Doorva Devarshi’s debut novel, The Fantastic Affair of Despair, set in the backdrop of a newly independent India, dealing with its identity of a new postcolonial nation, brings forward the story of a ‘she’ or as the author calls it, ‘The Narrator’, and with her, provides voice to the various voiceless.
Although a work of literary fiction, this book does not revolve around a single, dramatic storyline as one might typically expect. Instead it is about the daily occurrences that are too mundane, too obvious, so much so that often they are normalized, if not completely overlooked. The use of highly complex language may pose difficulties for readers. The organization of sections also feels somewhat confusing at times, and a more streamlined structure could have made the narrative more approachable.
Devarshi’s book engages with many themes at once. It brings forward the many silenced women and their stories, different from one another and yet alike in their experiences of violence. It raises questions on how systematic violence becomes a new normal. It is the story of many characters, including an uncle who abuses the Narrator when she is a nine-year-old girl, who have no option than to live life as it comes.
The book begins with ‘The Narrator’s’ daily churnings at her office where she works as a copy editor and encounters male chauvinism every day at the hands of different characters, from the ‘Chief’, who is the founder of the magazine to his emotionally estranged son, Kumar, who takes over after his father’s death. The Narrator lives in a rented apartment and Mrs. Pradhan, the landlady, alone and childless, extends a helpful hand. Although the two women are separated by several decades, they are fine companions. Along with the two women, various other characters are mentioned in passing.
When the Narrator is sent to the city of frescos to write a piece for the magazine, she leaves Mrs. Pradhan and her life in the city, but only after stealing her nutcracker, which is the Narrator’s unusual obsession—to deprive someone of what they love the most. Her assignment is for a week, but unable to continue her life in the city and living the way she had been, the Narrator enters into a self-imposed exile with no plan in her head for her future.
In the Himalayan Dharamsala, a dilapidated hut in the valley becomes her new residence. Soon she runs out of money to remain a guest at the Dharamsala. She meets Leela Ma, the child bride of Kailash, the owner of Dharmasala, who wants her to accompany his pregnant wife in return for her continued stay. The Narrator learns of the story of Leela Ma and her childhood, how she lost her mother to the beating of her father, how she was raised by her grandmother until she was married to Kailash, how she manages to remain calm despite the violence she has seen up close since her childhood onwards, how she is too young to birth a child. Leela Ma gives birth to a son, Kamal. When the Narrator reaches her hut, she finds a leopard’s green and yellow eyes staring back at her. She rushes back to Kailash’s home only to find the newborn lying dead in his crib. The Narrator buries the little boy under a deodar tree.
In the third part of the story, the Narrator moves to an unnamed village in search of the leopard as Mother Nature unleashes her fury on the villagers. The rumour is that the dam in the north of the village will be abandoned soon as the rains do not stop, leaving the poor villagers wondering what to do next. Her arrival in the village coincides with a group of climbers. She is in search of the leopard which the Narrator imagines as an extension of herself. The village is flooded during the night leaving it devastated. The call of the wild emanating from the heart of the valley grows louder, and she cannot help but embark upon a treacherous trek across the mountainous expanse to answer it. She has to leave the village and decides to join the climbers for their trek up north. During their trek, the rains continue to dampen their plan and many are left behind. The leader of the trek, Edwin, has only one obsession, to cross the valley of flowers as is evident from his reluctance to slow down or wait for his own companions. Soon, she is abandoned in the thick of the forest, but her purpose is fulfilled as she comes face to face with the beast once again.
Despite its somewhat complex language and structure, the book remains a valuable read that offers much to reflect upon.