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Poonachi
By Perumal Murugan
In short: Go read it.
After a long time have I read a book that is telling the
story of an entity that is so ordinary, so mundane but very much there in our
lives so much so that we actually fail to register its presence as a sentient
being. The writer has taken a goat who he calls ‘Poonachi’ to narrate its story
and its world view of its surroundings. Its world is restricted to the small
hut of its old and poor owners but its short sojourns to nearby places with the
old couple gives it lot of wisdom and peek into the ways of the world. It is
considered a miracle goat and that provides another angle to its otherwise
simple life but acts as a mechanism to showcase the psyche of those around her
especially the humans.
A big factor to liking this book is undoubtedly the lucid
translation done by Mr N. Kalyan Raman. The story feels as if it was originally
written in English rather than Tamil. Though I have not read the original work
of the author, this work rendered in English translation uses the language to
perfectly convey what must be some particular Tamil nuances. For example, while alluding to the clan deity Mesagaran
he retains the local way of addressing him as ‘Mesayya’ which lends itself
quite effortlessly without creating any confusion. There are some more Tamil
words that have been retained to good effect. One such word is the term
‘Asuras’ which has been kept as such without arrogating any western definitions
or its equivalent in English and that lends a unique Tamil milieu to the
narration.
The book is likened to the ‘Animal Farm’ by George Orwell as
giving a political comment through the story which may be very well true.
Sample this - ‘….Goats have horns, don’t they? Suppose they get a little angry
and point them at the regime? Such goats have to be identified, right? That’s
why they all have to get their ears pierced.’ Many more such references are
there but the story doesn’t get lopsided with it. Rather it portrays the
citizen as a politically aware commentator which is a page out of an Indian’s
life.
The book wins for its simple yet thought provoking
narration.
