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Legal Fiction
Legal fiction: A rule assuming as true something that is clearly false. Often used to get around the provisions of constitutions and legal codes.
A late-night phone call from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya forces writer Arjun Kumar to leave his wife and home in Delhi and travel to the mofussil town of Noma on the UP-Bihar border. The reason — Anasuya's husband, Rafique Neel, a college professor and theatre director, has mysteriously disappeared.
Soon after he arrives, Arjun realizes that things are not as they seem: the police are refusing to register a missing-persons case, Rafique's student Janaki has also disappeared, and the locals are determined to turn it into a case of 'love jihad'. And when Arjun begins to dig deeper, what he finds endangers him and everyone around him.
Inspired by true events from today's India, Legal Fiction is a brilliant existential thriller and a chilling parable of our times.
A late-night phone call from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya forces writer Arjun Kumar to leave his wife and home in Delhi and travel to the mofussil town of Noma on the UP-Bihar border. The reason — Anasuya's husband, Rafique Neel, a college professor and theatre director, has mysteriously disappeared.
Soon after he arrives, Arjun realizes that things are not as they seem: the police are refusing to register a missing-persons case, Rafique's student Janaki has also disappeared, and the locals are determined to turn it into a case of 'love jihad'. And when Arjun begins to dig deeper, what he finds endangers him and everyone around him.
Inspired by true events from today's India, Legal Fiction is a brilliant existential thriller and a chilling parable of our times.
168 pages, Paperback
Published July 2, 2021
15 people are currently reading
228 people want to read
About the author
Chandan Pandey
4 books23 followersजन्म : नौ अगस्त उन्नीस सौ बयासी। देवरिया ज़िले (उ.प्र.) में पटखौली गाँव के निवासी। पिछले नौ वर्षों से बेंगलुरु की रहनवारी।
शिक्षा : बनारस हिन्दू विश्वविद्यालय (बी.एच.यू.) से स्नातक और परा-स्नातक (एम.बी.ए.— मार्केटिंग)।
कहानी-संग्रह : भूलना, इश्क़फ़रेब और जंक्शन।
भारतीय ज्ञानपीठ द्वारा नवलेखन पुरस्कार, शैलेश मटियानी कथा पुरस्कार, कृष्ण बलदेव वैद फ़ेलोशिप।
सम्प्रति : टाटा समूह की कम्पनी मेताहेलिक्स लाइफ़ साइंसेज लिमिटेड में बतौर मार्केटिंग प्रोफ़ेशनल (प्रोडक्ट मैनेजर) कार्यरत।
शिक्षा : बनारस हिन्दू विश्वविद्यालय (बी.एच.यू.) से स्नातक और परा-स्नातक (एम.बी.ए.— मार्केटिंग)।
कहानी-संग्रह : भूलना, इश्क़फ़रेब और जंक्शन।
भारतीय ज्ञानपीठ द्वारा नवलेखन पुरस्कार, शैलेश मटियानी कथा पुरस्कार, कृष्ण बलदेव वैद फ़ेलोशिप।
सम्प्रति : टाटा समूह की कम्पनी मेताहेलिक्स लाइफ़ साइंसेज लिमिटेड में बतौर मार्केटिंग प्रोफ़ेशनल (प्रोडक्ट मैनेजर) कार्यरत।
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 56 reviews
July 14, 2021
It's been more than two weeks since I read this book and I couldn't put my mind to write its review because I have very mixed feelings about it. Another reason is that I read other reviews for it and some of them seemed to talk very highly of it and it made me question my views for this book and then I remembered something I always used to believe in: “Views, opinions, and judgments are completely subjective when it comes to the experiences of an individual.”
Long story short... this book just didn't work for me. Period.
This book is originally written in Hindi and is translated into English by Bharatbhooshan Tiwari. I am not going to criticize it but simply going to talk about things that didn't work for me.
Storyline: Arjun, now married, gets a call from his ex-girlfriend, Anasuya, asking for help about the sudden disappearance of her husband Rafique. Arjun goes to her town and involves himself in the mess where he puts himself in danger by getting too close to the truth. I wish if it had any potential to keep me on edge but it felt very raw and not so enthralling.
Characterization: ( that's the most crucial element for me) For a short book with around 150 pages it surely failed to develop any characters and to make them memorable. There were many, but they were there just like pieces on board without their essence.
Even though I read this book in a day, this book is going to fade from my memory in no time but if there's something that will stay there for a bit more time then that is the way it ended. (Only thing I loved about this book!)
It has an absurd end, almost unexpected because just when I thought there were 4-5 ahead of me to conclude the climax, I turned the page and that was it! I was in disbelief but damn! it ended without any closure and left me on that page so half-hearted. It surely took me by surprise and even when I am talking about it I can feel that same emptiness I felt that day.
That absurd end is the only reason I am writing this right now because even though this book didn't work for me, I don't want to give away any impression of it being a bad book. It depends on the reader.
Long story short... this book just didn't work for me. Period.
This book is originally written in Hindi and is translated into English by Bharatbhooshan Tiwari. I am not going to criticize it but simply going to talk about things that didn't work for me.
Storyline: Arjun, now married, gets a call from his ex-girlfriend, Anasuya, asking for help about the sudden disappearance of her husband Rafique. Arjun goes to her town and involves himself in the mess where he puts himself in danger by getting too close to the truth. I wish if it had any potential to keep me on edge but it felt very raw and not so enthralling.
Characterization: ( that's the most crucial element for me) For a short book with around 150 pages it surely failed to develop any characters and to make them memorable. There were many, but they were there just like pieces on board without their essence.
Even though I read this book in a day, this book is going to fade from my memory in no time but if there's something that will stay there for a bit more time then that is the way it ended. (Only thing I loved about this book!)
It has an absurd end, almost unexpected because just when I thought there were 4-5 ahead of me to conclude the climax, I turned the page and that was it! I was in disbelief but damn! it ended without any closure and left me on that page so half-hearted. It surely took me by surprise and even when I am talking about it I can feel that same emptiness I felt that day.
That absurd end is the only reason I am writing this right now because even though this book didn't work for me, I don't want to give away any impression of it being a bad book. It depends on the reader.
January 6, 2022
Legal Fiction was one of the best reads for me last year. I reread it again this month because I was in conversation with Chandan and Bharatbhooshan and enjoyed every minute of it.
Legal Fiction is unlike anything I read and kept thinking about it a lot. The themes of disappearance of a Muslim man, love jihad – a term coined by the right wing of the country to bring to task Muslim men who love Hindu women, the struggle of people in a small town who are constantly under surveillance whether they like it or not (in one way or the other), the idea of democracy just being on paper, and ultimately that of rule of land being followed over rule of law.
Silences play a major role. Silences that force people to look within, to understand their spaces, look at the role of caste and religion that draw invisible boundaries, silences that reflect lack of agency of women, and how vocabulary defeats what we feel most of the time.
Legal Fiction put simply is about the disappearance of a man – a man who lives in a small town with his wife and is from a minority religion in Modi’s India. It is about the agency of an urban middle-class man, Arjun, who travels to Noma – the fictional village – to locate the man, Rafique. It is about what Arjun unearths in Noma, and what goes on behind closed doors, and sometimes right in the open, only because it can.
Chandan Pandey makes no bones about what he has to say. The writing is sparse, calls out the hypocrisy of the system, where things have gone wrong and continue to do so, and above all packs in a punch and more on almost every single page. Bharatbhooshan’s translation reads like the original (I also read the book in Hindi). It is fast-paced, reads like a thriller but is so much more, mesmerizing, like a sort of fever dream, and above anything else a mirror for us to see ourselves in and understand what we have become vis-à-vis what we were.
Legal Fiction is unlike anything I read and kept thinking about it a lot. The themes of disappearance of a Muslim man, love jihad – a term coined by the right wing of the country to bring to task Muslim men who love Hindu women, the struggle of people in a small town who are constantly under surveillance whether they like it or not (in one way or the other), the idea of democracy just being on paper, and ultimately that of rule of land being followed over rule of law.
Silences play a major role. Silences that force people to look within, to understand their spaces, look at the role of caste and religion that draw invisible boundaries, silences that reflect lack of agency of women, and how vocabulary defeats what we feel most of the time.
Legal Fiction put simply is about the disappearance of a man – a man who lives in a small town with his wife and is from a minority religion in Modi’s India. It is about the agency of an urban middle-class man, Arjun, who travels to Noma – the fictional village – to locate the man, Rafique. It is about what Arjun unearths in Noma, and what goes on behind closed doors, and sometimes right in the open, only because it can.
Chandan Pandey makes no bones about what he has to say. The writing is sparse, calls out the hypocrisy of the system, where things have gone wrong and continue to do so, and above all packs in a punch and more on almost every single page. Bharatbhooshan’s translation reads like the original (I also read the book in Hindi). It is fast-paced, reads like a thriller but is so much more, mesmerizing, like a sort of fever dream, and above anything else a mirror for us to see ourselves in and understand what we have become vis-à-vis what we were.
February 1, 2020
वैधानिक गल्प उपन्यास पढ़कर खत्म किया उपन्यास पढ़ते वक्त दिमाग में आज देखे विडिओ में उस लड़के के बोल आते रहे
" शाहीन बाग में मेरी हजारों मायें बैठी है मैं उनके लिए अमित शाह की रैली में विरोध दर्ज कराने गया था। "
उपन्यास के रफीक का चेहरे में उस लड़के की शक्ल ही याद आती रही। कल सफदर हाश्मी के बारे में पढ़ रहा था। सफ़दर हाशमी के बारे में दिल्ली आने के बाद पहली बार जाना था। तभी से सफ़दर हाशमी बहुत लुभाता रहा है। आज के वक्त में जहाँ अपने हक़ के लिए आवाज उठाना खतरे से खाली नहीं है। ऐसे लोग हैं जो देश की गरीब मज़लूम जनता के लिए अपनी जान की परवाह नहीं करते। रफीक की सबसे अच्छी बात यही लगी कि ऐसा नहीं लगा कि ये कोई काल्पनिक चरित्र है। जबकि वो जो कर रहा था वो कल्पना से भी बाहर की बात है। उपन्यास शुरू करते हुए लगा कि शायद मैं इस उपन्यास का पाठक नहीं हूँ। मुझे हिंदी साहित्यिक भाषा का मैं मुरीद भी नहीं हूँ और मुझे समझ भी कम आती है । उपन्यास से जुड़ाव उस वक्त महसूस हुआ जब नायिका अपने पूर्व प्रेमीको कहती है "तुम्हें अपनी जाति में कोई चाहिए थी। यह बात तुम्हें सात - आठ साल में समझ आई लेकिन मैं बहुत पहले समझ गई थी। .... जानते हो जब तुमसे अलग हुई तो मम्मी कसम कोई अतिरिक्त दुःख नहीं हुआ "
इसके बाद उपन्यास कब खत्म हुआ पता ही नहीं चला। उपन्यास से मेरे इस विश्वास को भी बल मिला कि साहस साहस को जन्म देता है। वो आदमी जो अपनी जाति से बाहर शादी करने की हिम्मत नहीं कर पाता। वो रफीक और अमन से मिलता है। उसे सच बोलने की , सच का साथ देने की हिम्मत मिलती है। वो अब भी डरता है और डरते डरते सच का साथ भी देता है।
आज के माहौल में ये उपन्यास जरूर पढ़ा जाना चाहिए।
" शाहीन बाग में मेरी हजारों मायें बैठी है मैं उनके लिए अमित शाह की रैली में विरोध दर्ज कराने गया था। "
उपन्यास के रफीक का चेहरे में उस लड़के की शक्ल ही याद आती रही। कल सफदर हाश्मी के बारे में पढ़ रहा था। सफ़दर हाशमी के बारे में दिल्ली आने के बाद पहली बार जाना था। तभी से सफ़दर हाशमी बहुत लुभाता रहा है। आज के वक्त में जहाँ अपने हक़ के लिए आवाज उठाना खतरे से खाली नहीं है। ऐसे लोग हैं जो देश की गरीब मज़लूम जनता के लिए अपनी जान की परवाह नहीं करते। रफीक की सबसे अच्छी बात यही लगी कि ऐसा नहीं लगा कि ये कोई काल्पनिक चरित्र है। जबकि वो जो कर रहा था वो कल्पना से भी बाहर की बात है। उपन्यास शुरू करते हुए लगा कि शायद मैं इस उपन्यास का पाठक नहीं हूँ। मुझे हिंदी साहित्यिक भाषा का मैं मुरीद भी नहीं हूँ और मुझे समझ भी कम आती है । उपन्यास से जुड़ाव उस वक्त महसूस हुआ जब नायिका अपने पूर्व प्रेमीको कहती है "तुम्हें अपनी जाति में कोई चाहिए थी। यह बात तुम्हें सात - आठ साल में समझ आई लेकिन मैं बहुत पहले समझ गई थी। .... जानते हो जब तुमसे अलग हुई तो मम्मी कसम कोई अतिरिक्त दुःख नहीं हुआ "
इसके बाद उपन्यास कब खत्म हुआ पता ही नहीं चला। उपन्यास से मेरे इस विश्वास को भी बल मिला कि साहस साहस को जन्म देता है। वो आदमी जो अपनी जाति से बाहर शादी करने की हिम्मत नहीं कर पाता। वो रफीक और अमन से मिलता है। उसे सच बोलने की , सच का साथ देने की हिम्मत मिलती है। वो अब भी डरता है और डरते डरते सच का साथ भी देता है।
आज के माहौल में ये उपन्यास जरूर पढ़ा जाना चाहिए।
January 18, 2022
Such a promising thriller depicting religious fundamentalism in contemporary India marred by the abrupt ending!
February 17, 2022
When you were about to get your answers for the questions from the start, book finished that's it. This book delivered only questions to me. Is there part2 of this book???
August 31, 2021
There's nothing existential in this book, and I'm just a bit tired by everyone confusing anything remotely introspective as "existential". It certainly casts doubt over whether characters live or die but it's nowhere near Camus, as some blurbs suggest.
The story, set in a small town, has all the trappings of a great whodunit, the mood, the setting, the characters with a murky history, the state that is slowly closing in. But nothing works here. There's barely any tension in the story for the investigation into the missing professor – a Muslim, married to a Hindu.
Perhaps it is the translation that is shoddy, and in a lot of places this becomes very apparent because the sentences don't make sense. (The whole pontification of Image Vs Reality) A lot of introspection feels either rather obvious or oddly worded to be of any insight. Even major plot points have this casual tone, you are not even convinced of its importance.
But even the story's plotting and structure is quite messy and unfinished, uninterested in setting up details or characters. I still didn't understand why someone would call an ex decades after they broke up to help find their missing husband? So much of the story is left uninvestigated and I just walked away with this vague feeling of having read something.
Are people raving about this book just because it has pertinent political messaging against the current right wing disposition? It's brave, sure. But to mistake bravery for craft? I'm not so sure.
The story, set in a small town, has all the trappings of a great whodunit, the mood, the setting, the characters with a murky history, the state that is slowly closing in. But nothing works here. There's barely any tension in the story for the investigation into the missing professor – a Muslim, married to a Hindu.
Perhaps it is the translation that is shoddy, and in a lot of places this becomes very apparent because the sentences don't make sense. (The whole pontification of Image Vs Reality) A lot of introspection feels either rather obvious or oddly worded to be of any insight. Even major plot points have this casual tone, you are not even convinced of its importance.
But even the story's plotting and structure is quite messy and unfinished, uninterested in setting up details or characters. I still didn't understand why someone would call an ex decades after they broke up to help find their missing husband? So much of the story is left uninvestigated and I just walked away with this vague feeling of having read something.
Are people raving about this book just because it has pertinent political messaging against the current right wing disposition? It's brave, sure. But to mistake bravery for craft? I'm not so sure.
March 8, 2020
पिछले कई दिनों से फासीवाद के उत्थान की रपट करने की क्षमता बनाने पर, साहित्यिक मिसालों पर, और १९३० के दशक के जर्मनी पर, अपने लेखक मित्रों से काफी बातचीत हुई है। लेखन में क्या किया जाये, इसका ठोस जवाब अंग्रेजी वालों में तो किसी के पास अभी नहीं हैं, पर मेरे सवाल मुझे चन्दन पांडेय के हिंदी उपन्यास ‘वैधानिक गल्प’ तक ले आये हैं और इससे काफी प्रसन्न हूँ। ऐसा नहीं कह सकते कि पुलिस बर्बरता और इस्लामॉफ़ोबिआ को आँख में आँख डालकर देखा गया है - क्यूंकि क्या है आँख में आँख डालकर देखना? कहाँ हो पाता है? - पर इतना ज़रूर कहूंगा कि लेखक ने अपना कुछ हद तक विशेषाधिकृत होना, उस विशेषाधिकृत नज़र से भी देख पाना, और उस देख पाने को ज़रूरी देखना, तीनों को कुछ ऐसे गले लगाया है जो समकालीन भारतीय अंग्रेजी साहित्य में मैंने तो अभी तक नहीं देखा है।
April 23, 2023
this was fine, but it made me want more. it did good in terms of trying to show the way society looks at love jihad and hatred of various communities, but in terms of the mystery, it fell short. which was very disappointing.
you can check out more of my thoughts here in a video i made talking about this book: https://youtu.be/8q783xpEsuM (Sant Reads on Youtube)
you can check out more of my thoughts here in a video i made talking about this book: https://youtu.be/8q783xpEsuM (Sant Reads on Youtube)
October 23, 2021
Legal Fiction originally written as “Vaidhanik Galp” in Hindi is a story about a writer Arjun Kumar who lives in Delhi with his wife Archana but soon their lives take a sharp turn as they get a call from Arjun’s ex-girlfriend Anusuya who informs them that her husband Rafique has gone missing and that the local police isn’t even filing an FIR. After been persuaded by Archana, Arjun finally makes up his mind to visit her at a small town named Noma near Gorakhpur.
After he reaches his destination and meets Anusuya, and gets to know that one of Rafique’s student Janaki has also gone missing at the same time. Things start to get complicated as Arjun observes that there seems to be another plotline behind their disappearance. While the police is misdirecting them, the local newspapers sprung out the theory of ‘love-jihad’ out of nowhere & the powerful people of this small town seem to be very content with this narrative. But what exactly can an outsider with no knowledge of local information do to find the missing people & that too when such stories have been flared to further communal propaganda and more people are vanishing as well? I really want to talk more about the plot but that would be giving out too much information, so instead get the book for yourself to know more.
Even though I am not an avid Hindi reader, I have heard a lot about Vaidhanik Galp when it came out and after reading it, I am so glad that this book has been written in an Indian language and has been translated as well. The story is based in the state that I am from, and the way the author has built the plot keeping in mind the socio-political environment that we are living in right now truly amazed me. Very subtly the story touched upon issues and showed its true form, which sadly has become a rare thing in the literature world. This book is a stark reminder for all of us to understand that there’s still some time left to mend this rot that has been deliberately spread in our society or else it might just be your turn next. Truly a necessary read.
After he reaches his destination and meets Anusuya, and gets to know that one of Rafique’s student Janaki has also gone missing at the same time. Things start to get complicated as Arjun observes that there seems to be another plotline behind their disappearance. While the police is misdirecting them, the local newspapers sprung out the theory of ‘love-jihad’ out of nowhere & the powerful people of this small town seem to be very content with this narrative. But what exactly can an outsider with no knowledge of local information do to find the missing people & that too when such stories have been flared to further communal propaganda and more people are vanishing as well? I really want to talk more about the plot but that would be giving out too much information, so instead get the book for yourself to know more.
Even though I am not an avid Hindi reader, I have heard a lot about Vaidhanik Galp when it came out and after reading it, I am so glad that this book has been written in an Indian language and has been translated as well. The story is based in the state that I am from, and the way the author has built the plot keeping in mind the socio-political environment that we are living in right now truly amazed me. Very subtly the story touched upon issues and showed its true form, which sadly has become a rare thing in the literature world. This book is a stark reminder for all of us to understand that there’s still some time left to mend this rot that has been deliberately spread in our society or else it might just be your turn next. Truly a necessary read.
February 3, 2020
अमोल सरोज की राय पढ़कर सोचा कि 20-21 दिन पहले मैंने यह उपन्यास पढ़कर फेसबुक पर जो छोटी सी पोस्ट लिखी थी, उसे यहाँ चिपका देता हूँ।
मेरी वह पोस्ट-
कल हासिल हुई यह किताब आज पढ़ी। ऐसी किताब से गुज़रकर कुछ कहने का हाल फ़िलहाल नहीं है। इतनी सी बात कि कहने को यह उपन्यास है, एक गल्प। लेकिन गल्प जो गल्प नहीं है, एक ऐसा भयानक यथार्थ है जो समाज में इतनी आसानी से रच दिया जा रहा है, बाक़ायदा कथित सामाजिक संस्थाओं के ज़रिये और वैधानिक संस्थाओं को इस्तेमाल करते हुए इस तरह कि एक क़स्बे की पुलिस और गणमान्य जन से लेकर फेसबुक और ट्वीटर सब एक ही नियंत्रण में हैं। इस तरह कि अदालत का ज़िक्र भी डरा देता है। इस तरह कि लिंचिंग या किसी भी फ़ासिस्ट कृत्य के लिए वैधानिक कवच है। इसलिए यह वैधानिक गल्प है। इसीलिए, साहित्यिक लिहाज़ से पहली नज़र में अनाकर्षक लगने वाला यह उन्वान 'वैधानिक गल्प' अपरिहार्य है।
उपन्यास जिस तरह बढ़ता है, किसी ट्रैजिक क्लासिक फिल्म का सा अहसास कराता है। मेलोड्रामा से बचते हुए, सनसनी और उत्तेजना पैदा करने वाले फॉर्मूलों से दूर, यथार्थ की या कहें फ़ासिस्ट षड़यंत्रों की या कहें फ़ासिस्ट परियोजनाओं की परतों को खोलते हुए, इस तरह कि उपन्यास के उस क़स्बे की उस कहानी के ज़रिये देश में चल रही कितनी कहानियों मतलब कारगुज़ारियों को देखा-समझा जा सकता है।
Chandan Pandey के पास बात को कहने का ढंग, भाषा का सौंदर्य और कोट किए जा सकने वाले असरदार वाक्यों का इस्तेमाल वगैराह सभी हुनर हैं जिनकी झलक इस उपन्यास में है पर सबसे ज़्यादा इन्हें नियंत्रित रखने की तमीज़ है। तमीज़ मतलब सरोकार या संलग्नता या चिंता मतलब मनुष्यता जो उन्हें इस समय की भयानक त्रासदी को इस तरह रखने की क़ुव्वत देती है।
मेरी वह पोस्ट-
कल हासिल हुई यह किताब आज पढ़ी। ऐसी किताब से गुज़रकर कुछ कहने का हाल फ़िलहाल नहीं है। इतनी सी बात कि कहने को यह उपन्यास है, एक गल्प। लेकिन गल्प जो गल्प नहीं है, एक ऐसा भयानक यथार्थ है जो समाज में इतनी आसानी से रच दिया जा रहा है, बाक़ायदा कथित सामाजिक संस्थाओं के ज़रिये और वैधानिक संस्थाओं को इस्तेमाल करते हुए इस तरह कि एक क़स्बे की पुलिस और गणमान्य जन से लेकर फेसबुक और ट्वीटर सब एक ही नियंत्रण में हैं। इस तरह कि अदालत का ज़िक्र भी डरा देता है। इस तरह कि लिंचिंग या किसी भी फ़ासिस्ट कृत्य के लिए वैधानिक कवच है। इसलिए यह वैधानिक गल्प है। इसीलिए, साहित्यिक लिहाज़ से पहली नज़र में अनाकर्षक लगने वाला यह उन्वान 'वैधानिक गल्प' अपरिहार्य है।
उपन्यास जिस तरह बढ़ता है, किसी ट्रैजिक क्लासिक फिल्म का सा अहसास कराता है। मेलोड्रामा से बचते हुए, सनसनी और उत्तेजना पैदा करने वाले फॉर्मूलों से दूर, यथार्थ की या कहें फ़ासिस्ट षड़यंत्रों की या कहें फ़ासिस्ट परियोजनाओं की परतों को खोलते हुए, इस तरह कि उपन्यास के उस क़स्बे की उस कहानी के ज़रिये देश में चल रही कितनी कहानियों मतलब कारगुज़ारियों को देखा-समझा जा सकता है।
Chandan Pandey के पास बात को कहने का ढंग, भाषा का सौंदर्य और कोट किए जा सकने वाले असरदार वाक्यों का इस्तेमाल वगैराह सभी हुनर हैं जिनकी झलक इस उपन्यास में है पर सबसे ज़्यादा इन्हें नियंत्रित रखने की तमीज़ है। तमीज़ मतलब सरोकार या संलग्नता या चिंता मतलब मनुष्यता जो उन्हें इस समय की भयानक त्रासदी को इस तरह रखने की क़ुव्वत देती है।
October 14, 2021
बहुत दिन से इस किताब पर कुछ कहना चाहता था, मगर व्यस्तता के कारण समय नहीं मिल पाता था। कहानी पर कुछ कहना आपके पढ़ने के सुख को कम कर सकता है। बस इतना कहूँगा कि ये किताब मैंने एक बैठक में ख़त्म की थी। लेखक ने इस उपन्यास को इतना रोमांच से भरा है कि किताब को छोड़ने का मन नहीं करता। बहुत दिनों बाद कोई नई किताब किसी लेखक ने इतने अच्छे से प्रस्तुत की है। मेरे ख़्याल से जितने भी किताब पढ़ने का शौक़ रखते हैं उन्हें इसे ज़रूर पढ़ना चाहिए।
Read
July 6, 2021Have blurbed this one. It is a good read, sensitive to political processes and structured as a bit of a mystery.
July 4, 2022
“Everything in Legal Fiction is fiction. All that is fiction is fiction, of course, but even truth is fiction. If the people, stories, places and incidents at any point appear to be true, it is our collective misfortune. We advise you to consider it a fault of the imagination and move on.”
I read these lines three times, before I thought I could get a glimmer of Chandan Pandey was trying to convey. After finishing the book, I circled back to these lines, and they finally started to make sense.
The book deals with an India where reality and fiction coexist so seamlessly, you cannot distinguish between the two. An India where the enactment of play appears more real than reality itself. An India where life imitates art, and art is based on life.
The story is loosely based on a now forgotten incident where a policemen saved a man from a lynch mob. But the characters and settings are universal. We hear mumbles of similar incidents, which are soon drowned out by tidal wave of fiction and misdirection, till all that remains in the memory is a vague sense of resentment against the favourite enemy!
The book tackles the issues that define small town India- growing religious intolerance, corruption, patriarchy, intimidation, violence and fear. It dares you to look in the mirror to confront a reality you want to avoid. It forces you to look at an India where reality and fiction blend so seamlessly you find it hard to distinguish between the two.
*spoiler alert*
The book ends where you least expect it to, leaving you to write your one ending. Is the writer challenging us to chart our own destiny?
*end spoiler*
The work is a translation, but at no stage did it seem translated. The flavour of the original was captured so well, you almost caught yourself mentally translating them back to the original Hindi.
A difficult read. But a must read.
I read these lines three times, before I thought I could get a glimmer of Chandan Pandey was trying to convey. After finishing the book, I circled back to these lines, and they finally started to make sense.
The book deals with an India where reality and fiction coexist so seamlessly, you cannot distinguish between the two. An India where the enactment of play appears more real than reality itself. An India where life imitates art, and art is based on life.
The story is loosely based on a now forgotten incident where a policemen saved a man from a lynch mob. But the characters and settings are universal. We hear mumbles of similar incidents, which are soon drowned out by tidal wave of fiction and misdirection, till all that remains in the memory is a vague sense of resentment against the favourite enemy!
The book tackles the issues that define small town India- growing religious intolerance, corruption, patriarchy, intimidation, violence and fear. It dares you to look in the mirror to confront a reality you want to avoid. It forces you to look at an India where reality and fiction blend so seamlessly you find it hard to distinguish between the two.
*spoiler alert*
The book ends where you least expect it to, leaving you to write your one ending. Is the writer challenging us to chart our own destiny?
*end spoiler*
The work is a translation, but at no stage did it seem translated. The flavour of the original was captured so well, you almost caught yourself mentally translating them back to the original Hindi.
A difficult read. But a must read.
July 6, 2021
There are certain stories that make you contemplate the situation around you. Legal Fiction is a story that does exactly that. It is a short and fast-paced read, but the depth that it explores is quite high. The idea of the story is to showcase that there are always multiple perspectives to a situation, and there are times when what we see might not be the truth. The storytelling is powerful and makes the reader pause and contemplate the theme he is exploring in the story. The emotions that Anuj feels are very real, and they are portrayed beautifully, both when he is speaking aloud and when he is thinking. I loved that the story is set in the inner mofussil town that provides a gravitas to it. The devil lies in the details, and Chandan details the plot just enough for the reader to make the connections. The book does not provide a specific ending, but the cliffhanger makes the story even more real, almost as if a life like incident unfolding.
Being a story that relies on its characters, Chandan has done a wonderful job creating relatable and realistic people, one that we would probably meet and interact in our daily lives. Anuj is not created as a knight in a shining armor, but a person with his share of faults which make him human. I loved how his beliefs change as the story progresses and his mind absorbs the gravity of the situation he has been put up in. Another character that I would like to mention, who impacted the story for me, was Archana, even though a major part of her is present only through an occasional message or call, but for me that played a crucial role in letting the story go the way it did. Rafique’s diary, for me, was as good as a character and deserves a mention here.
For the people who love reading a book cover to cover, do not miss out on the disclaimer, for it is something that explains the very idea of the book, and the emotions that the author felt while penning it.
Being a story that relies on its characters, Chandan has done a wonderful job creating relatable and realistic people, one that we would probably meet and interact in our daily lives. Anuj is not created as a knight in a shining armor, but a person with his share of faults which make him human. I loved how his beliefs change as the story progresses and his mind absorbs the gravity of the situation he has been put up in. Another character that I would like to mention, who impacted the story for me, was Archana, even though a major part of her is present only through an occasional message or call, but for me that played a crucial role in letting the story go the way it did. Rafique’s diary, for me, was as good as a character and deserves a mention here.
For the people who love reading a book cover to cover, do not miss out on the disclaimer, for it is something that explains the very idea of the book, and the emotions that the author felt while penning it.
February 23, 2020
चन्दन पाण्डेय का यह उपन्यास पढ़ने-लिखने वाले लोगों के लिए त्रासद होते जा रहे वक्त का एक बयान है।
September 21, 2021
The premise of this book is extremely promising, the author craftily creates a story the highlights one of the most dangerous religio-political issue in India— Love Jihad. The story started out strong, giving us a mysterious vibe around the whole missing person issue. As we get introduced to new characters, it adds layers to the story, things start falling into place. But somehow it fails to reach a proper climax or give us answers.
Our protagonist, Arjun is the textbook definition of "spineless." In a way he's relatable, he doesn't want to get involved in whatever political game is going on with Rafique and his street play troupe, but his curiosity to know about Rafique's life gets the better of him. The story gives us the hard-hitting truth about what happens when someone tries to unveil the truth behind dirty politics played using religious sentiments.
Even though I know that the whole point of the book was to give us readers the reality, it felt so empty. Because... let's be honest the book doesn't give you the answers you want, it has an open-ended plot, so I felt highly unsatisfied. Just 156 pages wasn't enough for a story of this gravity, I wanted more— from both the plot and the characters.
Read full review at https://www.diaryofabookgirl.in/2021/...
Our protagonist, Arjun is the textbook definition of "spineless." In a way he's relatable, he doesn't want to get involved in whatever political game is going on with Rafique and his street play troupe, but his curiosity to know about Rafique's life gets the better of him. The story gives us the hard-hitting truth about what happens when someone tries to unveil the truth behind dirty politics played using religious sentiments.
Even though I know that the whole point of the book was to give us readers the reality, it felt so empty. Because... let's be honest the book doesn't give you the answers you want, it has an open-ended plot, so I felt highly unsatisfied. Just 156 pages wasn't enough for a story of this gravity, I wanted more— from both the plot and the characters.
Read full review at https://www.diaryofabookgirl.in/2021/...
September 21, 2020
After long time reading a such type of beautiful story
July 4, 2021
3.5/5
Legal Fiction by Chandan Pandey
Originally written in Hindi as "Vaidhanik Galp", translated by Bharatbhooshan Tiwari
~
If civilization had indeed progressed, it should have been progressed in a direction where no one needed to see their beloved killed in front of them or made to disappear.
~
Arjun Kumar, a writer based in Delhi receives a call from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya. This call is, of course, unexpected. They haven’t spoken in years and settled in their own lives. This isn’t about them though. It’s about Anasuya’s husband, Rafique Neel, a professor and theatre director who has gone missing. Arjun leaves for Noma (where Anasuya leaves) the same night. When he reaches there, he also gets a news of the disappearance of one of Rafique’s students, Janaki. He soon realises that there is something that is not normal because police are not cooperating on this case, Janaki is missing, and the community labels it a case of Love Jihad. When Arjun involves himself fully in the matter, he finds out some shocking facts.
It was a short and raging novel to read. I personally feel that this has a potential of a great movie. This story touches upon so many sensitive themes and highlights the darker side of modern India. Even though it's a thriller, it moderately paces through scenes and unfolds the different layers of the story. Overall, a good one time read. But, if you love reading fast paced thrillers, this may not be a right book for you.
TW: Islamophobia, discrimination, injustice
Legal Fiction by Chandan Pandey
Originally written in Hindi as "Vaidhanik Galp", translated by Bharatbhooshan Tiwari
~
If civilization had indeed progressed, it should have been progressed in a direction where no one needed to see their beloved killed in front of them or made to disappear.
~
Arjun Kumar, a writer based in Delhi receives a call from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya. This call is, of course, unexpected. They haven’t spoken in years and settled in their own lives. This isn’t about them though. It’s about Anasuya’s husband, Rafique Neel, a professor and theatre director who has gone missing. Arjun leaves for Noma (where Anasuya leaves) the same night. When he reaches there, he also gets a news of the disappearance of one of Rafique’s students, Janaki. He soon realises that there is something that is not normal because police are not cooperating on this case, Janaki is missing, and the community labels it a case of Love Jihad. When Arjun involves himself fully in the matter, he finds out some shocking facts.
It was a short and raging novel to read. I personally feel that this has a potential of a great movie. This story touches upon so many sensitive themes and highlights the darker side of modern India. Even though it's a thriller, it moderately paces through scenes and unfolds the different layers of the story. Overall, a good one time read. But, if you love reading fast paced thrillers, this may not be a right book for you.
TW: Islamophobia, discrimination, injustice
January 27, 2021
लल्लनटॉप चैनल के किताबवाला कार्यक्रम में एक चर्चा के दौरान मैंने इस किताब और लेखक के बारे में जाना, विषय वस्तु की थोड़ी और जानकारी इकट्ठा की तो लगा किताब बहुत रोचक होगी। किंडल संस्करण आसानी से उपलब्ध भी हो गया और शुरु हुआ एक नया सफ़र।
"लव जिहाद में लव लाल स्याही से और जिहाद हरी स्याही से लिखा गया था।"
- वैधानिक गल्प, चंदन पाण्डेय
पढ़ते वक्त इस एक लाइन ने मुझे थोड़ी देर रुककर सोचने को मजबूर किया था, मैं सच में रंगों के इस चयन के बारे में अभी तक सोच रहा हूँ। आइये हांकते हैं थोड़ी गल्प, पर इस बार ज़रा वैधानिक तरीक़े से क्योंकि हैं तो हम लोकतांत्रिक, कानून का पालन करने वाले न्यायप्रिय नागरिक ही ना। कहानी के तीन मुख्य पात्र हैं , अर्जुन (लेखक/ नेरेटर), अनुसुया और उसका पति रफीक । पहले दो पात्र मौजूद हैं और तीसरा पात्र लापता/ गायब/गुमशुदा। इसी लापता पात्र रफीक की तलाश का खाका है यह उपन्यास। गुड़गांव में रहने वाले पेशे से लेखक अर्जुन को गोरखपुर देवरिया जिले के नोमा गांव (काल्पनिक गांव) से अनुसुया देवी का एक फोन कॉल आता है। अनुसुया देवी किसी ज़माने में लेखक अर्जुन की प्रेयसी रह चुकी थीं पर प्रसंग किन्हीं कारणों से आगे ना बढ़ सका। लेखक महोदय सुनकर चकित होते हैं कि नोंमा गांव/कस्बा/शहर में रहने वाली अनुसुया का पति, रफीक कुछ दिनों से लापता है और स्थानीय पुलिस उसकी एफआईआर तक लिखने को तैयार नहीं है। वो सोचता है आखिर देश का कानून किस दिन काम आयेगा? बोरिया बिस्तर बाँध के कुछ दिनों के लिए लेखक दिल्ली से हवाई जहाज पकड़ कर नोमा पहुँच जाते हैं। यहां आकर उन्हें एक अलग ही दुनिया का अहसास होता है जो दिल्ली, गुडगांव की हाई प्रोफाइल ज़िंदगी से काफ़ी अलग है। अनुसुया का सौहर/पति जिसका नाम रफीक है कस्बे के ही एक अनाम महाविद्यालय में पढ़ाता है। सालों बाद भी उसकी नौकरी स्थायी नहीं हुई क्यों कि उसके तेवर ज़रा अलग हैं और संचालन समिति के वरिष्ठ सदस्यों को चाटुकारिता करने वाले पसंद हैं। सही मायनों में रफीक एक उदारवादी बुद्धिजीवी है जो उस छोटी सी जगह में रहकर भी मोलोवस्की की कविताएं पढ़ता और पढ़ाता है, रंगकर्म में सतत् प्रयासरत है और युवा पीढ़ी के लडके लड़कियों को एक बेहतर समाज और कल के लिए तैयार कर रहा है। अपने नाटकों की वजह से रफीक नोमा कस्बे में सत्तारूढ़ दल "मंगल मोर्चा" की आंखों में चुभता है और उसके नए नाटक के मंचन पर मोर्चा की तरफ़ से काफ़ी विरोध भी होता है। ये इत्तेफाक की बात ही है कि रफीक ने अपने धर्म के बाहर जाकर एक हिंदू लड़की, अनुसुया से शादी की। इस वजह से उसे अपना घर बार छोड़ कर और सामाजिक अवहेलना से बचने के लिए ही नोमा आना पड़ा। अर्जुन को ये भी पता चलता है कि रफीक के साथ ही उसकी एक छात्रा जानकी भी लापता है।जानकी उसके नाटक मंडली में भी काम करती है और रफीक को अपना गुरु मानती है।
नोमा कस्बे में शुरु में पुलिस तंत्र से लेखक को घोर निराशा होती है लेकिन ऊपर से जब पैरवी लगाई जाती है तो वही स्थानीय पुलिस अर्जुन का खूब आदर सत्कार भी करती है। देखते देखते रफीक और जानकी के लापता होने को "लव जिहाद" का रंग दे दिया जाता है। रफीक के चरित्र पर भी काफ़ी छींटाकशी होती है, उसे दोषी/अपराधी साबित करने के भरसक प्रयास किए जाते हैं। देश का संविधान हमें इस बात की स्वतंत्रता देता है कि किसी भी धर्म, संप्रदाय, जाति आदि से हम अपना जीवनसाथी चुन सकते हैं लेकिन पिछले करीब एक दशक से लगातार कोशिश हो रही है कि हिंदू - मुस्लिम शादियां बंद/कम से कम हो। इसी क्रम में एक नया शब्द हमारे शब्दकोश में जुड़ा "लव जिहाद"। इसी राजनीति का शिकार हो जाता है रफीक और उसकी बेगुनाही को साबित करने वाला भी कोई नहीं है इस कस्बे में। धीरे धीरे रफीक के अन्य छात्र जो अब तक अनुसुया की ढाल बनकर उसकी रक्षा कर रहे थे, धीरे धीरे एक-एक कर के गायब होने लगते हैं। अर्जुन को समझ आता है कि रफीक एक बहुत बड़ी साज़िश का शिकार बन गया है और उसकी मदद इस कस्बे में शायद कोई नहीं कर सकता है। शहर के अन्य गणमान्य नागरिक कस्बे की छवि सुधारने हेतु अर्जुन से खूब प्रेम भाव से मिलते हैं लेकिन अंदर ही अंदर पुलिस और कस्बे के लोगों की मिलीभगत साफ़ तौर पर नज़र आती है। कहानी में आगे क्या होगा ये बताकर मैं इस कहानी मज़ा किरकिरा नहीं करूंगा और आप से पढ़ने का अनुरोध करूंगा।
कहानी को पढ़ते हुए ऐसा लगा जैसे लेखक ने स्वयं भारत के पुलिस तंत्र को बहुत नज़दीक से देखा और परखा है। कहानी के सभी पात्रों का चरित्र चित्रण एकदम सटीक है और सभी पात्र एक पाठक के दिमाग़ में अपनी अपनी जगह बना लेते हैं। कहानी की भाषा सरल, प्रवाहमयी और विशुद्ध है, एक के बाद एक 140 पन्ने पढ़ने में दो दिन ही लगे। कई बार कविता, कहानी आदि में कुछ बातें प्रत्यक्ष होती हैं और कुछ परोक्ष। लेखक अपनी कहानी में नपे तुले शब्दों में ढेर सारी ऐसी बातें करते हैं जहां परोक्ष ज्यादा जरूरी और उभर कर हमारे सामने आता है। शीर्षक ख़ुद एक तंज जैसा है जहां सब कुछ अनैतिक, अवैधानिक है पर फिर भी है वैधानिक गल्प। आशा करता हूं आपको भी ये वैधानिक गल्प वही सब कुछ सोचने, विचारने और समझने को विवश करे।
"लव जिहाद में लव लाल स्याही से और जिहाद हरी स्याही से लिखा गया था।"
- वैधानिक गल्प, चंदन पाण्डेय
पढ़ते वक्त इस एक लाइन ने मुझे थोड़ी देर रुककर सोचने को मजबूर किया था, मैं सच में रंगों के इस चयन के बारे में अभी तक सोच रहा हूँ। आइये हांकते हैं थोड़ी गल्प, पर इस बार ज़रा वैधानिक तरीक़े से क्योंकि हैं तो हम लोकतांत्रिक, कानून का पालन करने वाले न्यायप्रिय नागरिक ही ना। कहानी के तीन मुख्य पात्र हैं , अर्जुन (लेखक/ नेरेटर), अनुसुया और उसका पति रफीक । पहले दो पात्र मौजूद हैं और तीसरा पात्र लापता/ गायब/गुमशुदा। इसी लापता पात्र रफीक की तलाश का खाका है यह उपन्यास। गुड़गांव में रहने वाले पेशे से लेखक अर्जुन को गोरखपुर देवरिया जिले के नोमा गांव (काल्पनिक गांव) से अनुसुया देवी का एक फोन कॉल आता है। अनुसुया देवी किसी ज़माने में लेखक अर्जुन की प्रेयसी रह चुकी थीं पर प्रसंग किन्हीं कारणों से आगे ना बढ़ सका। लेखक महोदय सुनकर चकित होते हैं कि नोंमा गांव/कस्बा/शहर में रहने वाली अनुसुया का पति, रफीक कुछ दिनों से लापता है और स्थानीय पुलिस उसकी एफआईआर तक लिखने को तैयार नहीं है। वो सोचता है आखिर देश का कानून किस दिन काम आयेगा? बोरिया बिस्तर बाँध के कुछ दिनों के लिए लेखक दिल्ली से हवाई जहाज पकड़ कर नोमा पहुँच जाते हैं। यहां आकर उन्हें एक अलग ही दुनिया का अहसास होता है जो दिल्ली, गुडगांव की हाई प्रोफाइल ज़िंदगी से काफ़ी अलग है। अनुसुया का सौहर/पति जिसका नाम रफीक है कस्बे के ही एक अनाम महाविद्यालय में पढ़ाता है। सालों बाद भी उसकी नौकरी स्थायी नहीं हुई क्यों कि उसके तेवर ज़रा अलग हैं और संचालन समिति के वरिष्ठ सदस्यों को चाटुकारिता करने वाले पसंद हैं। सही मायनों में रफीक एक उदारवादी बुद्धिजीवी है जो उस छोटी सी जगह में रहकर भी मोलोवस्की की कविताएं पढ़ता और पढ़ाता है, रंगकर्म में सतत् प्रयासरत है और युवा पीढ़ी के लडके लड़कियों को एक बेहतर समाज और कल के लिए तैयार कर रहा है। अपने नाटकों की वजह से रफीक नोमा कस्बे में सत्तारूढ़ दल "मंगल मोर्चा" की आंखों में चुभता है और उसके नए नाटक के मंचन पर मोर्चा की तरफ़ से काफ़ी विरोध भी होता है। ये इत्तेफाक की बात ही है कि रफीक ने अपने धर्म के बाहर जाकर एक हिंदू लड़की, अनुसुया से शादी की। इस वजह से उसे अपना घर बार छोड़ कर और सामाजिक अवहेलना से बचने के लिए ही नोमा आना पड़ा। अर्जुन को ये भी पता चलता है कि रफीक के साथ ही उसकी एक छात्रा जानकी भी लापता है।जानकी उसके नाटक मंडली में भी काम करती है और रफीक को अपना गुरु मानती है।
नोमा कस्बे में शुरु में पुलिस तंत्र से लेखक को घोर निराशा होती है लेकिन ऊपर से जब पैरवी लगाई जाती है तो वही स्थानीय पुलिस अर्जुन का खूब आदर सत्कार भी करती है। देखते देखते रफीक और जानकी के लापता होने को "लव जिहाद" का रंग दे दिया जाता है। रफीक के चरित्र पर भी काफ़ी छींटाकशी होती है, उसे दोषी/अपराधी साबित करने के भरसक प्रयास किए जाते हैं। देश का संविधान हमें इस बात की स्वतंत्रता देता है कि किसी भी धर्म, संप्रदाय, जाति आदि से हम अपना जीवनसाथी चुन सकते हैं लेकिन पिछले करीब एक दशक से लगातार कोशिश हो रही है कि हिंदू - मुस्लिम शादियां बंद/कम से कम हो। इसी क्रम में एक नया शब्द हमारे शब्दकोश में जुड़ा "लव जिहाद"। इसी राजनीति का शिकार हो जाता है रफीक और उसकी बेगुनाही को साबित करने वाला भी कोई नहीं है इस कस्बे में। धीरे धीरे रफीक के अन्य छात्र जो अब तक अनुसुया की ढाल बनकर उसकी रक्षा कर रहे थे, धीरे धीरे एक-एक कर के गायब होने लगते हैं। अर्जुन को समझ आता है कि रफीक एक बहुत बड़ी साज़िश का शिकार बन गया है और उसकी मदद इस कस्बे में शायद कोई नहीं कर सकता है। शहर के अन्य गणमान्य नागरिक कस्बे की छवि सुधारने हेतु अर्जुन से खूब प्रेम भाव से मिलते हैं लेकिन अंदर ही अंदर पुलिस और कस्बे के लोगों की मिलीभगत साफ़ तौर पर नज़र आती है। कहानी में आगे क्या होगा ये बताकर मैं इस कहानी मज़ा किरकिरा नहीं करूंगा और आप से पढ़ने का अनुरोध करूंगा।
कहानी को पढ़ते हुए ऐसा लगा जैसे लेखक ने स्वयं भारत के पुलिस तंत्र को बहुत नज़दीक से देखा और परखा है। कहानी के सभी पात्रों का चरित्र चित्रण एकदम सटीक है और सभी पात्र एक पाठक के दिमाग़ में अपनी अपनी जगह बना लेते हैं। कहानी की भाषा सरल, प्रवाहमयी और विशुद्ध है, एक के बाद एक 140 पन्ने पढ़ने में दो दिन ही लगे। कई बार कविता, कहानी आदि में कुछ बातें प्रत्यक्ष होती हैं और कुछ परोक्ष। लेखक अपनी कहानी में नपे तुले शब्दों में ढेर सारी ऐसी बातें करते हैं जहां परोक्ष ज्यादा जरूरी और उभर कर हमारे सामने आता है। शीर्षक ख़ुद एक तंज जैसा है जहां सब कुछ अनैतिक, अवैधानिक है पर फिर भी है वैधानिक गल्प। आशा करता हूं आपको भी ये वैधानिक गल्प वही सब कुछ सोचने, विचारने और समझने को विवश करे।
July 9, 2021
Legal Fiction by Chandan Pandey was originally a Hindi novel titled "Vaidhanik Galp." The book has been translated into English by Bharatbhooshan Tiwari.
The story revolves around writer Arjun Kumar who gets an unexpected phone call late at night from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya. But Anasuya has called him because she is helpless. Her husband Rafique Neel, who is a college professor and theatre director, is missing, and the Police are not ready to register an FIR. Anasuya has married Rafique without her family's consent, and now she does not have anyone to turn to. Learning about her plight, Arjun leaves for Noma, where Anasuya lives. After reaching there, Arjun gathers another piece of news- one of Rafique's students, Janaki is also missing. Owing to Arjun's brother-in-law's political connections, he is finally able to register an FIR. But Arjun soon realizes that things are not as they seem, and there is something deeper beyond it.
Legal Fiction is a short novel of around 160 pages. In the book, the author has tried to uncover the dark side of India by touching upon some sensitive topics like 'Love Jihad', caste discrimination, and mob lynching. I love reading thrillers and was expecting some good thrill from this book, but I was disappointed as I didn't find it thrilling.
Legal Fiction is not a fast-paced thriller novel, but it was a good read. I will recommend this book to those readers who like reading political thrillers.
The story revolves around writer Arjun Kumar who gets an unexpected phone call late at night from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya. But Anasuya has called him because she is helpless. Her husband Rafique Neel, who is a college professor and theatre director, is missing, and the Police are not ready to register an FIR. Anasuya has married Rafique without her family's consent, and now she does not have anyone to turn to. Learning about her plight, Arjun leaves for Noma, where Anasuya lives. After reaching there, Arjun gathers another piece of news- one of Rafique's students, Janaki is also missing. Owing to Arjun's brother-in-law's political connections, he is finally able to register an FIR. But Arjun soon realizes that things are not as they seem, and there is something deeper beyond it.
Legal Fiction is a short novel of around 160 pages. In the book, the author has tried to uncover the dark side of India by touching upon some sensitive topics like 'Love Jihad', caste discrimination, and mob lynching. I love reading thrillers and was expecting some good thrill from this book, but I was disappointed as I didn't find it thrilling.
Legal Fiction is not a fast-paced thriller novel, but it was a good read. I will recommend this book to those readers who like reading political thrillers.
May 20, 2024
Sharp, clear storytelling. But I think I should have read it in Hindi, I could tell the passages where the translation was trying, but not doing what it wanted to. Good read nevertheless.
December 30, 2021
Set in a UP town this book is an interesting read which tries to show the true picture of society.
The author has an amazing command of language and loved the usage of words and his way of writing in Hindi.
The story starts when Arjun gets a call from her ex-girlfriend after more than a decade and she tells him that her husband is missing. Arjun travels to UP to help her find her husband.
During the search, Arjun sees the real face of society while few more people go missing.
Book gets a bit slow in the middle but picks up towards the end. Overall a good read.
The author has an amazing command of language and loved the usage of words and his way of writing in Hindi.
The story starts when Arjun gets a call from her ex-girlfriend after more than a decade and she tells him that her husband is missing. Arjun travels to UP to help her find her husband.
During the search, Arjun sees the real face of society while few more people go missing.
Book gets a bit slow in the middle but picks up towards the end. Overall a good read.
July 13, 2021
I read this book a while ago and I thought that after sitting on it for a while, I'd be able to make sense of my thoughts on it but I am still not sure how I feel about it.
The book revolves around a writer, Arjun Kumar who receives a late-night call from his ex-girlfriend, Anusuya pleading for help as her husband Rafique Neel, a college professor and theatre director had gone missing and the police weren't registering a missing-persons report.
Having no support system, Anusuya reaches out to Arjun asking for his help and he agrees.
Arjun travels to the mofussil town of Noma on the UP-Bihar border to try and gather information and finds out that Rafique's student Janki had also gone missing and the locals are determined to turn it into a case of 'love jihad'.
Arjun finds himself digging deeper into the mystery only to be baffled by what he finds when he reaches the bottom.
I finished this book in no time, thanks to the writing style which is simple and easy to read.
The plot has immense potential but it was the narration that didn't let the story prosper which is a shame because it started off really well.
I loved the fact that the author chose to show such sensitive and yet controversial topics in his books but my joy was short lived because what follows is a tale that merely brushes upon the subject it deals with.
A good mystery thriller requires you to be able to create a web that the reader cannot get out until you want them to. Sadly this book failed to do it.
Instead of things making sense as we dive deeper into the story, they only became more confusing. There were a lot of characters and none of them were well developed. A lot of questions were left unanswered even after the book was finished.
The concept of this book is definitely something that needs to be explored and narrated but it was the execution that failed to make an impression.
I get what the author was trying to day through the story because the message comes through quite clearly and I love that he tried to show us how crippled our justice system is. But I wish the plot was more nuanced with complex characters and better build up.
Overall, it was a one time read for me.
The book revolves around a writer, Arjun Kumar who receives a late-night call from his ex-girlfriend, Anusuya pleading for help as her husband Rafique Neel, a college professor and theatre director had gone missing and the police weren't registering a missing-persons report.
Having no support system, Anusuya reaches out to Arjun asking for his help and he agrees.
Arjun travels to the mofussil town of Noma on the UP-Bihar border to try and gather information and finds out that Rafique's student Janki had also gone missing and the locals are determined to turn it into a case of 'love jihad'.
Arjun finds himself digging deeper into the mystery only to be baffled by what he finds when he reaches the bottom.
I finished this book in no time, thanks to the writing style which is simple and easy to read.
The plot has immense potential but it was the narration that didn't let the story prosper which is a shame because it started off really well.
I loved the fact that the author chose to show such sensitive and yet controversial topics in his books but my joy was short lived because what follows is a tale that merely brushes upon the subject it deals with.
A good mystery thriller requires you to be able to create a web that the reader cannot get out until you want them to. Sadly this book failed to do it.
Instead of things making sense as we dive deeper into the story, they only became more confusing. There were a lot of characters and none of them were well developed. A lot of questions were left unanswered even after the book was finished.
The concept of this book is definitely something that needs to be explored and narrated but it was the execution that failed to make an impression.
I get what the author was trying to day through the story because the message comes through quite clearly and I love that he tried to show us how crippled our justice system is. But I wish the plot was more nuanced with complex characters and better build up.
Overall, it was a one time read for me.
July 13, 2021
Legal Fiction is a legal term that can be defined as a assumption (often baseless or irrational) which is considered to be the truth so that a court can arrive at a verdict very soon.
And this is what I found interesting. Legal Fiction uses a legal term without even including a court session in the course of the novel. However, the verdict is already decided without the intervention of the court. It is decided by corrupt politicians and police officers, as well as those people who cower at the power of the influential. The story begins with the protagonist's ex-girlfriend requesting him to help her find her missing husband, for whom she is unable to file an FIR at the nearest police station. From here, the readers are exposed to the power dynamics at play at Noma. With the help of this mofussil town, Legal Fiction lays ample amount of emphasis on how spatial distance is inversely proportional to human communication. In fact, the protagonist repeatedly questions how Rafique's disappearance could have surprised the residents of the town to such an extent that they would abandon their own rationale and spread rumours of him eloping with his young student, especially in a newspaper report. This absence of logic and reason in the town is further strengthened by the politicians and officers who go on supporting the love-jihad theory published in the report.
However, the only problem that I faced while reading Legal Fiction is the narrative. As the story progressed, the flow of ideas seemed inconsistent and at some points very convoluted. Perhaps, the essence of the original text might have slipped by a margin in this translation. Such is the challenge of translating a text — vernacular expressions often find inadequate words in among global languages to convey the true emotions that could have been possible in the native tongue. Yet, Legal Fiction is an important political critique of how power is capable of corrupting the truth in ways unimaginable yet unsurprising.
I thank the author and the publisher for this opportunity.
And this is what I found interesting. Legal Fiction uses a legal term without even including a court session in the course of the novel. However, the verdict is already decided without the intervention of the court. It is decided by corrupt politicians and police officers, as well as those people who cower at the power of the influential. The story begins with the protagonist's ex-girlfriend requesting him to help her find her missing husband, for whom she is unable to file an FIR at the nearest police station. From here, the readers are exposed to the power dynamics at play at Noma. With the help of this mofussil town, Legal Fiction lays ample amount of emphasis on how spatial distance is inversely proportional to human communication. In fact, the protagonist repeatedly questions how Rafique's disappearance could have surprised the residents of the town to such an extent that they would abandon their own rationale and spread rumours of him eloping with his young student, especially in a newspaper report. This absence of logic and reason in the town is further strengthened by the politicians and officers who go on supporting the love-jihad theory published in the report.
However, the only problem that I faced while reading Legal Fiction is the narrative. As the story progressed, the flow of ideas seemed inconsistent and at some points very convoluted. Perhaps, the essence of the original text might have slipped by a margin in this translation. Such is the challenge of translating a text — vernacular expressions often find inadequate words in among global languages to convey the true emotions that could have been possible in the native tongue. Yet, Legal Fiction is an important political critique of how power is capable of corrupting the truth in ways unimaginable yet unsurprising.
I thank the author and the publisher for this opportunity.
October 27, 2021
Legal Fiction is originally written in Hindi as "Vaidhanik Galp", translated by Bharatbhooshan Tiwari.
Legal Fiction is set, for most of its part, in Noma ( probably fictional ), a small town of U.P. of 2015. The narrator, Arjun Kumar receives a phone call from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya, asking for help with finding her missing husband.
Arjun is an ordinary guy, self-conscious to hug his wife in public and often self-guessing himself rather than asking questions to elucidate.
This promising tale inscribed a very urgent and lethal socio-political issue, which is most widespread in contemporary India - "Love-Jihad". It also highlighted some very crucial procedural lacking of our criminal justice system; i.e. non-registration of FIR, many times the police does not take the preliminary/necessary steps when matters are brought to them. It's an honest and sincere report about the ground realities of our very own land. If I talk about the plot, it is very subtle and gripping and immersive, characters are well depicted along with adequate emotions. Arjun had never been to a police station, he found himself in an unfamiliar space, trying his best to unearth the mystery of the missing man, Rafique Neel. Rafique is the husband of Anasuya. He's an ad-hoc teacher at a degree college. Here the author has illustrated the humiliating aspects of the ad-hoc, their lament, their struggle to validate themselves, their financial crises, and so on.
This is the best at its capturing the very fresh and substantial essence of the small town of Northern India ( Uttar Pradesh to very specific ). Infrastructural development, distress of communal tensions etc.
The narration of this novel functions as a convex lens, conversing with all the relevant and materials socio-political issues through this literary report. It puts forward multiple questions including socio-political responsibility. It holds a sense of positivity and hopes to bring about a material change. It also provides a space for the readers to think beyond the scope of this book. A much-needed book of our time.
Legal Fiction is set, for most of its part, in Noma ( probably fictional ), a small town of U.P. of 2015. The narrator, Arjun Kumar receives a phone call from his ex-girlfriend Anasuya, asking for help with finding her missing husband.
Arjun is an ordinary guy, self-conscious to hug his wife in public and often self-guessing himself rather than asking questions to elucidate.
This promising tale inscribed a very urgent and lethal socio-political issue, which is most widespread in contemporary India - "Love-Jihad". It also highlighted some very crucial procedural lacking of our criminal justice system; i.e. non-registration of FIR, many times the police does not take the preliminary/necessary steps when matters are brought to them. It's an honest and sincere report about the ground realities of our very own land. If I talk about the plot, it is very subtle and gripping and immersive, characters are well depicted along with adequate emotions. Arjun had never been to a police station, he found himself in an unfamiliar space, trying his best to unearth the mystery of the missing man, Rafique Neel. Rafique is the husband of Anasuya. He's an ad-hoc teacher at a degree college. Here the author has illustrated the humiliating aspects of the ad-hoc, their lament, their struggle to validate themselves, their financial crises, and so on.
This is the best at its capturing the very fresh and substantial essence of the small town of Northern India ( Uttar Pradesh to very specific ). Infrastructural development, distress of communal tensions etc.
The narration of this novel functions as a convex lens, conversing with all the relevant and materials socio-political issues through this literary report. It puts forward multiple questions including socio-political responsibility. It holds a sense of positivity and hopes to bring about a material change. It also provides a space for the readers to think beyond the scope of this book. A much-needed book of our time.
November 22, 2022
हमने अपने कथानकों में हीरो खड़ा कर दिया है, जो हमारी संतुष्टि मात्र के लिए या कहूं हमारे पैसे की कीमत के लिए system से लड़ जाएगा और यदि मर भी गया तो बदलाव लाकर ही मरेगा, अंतिम सांस के पहले। हमने कहानियों को अपनी अक्षमताओं की संतुष्टि का माध्यम बना लिया और नाम दिया कि वास्तविकता से परे , दिमाग घर पे रख कर ये सब देखना या पढ़ना चाहिए। आखिर खुश होने गए हैं हम, किसी विषय की समझ की गहराई में जाकर क्या करेंगे। दिमाग मनोरंजन मांगता है, orgasm मांगता है। सोच सोचकर तो वैसे ही रोज़ मर रहे हैं और कोई कैसे अधिक सोचने को मजबूर कर सकता है।मैं भी पढ़ते वक्त अपनी आदत अनुसार सरल रास्ते ढूँढ रहा था, कुछ पैरे छोड़ दिया, फिर वापस आया, गुस्सा था कि क्यों इतना सोचने पे मजबूर कर रहे हो। तुम्हारे लेखक होने की बेचारगी मेरी नहीं है, कभी से भी MBA कर लेते या 55-60000 रैंक लाकर इंजीनियरिंग कर लेते। जब ऐंठ थी तो अब सुनो अपने सफल साले की। वहाँ जाकर रीढ़विहीन क्यों घूम रहे थे, कॉलर नहीं पकड़ा किसी का? हैंडपम्प नहीं उखाड़ सकते पर क्या ज़िम्मेदारी नहीं थी मेरे हीरो बन जाओ। राख फ़िल्म के आमिर की तरह रो क्यूं रहे हो हर बात पर। इतना क्यों सम्मोहित हो अपने अंतर्द्वंद्व से क्या दुनिया में बाहर और चरित्र नहीं थे पढ़ने को या ज़िम्मेदारी नहीं थी कि वहां के कुछ मसाले हमें भी चखाते पर नहीं आपको अपने लेखक होने का भ्रम था इसलिए सिर्फ समझने के फेर में 140 पन्ने लिख डाले?अनसूया का क्या हुआ? हमें सब कुछ साफ साफ दिखना चाहिए इसीलिए रफ़ीक़ के बारे में बताओ मिला कि नहीं? इतना भी अंधा राज नहीं है कि नजीब की तरह सब गायब ही हो जाते हैं। सफदर हाशमी तो गायब नहीं हुआ था, जैसे नियाज़ को रॉड से मारा वैसे ही उनको भी मारा था अब सफदर के लिए कोई अनुराधा नहीं आयी तो क्या हुआ?वैसे अभी ही लिखना था आपको? जब सफदर को मार रहे थे तब आप कहाँ थे?सारे जवाब नहीं मिल सकते क्योंकि जवाब देने की ज़िम्मेदारी कहानी की नहीं है, खुद सोचिये कि क्या हुआ जो लेखक इतना मजबूर हो गया कि वो आपको orgasm न देते हुए आपको समस्या की तहें खोलता जा रहा है कि शायद कहानी में मज़े की जगह आप उत्तर खुद में तलाशें। हम discourse से डरने लगे हैं और इसलिए कला को tranquilizer बना लिया है, फ़िल्म में नाच चाहिए, कहानी में हीरो और समस्या जितनी काल्पनिक रहे उतनी बढ़िया।मैं लेखक से नाराज़ हूँ कि मज़े नहीं दिए पर साहस का मुरीद भी कि कहानी की व्यथा को जीवित रखा
August 6, 2021
Arjun gets a late night call from his ex girlfriend Anasuya asking him for help to find his missing husband Rafique Neel. Rafique Neel is a college professor and theater director in a small town of Nona in UP. After reaching Nona, Arjun realizes things are not clear and simple as it seems. First police are refusing to register FIR of a missing person, second they misbehave with a pregnant Anasuya and third they tried to beat the students who were accompanying Anasuya.
Soon after there is a news Rafique had an affair with Janaki, another student who has disappeared. And then people naming it case of 'Love Jihad'. When Arjun digs deeper he finds out everyone is hiding something. And his life and maybe everyone around Rafique's, has their life in danger.
Review-
The starting of the book seems very promising. It is fast, quick and gets to the core of the story. But as the book progresses I felt they were just going round and round around one topic. Arjun's character lack quick thinking or decision making abilities.
I don't know if there was a problem in translation but many of the incidents and scenes felt incomplete. I just felt something was lost and didn't communicate very well.
There are some raw, unapologetic, bold scenes of how India's political and judicial system works. There is no scope of justice or even a way to unravel the truth. And those who even tries have to face some grave consequences.
The most impressive thing about this book is Arjun's dilemma. His inner monologue reflects that he like every one else is a flawed human. He also has dark thoughts, still somewhat stuck in past, doesn't know how to console someone and if situation arises takes an easy way out. But isn't that what we all do?
Towards the end I was expecting a little bit more. But the end was abrupt and I am still curious as to what happened next? But I understand it was an open ending kind of book.
Soon after there is a news Rafique had an affair with Janaki, another student who has disappeared. And then people naming it case of 'Love Jihad'. When Arjun digs deeper he finds out everyone is hiding something. And his life and maybe everyone around Rafique's, has their life in danger.
Review-
The starting of the book seems very promising. It is fast, quick and gets to the core of the story. But as the book progresses I felt they were just going round and round around one topic. Arjun's character lack quick thinking or decision making abilities.
I don't know if there was a problem in translation but many of the incidents and scenes felt incomplete. I just felt something was lost and didn't communicate very well.
There are some raw, unapologetic, bold scenes of how India's political and judicial system works. There is no scope of justice or even a way to unravel the truth. And those who even tries have to face some grave consequences.
The most impressive thing about this book is Arjun's dilemma. His inner monologue reflects that he like every one else is a flawed human. He also has dark thoughts, still somewhat stuck in past, doesn't know how to console someone and if situation arises takes an easy way out. But isn't that what we all do?
Towards the end I was expecting a little bit more. But the end was abrupt and I am still curious as to what happened next? But I understand it was an open ending kind of book.
October 4, 2021
I spent two hours reading Legal Fiction by Chandan Pandey (translated from the original Vaidhanik Galp in Hindi), and brrrrr…. It is a long time since a book sent shivers down my spine in this way.
A short but absolutely unputdownable book, this is a thriller that deserves many readers. It goes right into the heart of the evil that is festering in many an Indian town and city now - where propaganda is used artfully to create and spread hatred between people and communities. The Noma of this novel is a specific small town in UP but could be many an Indian town with its small cast of manipulative politicians, compromised cops and slavish hangers-on. But the author doesn’t stereotype and there are also young men and women eager for knowledge of more beyond this small world and burning to create a more just one.
From a literary perspective, it is masterfully crafted with a narrator who is morally compromised yet able to recognise the idealistic alter-ego that appears in the form of his ex-girlfriend’s missing husband.
What else can I say but…don’t miss this one.
A short but absolutely unputdownable book, this is a thriller that deserves many readers. It goes right into the heart of the evil that is festering in many an Indian town and city now - where propaganda is used artfully to create and spread hatred between people and communities. The Noma of this novel is a specific small town in UP but could be many an Indian town with its small cast of manipulative politicians, compromised cops and slavish hangers-on. But the author doesn’t stereotype and there are also young men and women eager for knowledge of more beyond this small world and burning to create a more just one.
From a literary perspective, it is masterfully crafted with a narrator who is morally compromised yet able to recognise the idealistic alter-ego that appears in the form of his ex-girlfriend’s missing husband.
What else can I say but…don’t miss this one.
October 3, 2021
The soggy pages were virtually unreadable. Water had seeped in so deep that one could not pick out a single dry page amid all the wet pages whose letters had run off. Finally, I found three pages that were relatively drier, although the moisture had left them fragile. They began to tear at my touch:
15/4/15
Ratnashankar Guru-ji has become an expert in the art of insulting. The entire city now knows that he doesn't like me...
They had fought on this some years back, Archana didn't like the idea of him keeping the picture of his ex-girlfriend with him over the years. She had clearly been very angry and it was the first time that the topic of divorce came up. Archana handed him the phone, the note of urgency in the brusque Haryanvi voice rang clear. He feigned confusion, but he knew it was Ansuya. Arjun knew that it would be like walking on eggshells with this late night phone call. He would have to tell Archana why a woman called so late at night asking for him.
15/4/15
Ratnashankar Guru-ji has become an expert in the art of insulting. The entire city now knows that he doesn't like me...
They had fought on this some years back, Archana didn't like the idea of him keeping the picture of his ex-girlfriend with him over the years. She had clearly been very angry and it was the first time that the topic of divorce came up. Archana handed him the phone, the note of urgency in the brusque Haryanvi voice rang clear. He feigned confusion, but he knew it was Ansuya. Arjun knew that it would be like walking on eggshells with this late night phone call. He would have to tell Archana why a woman called so late at night asking for him.
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