Mistress

Mistress - Anita Nair

The first book by Anita Nair that I read was "Ladies coupe". It was a long time back that I read it, and I hardly remember the story now, but I distinctly remember that it was a strong story - sad, real, and truly moving.

When I saw "Mistress" on the shelf of a book store, its cover immediately attracted me, the brief synopsis on the back intrigued me, and the previous experience with the author's writing encouraged me to buy it. And I must say that it left quite an impression on me. It has been nearly a year since I read it, but ever since I have wanted to write about it.

Chris, a travel writer, comes to India, to research the dance form of Kathakali, and interview Koman, who was once a famous Kathakali dancer and is now retired. Koman's niece Radha, who is very devoted to him, is married to Shyam. Shyam owns a riverside resort in Kerala, and he offers lodging to Chris at his resort, hoping it would eventually help his business. Koman and Radha are immediately drawn to Chris, sharing a love for art and a fascination for the past. Initially Shyam is simply disinterested in their pursuits, but soon he finds himself excluded from their circle. Shyam first ignores, and then watches in a helpless frustration, unable to confront her, the growing intimacy between Radha and Chris. Koman observes all, with an understanding matured by years of enacting emotions on stage.

The characters of the story are wonderfully developed - despite their flaws, you cannot help sympathizing with each one of them.

Shyam, who appears insensitive and materialistic, has risen from an impoverished childhood to become a successful businessman. In childhood and youth, he faced contempt from Radha's father because of his poverty and dependence on him. Later on, though he truly loves Radha, Radha never reciprocates his feelings. So it tortures him to see Radha welcome Chris in her life with a passion that he has never been able to elicit.

Radha is a spirited girl, with an artistic temperament, forced by circumstances to marry Shyam. She is not able to find a meaning in her marriage though. She is contemptuous of Shyam, not because of his financial status, but because of his aesthetic tastes, which see finds plebian. At times, she realizes that she may not be fair to Shyam, but she is not apologetic about it. A woman true to her heart!

Chris, as a travel writer, is doing a story on Koman, and therefore interviews him about his past in detail. It is only later that we realize he has his own quests to follow, his own demons to fight.

Koman, whose art and his "affair" with it, is the primary framework for the book (this is the reference for the title of the book - art can be a bewitching, over-powering mistress, if you are really passionate about it), acts as an observer in the current chain events. . As he recounts the story of his life, you travel into time and places, and find an insight into the life and relationships, with his wisdom.

Nine basic emotions/expressions can define the human psychology, and these emotions form the premise of Kathakali - a performance presents a small story, typically from Hindu mythology. The mood of the story and the feelings of characters are conveyed to the audience by enacting these emotions, primarily through facial expressions. These nine emotions form the nine chapters of the book - each chapter illustrates one emotion, each given a depth of understanding and perspective by examples from nature, a story of a Kathakali performance, and events in the lives of the protagonists - and in this juxtaposition of Kathakali and life, lies the greatest beauty of this book.

Yet another merit of the book is the story presented in multi-person narrative. The sequence of events is related by one or more of the four protagonists, from their own perspective. I find that a very interesting and effective way to describe the feelings of the characters.

I also admired the great detail about nuances of Kathakali - dance as well as dancers, which must have required a lot of research. I had very little knowledge about this dance, which is perhaps the only traditional dance performed exclusively by male dancers, and the book offered me a lot of learning and insight about it.

On the downside, in Koman's story, the account of his grandfather and father was extremely long, and in my view, not really necessary. Sub-plots and parallel stories are usually an integral part of a work of fiction, but these threads did not help the protagonists' story.

It is an intense read, which delves deep into human emotions and relationships. The way it interweaves the art of Kathakali with the story of the four main characters, is extremely fascinating. The presentation and style is very different from anything else I have read, and very captivating. Undoubtedly one of the most beautiful books I have read.