrated Hindi novelist Vishwanath is heartbroken by the recent loss of his son in an accident. The tragedy spurs him to write a novel set in the household of Lala Motichand. It follows the lives of the wealthy lala and his three sons: Self-confident Dinanath, the true heir to Motichand’s mercantile temperament, lonely Diwanchand, uninterested in business and steeped in poetry; and illegitimate Makhan Lal, a Marx-loving schoolteacher kept to the periphery of his father’s life. In an illuminating act of self-reflection, Vishwanath, the son of a cook for a rich sethji, also tells the story of the Lala's personal servant, Mange Ram and his son, Parsadi. Fatherhood, brotherhood and childhood, love, loyalty and poetry all come to the fore as sons and servants await the Lala's death. By writing about mortality and family, Vishwanath confronts the wreckage of his own life while seeking to make sense of the new India that came into being after independence. Spellbinding and penetrating, Half the Night Is Gone raises questions of religion, literature, and society that speak to our fractured times.
My Review - Shortlisted for '2018 JCB Prize for Literature', the Author tells the tale of 2 different times, one of the present Time (2008) while other sets in the 1900s. Presently he (Poignant who is an Acclaimed Author himself) is in his late age and feels Regret and thinks of all the people he did wrong too and how in his self-engrossing nature to be an Author, let down all the close people he had. He writes letters to his Publisher, Brother, his late son's Girlfriend and most importantly to his loving Wife. He pours down his heart in those letters and tells them about all the wrong things he did and made those people feel bad.
On the contrary, between these letters he proceeds with his upcoming novel after a decade, writing about the relationships between the people of a Big Haveli. Lala Motichand (the head of Family), Dinanath and Diwanchang (his sons), Makhan Lal (his illegitimate son), and various other characters from among servants and their family members too. Lala Motichand being the Head of a renowned Merchant Family from Delhi has a Family Legacy to continue, finds in great torment to have 2 sons who one day may fight for their part in the Family's Treasure.
The book revolves around these characters and their Emotional phase, going in deep descriptive narrations of Emotions and Feelings of each character is what made me fall for this book. As a Great Observer of Human emotions and their nature myself, I found this book deeply Intriguing and left me in a Trance whenever I read part of this book. Along with this, the addition of many Poetic verses and Shee'rs of Great Urdu poets and inclusiveness of Ramcharitra manas left me Spellbound. This book will be read by me many many times more as this Book is one of a Kind that embossed its presence deep in my Heart.
(P.S. - I think I have a thing for Bengali Writers, their writing takes me to place completely Unknown to me yet which feels familiar and keeps me in Trance. Initially, it was only felt to me when I read 'The Hungry Tide' by Amitav Ghose but its now with the writing of Amitabha Bagchi too. Hoping to read more of such Quality Work.)
Conclusion - One of the best books read in 2018. Connects Instantly and now one of My favorites.
Full Review on Blog.
Link to Blog - The Tales of Fugitive Biker
Quote from the Book I Liked - 'Acclaim is the sun that a plant needs to give the flower, perhaps, but if its roots are not nourished in the Darkness below, the same sun will shivel the plant and kill it.' (Page 33)
Rating - 5 Stars
Plot Summary - The celebrated Hindi novelist Vishwanath is heartbroken by the recent loss of his son in an accident. The tragedy spurs him to write a novel set in the household of Lala Motichand. It follows the lives of the wealthy lala and his three sons: Self-confident Dinanath, the true heir to Motichand’s mercantile temperament, lonely Diwanchand, uninterested in business and steeped in poetry; and illegitimate Makhan Lal, a Marx-loving schoolteacher kept to the periphery of his father’s life. In an illuminating act of self-reflection, Vishwanath, the son of a cook for a rich sethji, also tells the story of the Lala's personal servant, Mange Ram and his son, Parsadi. Fatherhood, brotherhood and childhood, love, loyalty and poetry all come to the fore as sons and servants await the Lala's death. By writing about mortality and family, Vishwanath confronts the wreckage of his own life while seeking to make sense of the new India that came into being after independence. Spellbinding and penetrating, Half the Night Is Gone raises questions of religion, literature, and society that speak to our fractured times.
My Review - Shortlisted for '2018 JCB Prize for Literature', the Author tells the tale of 2 different times, one of the present Time (2008) while other sets in the 1900s. Presently he (Poignant who is an Acclaimed Author himself) is in his late age and feels Regret and thinks of all the people he did wrong too and how in his self-engrossing nature to be an Author, let down all the close people he had. He writes letters to his Publisher, Brother, his late son's Girlfriend and most importantly to his loving Wife. He pours down his heart in those letters and tells them about all the wrong things he did and made those people feel bad.
On the contrary, between these letters he proceeds with his upcoming novel after a decade, writing about the relationships between the people of a Big Haveli. Lala Motichand (the head of Family), Dinanath and Diwanchang (his sons), Makhan Lal (his illegitimate son), and various other characters from among servants and their family members too. Lala Motichand being the Head of a renowned Merchant Family from Delhi has a Family Legacy to continue, finds in great torment to have 2 sons who one day may fight for their part in the Family's Treasure.
The book revolves around these characters and their Emotional phase, going in deep descriptive narrations of Emotions and Feelings of each character is what made me fall for this book. As a Great Observer of Human emotions and their nature myself, I found this book deeply Intriguing and left me in a Trance whenever I read part of this book. Along with this, the addition of many Poetic verses and Shee'rs of Great Urdu poets and inclusiveness of Ramcharitra manas left me Spellbound. This book will be read by me many many times more as this Book is one of a Kind that embossed its presence deep in my Heart.
(P.S. - I think I have a thing for Bengali Writers, their writing takes me to place completely Unknown to me yet which feels familiar and keeps me in Trance. Initially, it was only felt to me when I read 'The Hungry Tide' by Amitav Ghose but its now with the writing of Amitabha Bagchi too. Hoping to read more of such Quality Work.)
Conclusion - One of the best books read in 2018. Connects Instantly and now one of My favorites.
Full Review on Blog.
Link to Blog - The Tales of Fugitive Biker
May 28, 2022
“I don’t have any serious problem with the time we live in,I just wish the past didn’t have to go away."
Says one of the characters in the book, a long metaphor that is not just about the haveli in Delhi but about the country that has reinvented itself with a pivot on it's past. Both ambiguous and aspirational, it tries to paint three generations of two families with the evolving country. There are 4 long letters written by a self-flagellating grieving father and author that conquers complex emotions with words. There is a melancholy in the background that kind of lifts the sentences and events that are seemingly trivial - like a boy sucking his thumb and trying to read.
At the centre of the almost-seems-like-translation book (which speaks English as a native Hindi speaker would) is the Ramcharitramanas - the poetic tale of Ram, Lakshman and Hanuman that tries to ascertain meaning and explanation. An interesting couplet is the one below which is the closest to Schrodinger's cat.
“Ardh raati gayi kapi nahi aayau/ Ram uthai anuj ur layau” (Past midnight and the monkey has not returned/ Ram lifted his brother’s prone body and held him to his heart)
The prose is beautiful and the metaphors are so subtle and you can be forgiven for missing it. An Indian trader with 3 sons at the turn of independence - an Anglophilic trader, a spiritual poet/guru and a bastard son leaning left - all factions covered. (and a role less daughter). The men are mere actors and the women are the thinkers and doers. The book also tries to go deep into the spiritual contrasts and the politics of a household.
When too many people call a book great, then you create a resistance for the book - almost a dare to impress you. This book, maybe due to my very high bar of expectation, felt a bit short of a Great book. Definitely a good book worth a read.
Says one of the characters in the book, a long metaphor that is not just about the haveli in Delhi but about the country that has reinvented itself with a pivot on it's past. Both ambiguous and aspirational, it tries to paint three generations of two families with the evolving country. There are 4 long letters written by a self-flagellating grieving father and author that conquers complex emotions with words. There is a melancholy in the background that kind of lifts the sentences and events that are seemingly trivial - like a boy sucking his thumb and trying to read.
At the centre of the almost-seems-like-translation book (which speaks English as a native Hindi speaker would) is the Ramcharitramanas - the poetic tale of Ram, Lakshman and Hanuman that tries to ascertain meaning and explanation. An interesting couplet is the one below which is the closest to Schrodinger's cat.
“Ardh raati gayi kapi nahi aayau/ Ram uthai anuj ur layau” (Past midnight and the monkey has not returned/ Ram lifted his brother’s prone body and held him to his heart)
The prose is beautiful and the metaphors are so subtle and you can be forgiven for missing it. An Indian trader with 3 sons at the turn of independence - an Anglophilic trader, a spiritual poet/guru and a bastard son leaning left - all factions covered. (and a role less daughter). The men are mere actors and the women are the thinkers and doers. The book also tries to go deep into the spiritual contrasts and the politics of a household.
When too many people call a book great, then you create a resistance for the book - almost a dare to impress you. This book, maybe due to my very high bar of expectation, felt a bit short of a Great book. Definitely a good book worth a read.
March 12, 2022
Actual Rating: 4.7 stars
I was thirty-eight when my father died. I learned then that you are never old enough to lose a parent. I learned also that a child is always a child, even when he is a grown man with a wife, his own child, a job and a station of his own in lite, and a parent is alwas a parent. The bitter regret eating away at me today is that athough I learned then that a child is always a child and a parent is always a parent, I did not use this knowledge in the second phase of my life that was inaugurated by the death of my father.
This is one of the most surreal books I have read in the past one year or so, a good contender for the top 10 books of 2022. I must say, when I started reading the book, it was difficult to follow the long sentences, but the prose slowly grows on you and many of the parts, especially when letters are being written by this one character, it transcends into a stream of consciousness read.
The book is one of its kind in the Indian literary fiction space. Should have ideally won awards but was only shortlisted or longlisted for a couple of them. Amitabh Bagchi is a talented author and this book is the proof.
Eventually my pen ran dry and remained dry for more than a decade till the unspeakable news came and jolted a few more drops of ink out of it. I have read a lot in the last year and a half, Bimli, mainly books I have read many times before. But I saw them with new eyes this time. I learned a few things in the process. For one I learned that literature does not arrest the movement of history, perhaps because history works at the level of thousands and millions of people while literature works on one person at a time. Does this mean that literature does not change us into better people? A casual summary of the history of the twentieth century shows that human beings as a species cannot really claim to be a better, more caring, species than they were before it is true, though, that there are many small and big developments to bring hope, and it cannot be said that the great writings and great art that we have produced over centuries has nothing to do with those question developments. So, if literature can bring some change, the way question arises, what is the nature of the literature that can bring change, and what is the scale in terms of time and space in which that change can come?
The only reason this is not a full five from me is because I was assuming the man writing letters to be somewhat connected to the characters of the parallel story, but turns out it is something else all-together. I would have loved to see some form of generational connection between the letters and the ongoing story.
In Conclusion
It is a beautiful piece of literary fiction that is worth the read.
I was thirty-eight when my father died. I learned then that you are never old enough to lose a parent. I learned also that a child is always a child, even when he is a grown man with a wife, his own child, a job and a station of his own in lite, and a parent is alwas a parent. The bitter regret eating away at me today is that athough I learned then that a child is always a child and a parent is always a parent, I did not use this knowledge in the second phase of my life that was inaugurated by the death of my father.
This is one of the most surreal books I have read in the past one year or so, a good contender for the top 10 books of 2022. I must say, when I started reading the book, it was difficult to follow the long sentences, but the prose slowly grows on you and many of the parts, especially when letters are being written by this one character, it transcends into a stream of consciousness read.
The book is one of its kind in the Indian literary fiction space. Should have ideally won awards but was only shortlisted or longlisted for a couple of them. Amitabh Bagchi is a talented author and this book is the proof.
Eventually my pen ran dry and remained dry for more than a decade till the unspeakable news came and jolted a few more drops of ink out of it. I have read a lot in the last year and a half, Bimli, mainly books I have read many times before. But I saw them with new eyes this time. I learned a few things in the process. For one I learned that literature does not arrest the movement of history, perhaps because history works at the level of thousands and millions of people while literature works on one person at a time. Does this mean that literature does not change us into better people? A casual summary of the history of the twentieth century shows that human beings as a species cannot really claim to be a better, more caring, species than they were before it is true, though, that there are many small and big developments to bring hope, and it cannot be said that the great writings and great art that we have produced over centuries has nothing to do with those question developments. So, if literature can bring some change, the way question arises, what is the nature of the literature that can bring change, and what is the scale in terms of time and space in which that change can come?
The only reason this is not a full five from me is because I was assuming the man writing letters to be somewhat connected to the characters of the parallel story, but turns out it is something else all-together. I would have loved to see some form of generational connection between the letters and the ongoing story.
In Conclusion
It is a beautiful piece of literary fiction that is worth the read.
August 5, 2018
Vishwanath is a celebrated Hindi novelist, Sahitya Academy Award winner & his debut novel has been adopted as a tv show, but between all this as he loses his only son to an accident & between all the internal emotional turmoil he is going through, he writes another story. This story is set in pre independence era where we follow the life & household of Lala Motichand. A wealthy merchant with 3 sons, Dinanath being the eldest he understands his responsibilities & is keen to help his father expand their business, then there’s Diwanchand who is more interested in poetry & Tulsidas’ work & lastly there’s his illegitimate son Makhan Lal who is made a schoolteacher by his father in order keep him under his supervision so that he doesn’t cause him any trouble. It also follows the story of their servant Mange Ram & his son Parsadi. Get this book to enter into a whirlwind of emotions ready to sweep you away to the lives of Vishwanath & his characters,
Read the full review on Just Another Bookaholic
Read the full review on Just Another Bookaholic
August 27, 2022
I had a signed hardcover of this for ages before I gave it away to a friend. I had to read it now for an essay so got another copy. For the longest time, judging by reviews and its descriptions, I was afraid that I won't like it at all and that it was not my cup of tea. Hence, I am pleasantly surprised to note that I ended up really really liking it! I will save my insights for the essay.
October 29, 2018
4.5 stars
July 10, 2020
There are a few books that make you question your ideals, your beliefs and make you reflect on the life you have been leading and I think if a book even comes close to that then the book has succeeded. 'Half The Night Is Gone' is one such book. With its eloquent writing, it's exquisite linguistic appeal and it's intensity, this is a book you not just read but savour, relishing it's many flavours as you go.
.
.
#bookreview👇
.
.
"I was thirty eight when my father died. I realised then that you are never old enough to lose a parent."
.
.
'Half The Night Is Gone' is not the story of one but many. The way the author weaves in destiny and choices in the narrative is intriguing. There were many instances in the novel where I felt how 'We only regret the chances we did not take' and others where I felt, rather saw how regret only makes a person hollow.
.
.
This is a story told by the perspective of Vishwanath, a novelist who reflects on his life and setting it as the backdrop pens down a novel that echoes his life more than one. It made me think how clever novelists are to juxtapose their own story with that of one of his characters' and present it as not their own.
There is Lala Motichand and his three sons and there are some bold, beautiful, self aware and strong women. All the characters are brilliantly written, there are many other elements in the novel which Vishwanath writes and each one of them is done justice to. Just like each one of us who finds solace and relatability in stories, Vishwanath too tries doing the same through his novel.
The story draws inspiration from Ramcharitmanas and Bagchi beautifully juxtaposes the ideas and stitches them together. The prose flows like poetry and one of the triumphs of the book is that the picture which Bagchi paints is so powerfully visual at one can actually picturise every scene. Add to that the cultural and linguistic background and profound sentences and that's when you get something as beautiful as this.
.
.
#bookreview👇
.
.
"I was thirty eight when my father died. I realised then that you are never old enough to lose a parent."
.
.
'Half The Night Is Gone' is not the story of one but many. The way the author weaves in destiny and choices in the narrative is intriguing. There were many instances in the novel where I felt how 'We only regret the chances we did not take' and others where I felt, rather saw how regret only makes a person hollow.
.
.
This is a story told by the perspective of Vishwanath, a novelist who reflects on his life and setting it as the backdrop pens down a novel that echoes his life more than one. It made me think how clever novelists are to juxtapose their own story with that of one of his characters' and present it as not their own.
There is Lala Motichand and his three sons and there are some bold, beautiful, self aware and strong women. All the characters are brilliantly written, there are many other elements in the novel which Vishwanath writes and each one of them is done justice to. Just like each one of us who finds solace and relatability in stories, Vishwanath too tries doing the same through his novel.
The story draws inspiration from Ramcharitmanas and Bagchi beautifully juxtaposes the ideas and stitches them together. The prose flows like poetry and one of the triumphs of the book is that the picture which Bagchi paints is so powerfully visual at one can actually picturise every scene. Add to that the cultural and linguistic background and profound sentences and that's when you get something as beautiful as this.
May 21, 2025
Very interesting plotline. But the writing style took me a while to get used to. Such long sentences (some lasted a paragraph) made me forget the context but the amazing couplets shared make up for everything. Great read. It's always amazing to discover new Indian authors and read their work.
November 25, 2019
I first came to know about Half the Night is Gone when its publisher Chiki Sarkar put out a series of tweets about it in late 2017(?). She heralded it as something clearly special, a political novel about language and literature, about history and myth, and at the same time about things all too human as well. I'd bookmarked the tweet, and waited this long to get to it.
She was right. This is an extraordinary novel. Not that I have to say so; it's already on so many lists and has won prizes, and deservedly so.
To me, its quality comes from the fact that though it is written in English, its sensibility and idiom is in every way Hindustani, by which I mean an amalgam of Hindi and Urdu with bits of formal Sanskrit and Awadhi thrown in, like pieces of cashews and almonds in a kulfi.
Even in its long, drawn out sentences that seem to fall over each other before straightening themselves out, I was delighted by the language of Delhi I know well enough to recognise.
Just for the way it is told, this should be a celebrated novel. But the usage of language here is for a reason - the story that Bagchi is telling us is about the language itself, hence the amount of detail. The story is about the things we say and feel, and about the stories that make us who we are. And this I've never seen demonstrated with the weight as it is done here in Half the Night is Gone. I was spellbound by the way Amitabha Bagchi has brought it all together.
There is much more to be written about this novel, but I'll refrain; this may not be the place. But it has been some time since I was so moved by a novel, both by the story it was telling me, and by the stories it wasn't.
Extraordinary.
She was right. This is an extraordinary novel. Not that I have to say so; it's already on so many lists and has won prizes, and deservedly so.
To me, its quality comes from the fact that though it is written in English, its sensibility and idiom is in every way Hindustani, by which I mean an amalgam of Hindi and Urdu with bits of formal Sanskrit and Awadhi thrown in, like pieces of cashews and almonds in a kulfi.
Even in its long, drawn out sentences that seem to fall over each other before straightening themselves out, I was delighted by the language of Delhi I know well enough to recognise.
Just for the way it is told, this should be a celebrated novel. But the usage of language here is for a reason - the story that Bagchi is telling us is about the language itself, hence the amount of detail. The story is about the things we say and feel, and about the stories that make us who we are. And this I've never seen demonstrated with the weight as it is done here in Half the Night is Gone. I was spellbound by the way Amitabha Bagchi has brought it all together.
There is much more to be written about this novel, but I'll refrain; this may not be the place. But it has been some time since I was so moved by a novel, both by the story it was telling me, and by the stories it wasn't.
Extraordinary.
December 21, 2019
When news of his only child’s death in faraway America reaches him in India, acclaimed writer Vishwanath starts coping with this tragedy the only way he knows: through words. His grief is channeled in a story that begins in the early twentieth century in rural India.
In this fiction that is soon established as personal history, Mange Ram, the son of a tenant farmer, achieves celebrity status after he is mentored as a wrestler by a neighbor. Soon, this talented sportsman is spirited away to Delhi to work as a domestic helper. This sets into motion a chain of events and a succession of heirs that will eventually tangle with Vishwanath, and his present-day life.
Interspersed among this engrossing harkening to the past are his confessional letters, and exquisite dohas and chaupais from the Ramcharitmanas and Hanuman Chalisa, beloved texts dedicated to Gods that add startling sweetness and melody to the pages. In his third novel, Bagchi has embarked upon an ambitious project of explaining the history and socio-politics of India though the lives, essentially, of two families, master and mastered.
The novel is a pleasant reminiscence of Indian novels of yore, it is almost like coming home to a comforting childhood blanket. It obtains a pure state of nostalgia that requires a special skill to achieve, and yet, surprisingly, the novel itself downplays the notion of ‘happy memories’ and the ‘good old days’. It has no rancor for the present, and instead displays an acceptance of time and the transformations it brings about. “I realized I don’t have any serious problem with the time we live in,” Vishwanath muses, “I just wish the past didn’t have to go away.”
So this past recurs again and again in the novel, as Mange Lal grows up to serve Lala Motichand, and his son the sons of his employer. Up to the third generation this story extends, as his grandson is decked up as a God to appeal to the religious bent of the master’s family. Religion, which enters so unobtrusively in the novel, soon expands into an empire and an obsession with at least two of the characters.
The other characters are busy reflecting the frenzy of the fight for independence in India, the allure of Bhagat Singh, the dissatisfaction of the riled-up youth. The domestic story soon takes on a larger significance, carrying with it the disappointment of the Indian public unable to experience a change, though the rule has passed from the British to their own. An analysis of this frustration offers a sad getaway to the petty nature of human beings, the greed for power, the lust for wealth, riches and status far beyond mere money. The cyclical nature of history and oppression, revolt and disenchantment is shown touchingly through the lives of the most disadvantages of citizens.
At this point, when the novel is deliberating on human nature and emotions, it turns into a meditation and readers need to enter this state of pondering to be able to reach that state of trance. The side story of Vishwanath’s brother serving as a cook to a Punjabi owner is an exhortation for tolerance and harmony; his letter to his wife is a reminder to be kind and compassionate to loved ones; while a replaying of religious politics in the country and around the world helps us realize how truth in discourses is blurred and redrawn; and how the seeds of fanaticism are sown.
Bagchi’s writing is supple and malleable, an outpouring of meanings and directions that the reader is free to explore. Human relationships are at the core of these meanings, and often evoke feelings quite strong and emotional, in their observations of the undying love that exists between brother and brother; the repressed sadness and affection of an illegitimate son, the unwavering loyalty of an employer, the attachment to characters in religious tales, and their impersonation.
The stamp of nationalism is noticeable in many pages, sometimes veering to the jingoistic and ultra-simplistic explanations reserved for tantalization. When Vishwanath’s brother leaves to find greener pastures in the US, Vishwanath blames him thus: “My aim, of course, was to hold you personally responsible for the destruction of Nehruji and Gandhiji’s dream of India as a place where people pf al religions could live and work together to build a better future for us Indians, for all of us whose ancestors had suffered from poverty and foreign rule.”
The sentences themselves are quite noteworthy – they are a breathless exhortation, often five lines or longer, beginning with one thought and ending with something else. Behold this sentence as an example: “Finding its way in through the space vacated by a single slat that had come detached from the cane blinds shading the loggia where Lala Motichand sat, a ray of the afternoon sun bounced off a link of the lala’s golden watch-chain and into the right eye of its owner just as he had begun to float away from wakefulness in his post-prandial languor.” Just as an aside, ‘loggia’ is one of Bagchi’s favored words, appearing six times, as is bon mot, repeated five.
The novel would have been, perhaps, even sharper and resonating if its boundaries had not been cast so far and wide. It branches into plots and sub-plots and minutia which, while often charming as the rest of the novel is, veer too far from the central plot to be of any consequence. The women, also, are not portrayed with much depth – they are either dispensable or coquettish, or wives slapped around too much and too casually. In some places, the novel loses its grip and firmness, sliding into the realm of intense thought and reflection, where not all lovers of plot will necessarily follow.
In fact, it is tough to decipher exactly why this novel filled with many mundane and sometimes dramatic days of people, the likes of whom existed a long time ago, is so alluring. But alluring it certainly is, an ode to the infinite layers and mysteries that reside in this simple yet inexplicable thing called life.
In this fiction that is soon established as personal history, Mange Ram, the son of a tenant farmer, achieves celebrity status after he is mentored as a wrestler by a neighbor. Soon, this talented sportsman is spirited away to Delhi to work as a domestic helper. This sets into motion a chain of events and a succession of heirs that will eventually tangle with Vishwanath, and his present-day life.
Interspersed among this engrossing harkening to the past are his confessional letters, and exquisite dohas and chaupais from the Ramcharitmanas and Hanuman Chalisa, beloved texts dedicated to Gods that add startling sweetness and melody to the pages. In his third novel, Bagchi has embarked upon an ambitious project of explaining the history and socio-politics of India though the lives, essentially, of two families, master and mastered.
The novel is a pleasant reminiscence of Indian novels of yore, it is almost like coming home to a comforting childhood blanket. It obtains a pure state of nostalgia that requires a special skill to achieve, and yet, surprisingly, the novel itself downplays the notion of ‘happy memories’ and the ‘good old days’. It has no rancor for the present, and instead displays an acceptance of time and the transformations it brings about. “I realized I don’t have any serious problem with the time we live in,” Vishwanath muses, “I just wish the past didn’t have to go away.”
So this past recurs again and again in the novel, as Mange Lal grows up to serve Lala Motichand, and his son the sons of his employer. Up to the third generation this story extends, as his grandson is decked up as a God to appeal to the religious bent of the master’s family. Religion, which enters so unobtrusively in the novel, soon expands into an empire and an obsession with at least two of the characters.
The other characters are busy reflecting the frenzy of the fight for independence in India, the allure of Bhagat Singh, the dissatisfaction of the riled-up youth. The domestic story soon takes on a larger significance, carrying with it the disappointment of the Indian public unable to experience a change, though the rule has passed from the British to their own. An analysis of this frustration offers a sad getaway to the petty nature of human beings, the greed for power, the lust for wealth, riches and status far beyond mere money. The cyclical nature of history and oppression, revolt and disenchantment is shown touchingly through the lives of the most disadvantages of citizens.
At this point, when the novel is deliberating on human nature and emotions, it turns into a meditation and readers need to enter this state of pondering to be able to reach that state of trance. The side story of Vishwanath’s brother serving as a cook to a Punjabi owner is an exhortation for tolerance and harmony; his letter to his wife is a reminder to be kind and compassionate to loved ones; while a replaying of religious politics in the country and around the world helps us realize how truth in discourses is blurred and redrawn; and how the seeds of fanaticism are sown.
Bagchi’s writing is supple and malleable, an outpouring of meanings and directions that the reader is free to explore. Human relationships are at the core of these meanings, and often evoke feelings quite strong and emotional, in their observations of the undying love that exists between brother and brother; the repressed sadness and affection of an illegitimate son, the unwavering loyalty of an employer, the attachment to characters in religious tales, and their impersonation.
The stamp of nationalism is noticeable in many pages, sometimes veering to the jingoistic and ultra-simplistic explanations reserved for tantalization. When Vishwanath’s brother leaves to find greener pastures in the US, Vishwanath blames him thus: “My aim, of course, was to hold you personally responsible for the destruction of Nehruji and Gandhiji’s dream of India as a place where people pf al religions could live and work together to build a better future for us Indians, for all of us whose ancestors had suffered from poverty and foreign rule.”
The sentences themselves are quite noteworthy – they are a breathless exhortation, often five lines or longer, beginning with one thought and ending with something else. Behold this sentence as an example: “Finding its way in through the space vacated by a single slat that had come detached from the cane blinds shading the loggia where Lala Motichand sat, a ray of the afternoon sun bounced off a link of the lala’s golden watch-chain and into the right eye of its owner just as he had begun to float away from wakefulness in his post-prandial languor.” Just as an aside, ‘loggia’ is one of Bagchi’s favored words, appearing six times, as is bon mot, repeated five.
The novel would have been, perhaps, even sharper and resonating if its boundaries had not been cast so far and wide. It branches into plots and sub-plots and minutia which, while often charming as the rest of the novel is, veer too far from the central plot to be of any consequence. The women, also, are not portrayed with much depth – they are either dispensable or coquettish, or wives slapped around too much and too casually. In some places, the novel loses its grip and firmness, sliding into the realm of intense thought and reflection, where not all lovers of plot will necessarily follow.
In fact, it is tough to decipher exactly why this novel filled with many mundane and sometimes dramatic days of people, the likes of whom existed a long time ago, is so alluring. But alluring it certainly is, an ode to the infinite layers and mysteries that reside in this simple yet inexplicable thing called life.
January 3, 2022
I am very indecisive about my feelings for this book. On the one hand, I loved the part which narrates the story of Lala Motichand and his clan. I've always been a stickler of family drams/sagas, especially those set during the Raj. I liked the contrast between Lala Motichand's two sons which is so commonplace in most Indian families. One is successful, while the other just manages to get by.
The other parallel story which deals with the author's (author as in, the Hindi novelist Vishwanth) lamentation was very philosophical for me. I just couldn't get my head around it. I literally skipped pages just to get to the end.
That said, the book is extremely well written with a lot of humor as well as prose. Almost on par with the writing of other Indian authors like Chitra Banerjee or say Amitav Ghosh.
The other parallel story which deals with the author's (author as in, the Hindi novelist Vishwanth) lamentation was very philosophical for me. I just couldn't get my head around it. I literally skipped pages just to get to the end.
That said, the book is extremely well written with a lot of humor as well as prose. Almost on par with the writing of other Indian authors like Chitra Banerjee or say Amitav Ghosh.
January 16, 2019
A book that delves into the depths of humanity with amazing character development that exposes the various layers of different kinds of people. I especially love the kind of characters that are human, that aren't caricatures of a hero or a villain, that lie somewhere in the grey. This book is about the characters more than the story. The characters run the story rather than the other way round.
With a decent story line that keeps revolving around how different people choose to live their life and the ideals they have and how the different family dynamics come to play, it is a beautiful replete with Urdu shayari and excerpts from Ramcharitmanas and Hanuman Chalisa.
A sure shot read for once.
With a decent story line that keeps revolving around how different people choose to live their life and the ideals they have and how the different family dynamics come to play, it is a beautiful replete with Urdu shayari and excerpts from Ramcharitmanas and Hanuman Chalisa.
A sure shot read for once.
January 4, 2021
I wanted more. More about the men, the women, their fates; intertwined or individual, the history, a clearer ending, a sharper plot, etc, etc. This felt so incomplete at so many levels.
Brilliant but abrupt!
Brilliant but abrupt!
December 29, 2020
Terrible book. Surface-level commentary. All men talking about men things.
Totally not worth my time. Ugh.
Totally not worth my time. Ugh.
July 23, 2018
The book traces the life of Lala Motichand and his sons during pre-independence ear in India. The story mainly focuses on the socio-political scenario during early 20th century, the caste system, the gender bias, the economic disparity in the society; but the interesting and surprising twist is — this story is written by a celebrated novelist Vishwanath, who is a Sahitya Akademi Price winner.
So the book is a novel within a novel, where Vishwanath, who was always ashamed of his father who served as a cook, and his younger brother Jagannath who follows his father’s route and becomes a cook. Vishwanath repents his arrogance and behavior towards his brother much later in his life after a tragic personal loss and so starts on writing a story of Lala and his sons, with much coincidence and parallels to himself and his brother. While Lala’s story is set in pre-independence times, Vishwanath’s story is set much later.
The narration goes back and forth between the multiple years in the 20th century and between Lala and Vishwanath’s life, and overall having a strong reference to Ramcharitmanas, Ram, and his brothers. All through the book, an incident is first narrated and the reason and person behind it is revealed in later chapters.
The best part is the narration which flows so amazingly that the book has to be read in one go. In fact, this book has the best narration in recent times. The writer weaves two parallel stories effortlessly with enough parallels as well as variations while hooking the reader till the end. Every character is well built with enough depth while Diwanchand’s story is the most intense of all. While this is a family drama, each sequence has only enough characters not making it messy. The meaning of the title of the book can be realized from Vishwanth’s life and his agony. The poetry in between only adds to the beauty of the verse.
A brilliant piece of writing which is engrossing from the word go! A must read!!
Complete review on my blog:
https://medium.com/kiranmayi-g/book-r...
So the book is a novel within a novel, where Vishwanath, who was always ashamed of his father who served as a cook, and his younger brother Jagannath who follows his father’s route and becomes a cook. Vishwanath repents his arrogance and behavior towards his brother much later in his life after a tragic personal loss and so starts on writing a story of Lala and his sons, with much coincidence and parallels to himself and his brother. While Lala’s story is set in pre-independence times, Vishwanath’s story is set much later.
The narration goes back and forth between the multiple years in the 20th century and between Lala and Vishwanath’s life, and overall having a strong reference to Ramcharitmanas, Ram, and his brothers. All through the book, an incident is first narrated and the reason and person behind it is revealed in later chapters.
The best part is the narration which flows so amazingly that the book has to be read in one go. In fact, this book has the best narration in recent times. The writer weaves two parallel stories effortlessly with enough parallels as well as variations while hooking the reader till the end. Every character is well built with enough depth while Diwanchand’s story is the most intense of all. While this is a family drama, each sequence has only enough characters not making it messy. The meaning of the title of the book can be realized from Vishwanth’s life and his agony. The poetry in between only adds to the beauty of the verse.
A brilliant piece of writing which is engrossing from the word go! A must read!!
Complete review on my blog:
https://medium.com/kiranmayi-g/book-r...
July 1, 2019
This is a book that from the beginning fascinated me with its beautifully formed sentences.
The most mundane things were conveyed in the best way possible and I re read many of the lines multiple times and wanted to share them with other readers.
The story, which is a tale within a tale so to speak, spans many years from pre independence India to the present and is both a manuscript of a new book from an award winning author as well as an account of the author's own life as told in letters he writes to the people closest to him.
Trying to get back to the world of the living and navigate the grief that surrounds him after the death of his only child, the author wants closure on a number of conflicts he has had with close family members. The novel he is writing side by side features a rich businessman Lala Motichand, along with his family comprising his three sons and a household full of intrigue and internal politics. Along with these characters, the years also indicate the growth and changes in the India inhabited by them.
Woven into the narrative are the poetry of Ghalib and couplets from the Ramcharitmanas, which add to its depth wonderfully.
I enjoyed it most for the manner in which just about each line was written.
The most mundane things were conveyed in the best way possible and I re read many of the lines multiple times and wanted to share them with other readers.
The story, which is a tale within a tale so to speak, spans many years from pre independence India to the present and is both a manuscript of a new book from an award winning author as well as an account of the author's own life as told in letters he writes to the people closest to him.
Trying to get back to the world of the living and navigate the grief that surrounds him after the death of his only child, the author wants closure on a number of conflicts he has had with close family members. The novel he is writing side by side features a rich businessman Lala Motichand, along with his family comprising his three sons and a household full of intrigue and internal politics. Along with these characters, the years also indicate the growth and changes in the India inhabited by them.
Woven into the narrative are the poetry of Ghalib and couplets from the Ramcharitmanas, which add to its depth wonderfully.
I enjoyed it most for the manner in which just about each line was written.
January 23, 2019
A beautiful reading experience this was for me,
This is the first time i have read a book in the literary fiction genre, and i really enjoyed reading this...
The story is of a celebrated author Vishwnath,who has recently lost his son,and is in a state of shock
To cope with this shock and in an act of self realisation he starts writing a novel set in the household of Lala motichand also the story is loosely based on Vishwnath's own life...
Also there are four letters that vishwnath writes to different people, and thus telling us a story of familial relationships, fatherhood, brotherhood, love, longing and other such emotions...
The inclusion of Awadhi and Sanskrit ''dohas'' and "chaupai's" from Ramcharitmanas enhances the beauty of the book....
This book being on the shortlist of JCB Prize shortlist was well deserved....
I did find the story a bit difficult to understand at a few points, neverthless i enjoyed it..and i am glad to have read this and will definately recommend this....
This is the first time i have read a book in the literary fiction genre, and i really enjoyed reading this...
The story is of a celebrated author Vishwnath,who has recently lost his son,and is in a state of shock
To cope with this shock and in an act of self realisation he starts writing a novel set in the household of Lala motichand also the story is loosely based on Vishwnath's own life...
Also there are four letters that vishwnath writes to different people, and thus telling us a story of familial relationships, fatherhood, brotherhood, love, longing and other such emotions...
The inclusion of Awadhi and Sanskrit ''dohas'' and "chaupai's" from Ramcharitmanas enhances the beauty of the book....
This book being on the shortlist of JCB Prize shortlist was well deserved....
I did find the story a bit difficult to understand at a few points, neverthless i enjoyed it..and i am glad to have read this and will definately recommend this....
February 6, 2025
In Amitabha Bagchi's Half the Night Is Gone, a famous novelist named Vishwanath is working on his book while also thinking back on his life and dealing with the loss of his son. The sudden loss has forced him to overcome his arrogance and write letters to his loved ones apologising for the ways in which he thinks he has wronged them.
As a reader, you alternate between these letters that Vishwanath writes and his latest novel. While his novel explores brotherhood, loyalty, and love, Vishwanath in his real life is also ruminating on his own past and how good (or bad) a son he has been to his father and what kind of father he has been to his son, who is no more.
Bagchi is a master storyteller because I was hooked throughout while he kept shifting between different storylines and times.
As a reader, you alternate between these letters that Vishwanath writes and his latest novel. While his novel explores brotherhood, loyalty, and love, Vishwanath in his real life is also ruminating on his own past and how good (or bad) a son he has been to his father and what kind of father he has been to his son, who is no more.
Bagchi is a master storyteller because I was hooked throughout while he kept shifting between different storylines and times.
January 18, 2019
A story of lineage. Two parallel stories that run well and build the characters interestingly. You want to know more and read more.
The authors writing style is unique with the spattering of Hindi and Urdu verses strewn through the book.
However the book lacked closure. The book ended abruptly for me and left me wondering what happened
The authors writing style is unique with the spattering of Hindi and Urdu verses strewn through the book.
However the book lacked closure. The book ended abruptly for me and left me wondering what happened
July 13, 2020
Interesting interweaving of fictions within fictions but ultimately a laborious read largely because of the author's somewhat self-indulgent urge to showcase his knowledge of urdu poetry and the ram charitmanas and while those are integral to the narrative, I felt they were made integral only to educate the reader on cultural history than to tell a good story.
January 10, 2020
3.5 rating . The plot is great . Writing felt a bit laboured . But the weaving in of the chaupais of the Ramcharitamanas was unique and enjoyable . For someone who has had no exposure to the RCM , it was quite a revelation !
December 22, 2018
Beautiful
August 3, 2018
“Aren’t artistry of language and worthiness of theme both necessary for good poetry?”, asks one of the characters in Half the Night is Gone. Blending grandeur of theme with poetic language, Amitabh Bagchi’s multi-layered narrative leaves the reader spell-bound and ruminative. Unfolding at both the personal and the political level, the book not just explores the individualistic mindset and belief system but also addresses the larger questions of religion, class, lineage, the power of literature which are as relevant today as they were fifty years ago.
Spanning across decades, the novel not only charts the trajectory of Lala Motichand and his sons and the replacement of old feudal lords by the new generation of shopkeepers, but also “the replacement of an oppressive regime of white people by an oppressive regime of brown people” who are equally corrupt and deplorable, if not more, than the white people. In a sense, the title of the book also evokes the passing of the old India and the arrival of the new India which is ruled by the merchants and the browns. However, as the novel unfolds, the hope of Independence and self-rule soon turns into despair, “Was the poverty and desperation of our people worse when the British were its cause or is it worse under the rule of us Indians?”
Commencing with the story of Mange Ram, the son of a tenanted farmer and a star wrestler, the narrative quickly shifts to Delhi where Mange Ram comes to work for a rich sethji, Lala Motichand. While Lala Motichand is embroiled in the politics of the larger world, Mange Ram becomes enmeshed into the household politics played downstairs by the servants, which is depicted with equal nicety and subtlety as the life of Lala Motichand and his sons – Dinanath, Diwanchand, and Makhan Lal. Whether the servant or the master, the author paints the character of both the men with the same shade of grey – empathetic as well as apathetic.
Laced with sub-plots, the book intertwines the story of Lala Motichand and his three sons with the life of Vishwanath, the renowned Hindi author who is trying to come to terms with the death of his only son while mapping the fractured lines of the emerging nation. Fluidly moving back and forth in time, the author brilliantly binds the traditional narrative with epistolary structure through the thread of Tulsi’s Ramcharitmanas. Not just a metaphor of filial duty and brotherly love, Manas also gives an insight into the true meaning of religion before it has been appropriated and misappropriated for political gain and propaganda. “You wrote of your love for Shri Ram, and you wrote that what happened in Ayodhya was done by those who did not understand the true meaning of Ram Rajya.”
Literature, or more precisely the role of literature in bringing forth the change in society, is as much a sub-text in the book, as is religion. “So, if literature can bring change, the question arises, what is the nature of the literature that can bring change…”
The greatest feat of the book lies in its character delineation. The narrative evokes equal sympathy and antipathy for both Dinanath and Diwanchand. Despite being selfish and opportunistic; Dinanath weeps for his dying father, yearns for his brother, struggles to keep his family honor intact. In spite of being compassionate towards the world in general, Diwanchand is cruel in forsaking his wife for his passion, and his son who aches for the fatherly love and acknowledgment as he once had. Mange Ram, the great wrestling champion, a devoted servant is despicable in sexually assaulting his daughter-in-law. However, the novel largely remains male-centric. Though the rivalry of Suvarnalata and Kamala is portrayed with precision; women always remain in the background and it is the men who direct the course of the book as well as the nation.
Delving into the complexity of human relationships with poignancy, and human emotions with intensity and profundity; Half the Night is Gone, leaves the reader wistful and desolate; craving for more. Definitely, a worthy addition to the annals of the Indian literature.
Spanning across decades, the novel not only charts the trajectory of Lala Motichand and his sons and the replacement of old feudal lords by the new generation of shopkeepers, but also “the replacement of an oppressive regime of white people by an oppressive regime of brown people” who are equally corrupt and deplorable, if not more, than the white people. In a sense, the title of the book also evokes the passing of the old India and the arrival of the new India which is ruled by the merchants and the browns. However, as the novel unfolds, the hope of Independence and self-rule soon turns into despair, “Was the poverty and desperation of our people worse when the British were its cause or is it worse under the rule of us Indians?”
Commencing with the story of Mange Ram, the son of a tenanted farmer and a star wrestler, the narrative quickly shifts to Delhi where Mange Ram comes to work for a rich sethji, Lala Motichand. While Lala Motichand is embroiled in the politics of the larger world, Mange Ram becomes enmeshed into the household politics played downstairs by the servants, which is depicted with equal nicety and subtlety as the life of Lala Motichand and his sons – Dinanath, Diwanchand, and Makhan Lal. Whether the servant or the master, the author paints the character of both the men with the same shade of grey – empathetic as well as apathetic.
Laced with sub-plots, the book intertwines the story of Lala Motichand and his three sons with the life of Vishwanath, the renowned Hindi author who is trying to come to terms with the death of his only son while mapping the fractured lines of the emerging nation. Fluidly moving back and forth in time, the author brilliantly binds the traditional narrative with epistolary structure through the thread of Tulsi’s Ramcharitmanas. Not just a metaphor of filial duty and brotherly love, Manas also gives an insight into the true meaning of religion before it has been appropriated and misappropriated for political gain and propaganda. “You wrote of your love for Shri Ram, and you wrote that what happened in Ayodhya was done by those who did not understand the true meaning of Ram Rajya.”
Literature, or more precisely the role of literature in bringing forth the change in society, is as much a sub-text in the book, as is religion. “So, if literature can bring change, the question arises, what is the nature of the literature that can bring change…”
The greatest feat of the book lies in its character delineation. The narrative evokes equal sympathy and antipathy for both Dinanath and Diwanchand. Despite being selfish and opportunistic; Dinanath weeps for his dying father, yearns for his brother, struggles to keep his family honor intact. In spite of being compassionate towards the world in general, Diwanchand is cruel in forsaking his wife for his passion, and his son who aches for the fatherly love and acknowledgment as he once had. Mange Ram, the great wrestling champion, a devoted servant is despicable in sexually assaulting his daughter-in-law. However, the novel largely remains male-centric. Though the rivalry of Suvarnalata and Kamala is portrayed with precision; women always remain in the background and it is the men who direct the course of the book as well as the nation.
Delving into the complexity of human relationships with poignancy, and human emotions with intensity and profundity; Half the Night is Gone, leaves the reader wistful and desolate; craving for more. Definitely, a worthy addition to the annals of the Indian literature.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 90 reviews