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The Death of Vishnu: A Novelby Manil Suri |
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Vishnu, the odd-job man in a Bombay apartment block, lies dying on the staircase landing: Around him the lives of the apartment dwellers unfold: the warring housewives on the first floor, lovesick teenagers on the second, and the widower, alone and quietly grieving on the top floor of the building. In a fevered state Vishnu looks back on his love affair with the seductive Padmim and wonders if he might actually be the god Vishnu, guardian of the entire universe.
Blending incisive comedy with Hindu mythology and a dash of Bollywood sparkle, The Death of Vishnu is an intimate and compelling view of an unforgettable world.
From Amazon.com Review:
The title of Manil Suri's first novel gets right to the point. His protagonist, having purchased the right to sleep on the ground-floor landing of a Bombay apartment house, slips slowly from a coma into death. As this aging alcoholic takes leave of the earth, his neighbors surround him, arguing over who gave Vishnu a few dried chapatis, who called the doctor for him, and who will pay for the ambulance to cart him away. Meanwhile, the hero of The Death of Vishnu is lost in memories. Drifting through increasingly vivid scenes from his past, he recalls his relatively rare snatches of love and joy--and especially his romance with Padmini, a self-involved prostitute. On one particular day, it seems, he stole one of his employer's cars and drove his love interest to the honeymoon town of Lonavala, where he showered her with gifts and finally lifted her veil to kiss her like a bride:
Then the absurdity of the situation strikes him. The preposterousness of his images, the foolishness of his feelings, the comicality of chasing currents that skim across Padmini's face. He thinks how absurd this whole trip has been, how absurd is the presence of the two of them in Lonavala, how absurd is the scenery itself that stretches before them. He thinks of poor, ridiculous Mr. Jalal, waiting back in Bombay for his Fiat, and of how Padmini will react when he asks her to buy them petrol so they can get back.Vishnu also recalls his secret passion for Kavita Asrani, the beautiful teenage daughter of one of the families for whom he works. Given the protagonist's focus on his hapless love life, the scope of Suri's dazzling debut may appear narrow. However, the apartment house upon whose floor Vishnu spends his final hours functions as a microcosm of Indian society. It helps to know even a smattering about Hindu mythology or India's religious conflicts. But even if you don't, there is plenty to relish in The Death of Vishnu, with its comical, richly drawn characters, loving attention to the details of everyday life, and provocative exploration of destiny and free will. --Regina Marler
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A Micro View of India - |
The Death of Vishnu: A Novel Review |
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This book begins with an amusing conflict between two housewives who must share a kitchen. Several classes of people are featured from the very poor to the lower middle class, their interactions and influences upon each other. Very well written, tragedy is inevitable, particularly with the young lovers of different religions and of course, the dying Krishna, the lowest of servants who sleeps under the stairs. A good read. |
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the essence of contemporary India - |
The Death of Vishnu: A Novel Review |
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Vishnu lies dying on the staircase, which has been his home, and his neighbors, families Pathak and Asrani, argue, who should pay for the ambulance. This is the beginning of the chain, which transports the reader to the higher and higher floors of the building in Bombay and reveals the drama behind the closed doors of its dwellers. We follow Mr Jalal through his obsessive search for the sense of life, we see the widower Vinod Taneja, who is missing his wife so much he renounces life altogether, and young Kavita Asrani, who imagines herself as a heroine of a Bollywood romance movie and runs away from home.
The story, infused with Indian mythology, is a metaphor of a social and political division in the contemporary Indian society, shown here as a building, inhabited by people of different social status and religious beliefs. The Pathaks and the Asranis are very similar Hindu families, who live in constant competition and jealousy, uniting only against those who are much different, like the Jalals, who are respectful Muslims (and whose son elopes with Kavita Asrani), or like Vishnu, a poor drunk who is allowed to live on the stairs of the building in exchange for favors. The stairs provide shelter for many people, nearly as many, as those who live in the flats, and equally diverse. There is Ganga, who is assigned the task of bringing the milk to the flats, and the radiowalla, whose only pride is his small transistor radio. The building sparks with life, everyone is going about their business, and in the middle of the staircase there lies Vishnu in a coma. The story of the few days before Vishnu dies is interrupted by Vishnu's visions of his past and afterlife, his prostitute lover, Padmini, his dreams of a better life and his misery and happiness in life. These fragments bring spiritual depth into the witty novel, giving it perspective and rounding it up as a thoroughly Indian story. The author, Manil Suri, is a mathematician, and maybe because of this he managed to give his debut novel exceptionally good structure. The ending is open and leaves room for imagination (at the same time, it was a bit unclear and blurred to me, the only flaw I could find in this amazing debut). The language is light and clear. The book reads fast and absorbs the reader. I will start reading the next novels of the other two of the Indian divine trinity, Shiva (the novel appeared at the beginning of 2008) and Brahma, with a lot of anticipation - with "The Death of Vishnu" Suri has set the bar very high. |
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Not good -  |
The Death of Vishnu: A Novel Review |
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This book follows the lives of several families in a Bombay apartment building as a homeless man in the stairwell dies. This book has few good points. There are several sexually explicit scenes. I do not recommend it. |
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Die Vishnu die -  |
The Death of Vishnu: A Novel Review |
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This was a really really really bad book. None of the characters had any redeeming values and it made me not really care what happened. I was expecting all sorts of metaphors involving Hindu religion to be revealed but they never did... |
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The Tragedy and Glory of India -  |
The Death of Vishnu: A Novel Review |
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The Death of Vishnu by Manil Suri is not for everyone. The people who will appreciate it most are Westerners who have spent time living in India. By living I mean working, living and interacting with people there, not just being a tourist. The reason for this assessment is that the book contains many references to everyday life that the uninitiated will miss, such as the tradition of touching someone's feet to show respect, the Sunday Times of India with its huge section of arranged marriage solicitations, Bollywood with such Indian movie stars as Amitabh Bachchan, the servants and attendants that surround even ordinary middle class Indian families, the antagonisms between Hindus and Muslims, and the splendor of an Indian wedding with the groom entering on horseback. Such individuals will wonder what in the world is a "paanwalla"! Suri does a good job explaining these circumstances, but it is still not the same as having experienced them for yourself. Even Westerners with some understanding of India will have a hard time fathoming the various gods and goddesses and religious references of the Hindu religion that permeate the book.
All this is not to say that this book cannot be enjoyed by people who have little knowledge of India. Suri infuses the book with universal values and themes such as romantic and familial love, the search for meaning in life and one's relationship with God. The basic story is simple enough. It concerns the comings and goings of several families in one apartment building in Bombay (now called Mumbai). On the first floor are two middle class Hindu couples who share a common kitchen. The Asranis have a teenage daughter, Kavita, and a wise-cracking son, Shyamu. The Pathaks also have a young son, Rajan. On the second floor is a Muslim family, Mr. and Mrs. Jalal and their teenage son, Salim. On the top floor lives a widower, Mr. Taneja, who lost his wife many years ago and still mourns her. The title character, Vishnu, is an odd-job man who lives on the landing between the first and second floors. A variety of other characters interact with them including various trades persons and Pran, a shy young man with whom Mrs. Asrani tries to arrange a marriage to her daughter. While the story centers on the idea that Vishu, who has led a generally dissipated life, is dying (or may already be dead), the plot really swirls around the lives of these three families and that of Vishnu before he came to his present state. We see Vishnu's life in a series of flashbacks--to when he was a small boy and his mother promised great things for him, likening him to the Hindu god, Vishnu. We see him as a young man, in love with Padmini, a prostitute that he loves deeply and hopes to have a future with, but who in the end deserts him. The best flashback, in my view, is the story of Mr. Taneja. A bank manager by profession, he engages in an arranged marriage with Sheetal. At first the marriage is difficult as Shetal and her mother-in-law do not get along. But then the couple move to their own apartment and their love for each other blooms. But tragically, Sheetal dies of cancer and Mr. Taneja is plunged into despair. He rallies at one point by joining a social service organization, but soon falters and retires to the third floor apartment to live out his life alone. But the book is full of humor as well as sadness. The kitty party that the socially ambitious Mrs. Asrani gives is one example. Then there are the on-going disputes between her and Mrs.Patahak, mediated at times by the long-suffering husbands. The cast of characters which include Tall and Short Ganga, contribute to the humor in the book. But ultimately this is a book about tragedy--the tragedy of misunderstandings, the tragedy of religious intolerance, the tragedy of unequal love. Both of these aspects, the humor and the sadness, have a universal appeal and thus the book can be appreciated by anyone regardless of their knowledge and experience with India. In fact, it might be a kind of "tourist guide" to anyone planning a visit to this strange, wonderful, complex and sad country. Read it, but be prepared for the need to understand the many cultural and religious references. |
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