MAA (Mother), a Novel by Reza Ghatok

This is the novel MAA (Mother) written by Reza Ghatok it contains 39 chapters, 32 sub-chapters, 240 pages, and a short introduction by Reza Ghatok. The novel is completely written in Bengali. It’s definitely worth a look if you are interested in finding out what happens in this novel.

MAA (Mother) is the first novel by short story writer Reza Ghatok. Novel MAA (Mother) is based on a Bengali village widow’s story who was 71 years old and a mother of 12 children. She has eight sons and four daughters but unfortunately three of her sons died. Eldest and youngest son died of cholera and second eldest son drowned in the pond. At the same time one of her son was missing. The story started at the day of her husband’ death. It was a mourning day in her life and most importantly saddest day of her almost 50 years of living together with her husband. The widow named Chhuti was born at the beginning of World War II at the bank of river Baleshwar, the southern part of Bangladesh under Barisal. Chhuti was the third of seven children of her parents. She had lot of memories of fishing with her uncle Razu in the river Baleshwar in her childhood. Hilsha is the golden fish of Bangladesh and they were fishing lot of Hilsha from Baleshwar. Her grandfather was a school master and house tutor. Chhuti learnt Bengali writing and reading, Arabic reading, English reading and Mathematics from her grandfather.

At the age of nine, Chhuti got married and sent to father-in-law’s house. Her mother-in-law taught her everything of house management like cooking, vegetables making, cake making, cloth washing, Shari wearing, hair banding, baby caring, etc. Her first child was born when she was only fourteen. But at the age of one the baby boy died of cholera. It was the very first bereavement in her happy married life. Two years later her second son was born. This time the baby boy fell in the pond at the age of one and since nobody was there to help he drowned. It was the second mourning in her life. During that time days were highly traumatic and sleepless. She lost interest in food even in her family and friends. It continued for two years and finally on the third year the sun raised. Her third son was born. The birds started to sing and the sadness went to sands of river Baleshwar.

Chhuti experienced the suffering of famine in Bengal of 1943 due to Wold War II and the famine of 1974 of Bangladesh. Bengal famine was rising after Japan Nevy attacked Burma. Burma was the biggest rice export country of the world. At that time the British ruler saved food for British and Indian solders and Japan stopped rice export to India from Burma. 20 Million People were dead by famine and water born diseases like cholera and dysentery due to massive flood in Bengal.

Ishan, one of the sons of Chhuti was lost from their village home. Ishan left some dairies at his village home. The old widow could not forget her lost son Ishan and when she had time, she read dairies of Ishan. In the pages of dairies she found lots of historical facts and figures, family crisis, social crisis, national socio-political crisis, South-Asian politics and so many buried information of independent war of Bangladesh, our political leader’s biographies, and many more lost dreams of a young visionary.

Novel MAA explores lots of historical facts major on liberation war of Bangladesh, Pakistani Military War Plan, Operation Search Light of 25 March 1971, Declaration of Independence of Bangladesh by Bangabandhu Sheikh Muzib, Tajuddin Ahmed’s Radio Speech of 10 April 1971 at All India Radio, Gohati, Indo-Pak War of 1971, Surrenders of Pakistani Army on 16 December 1971, Killing of Bangabandhu on 15 August 1975, Killing of Prisoners on 3 November 1975, Resignation Letter of Colonel Taher from Army, Last Letter of Colonel Taher from Prison, Open Letter to Prime Minister, Opposition Leader and Bangladeshi People by Dr. Humayun Azad, and many more socio-political issues of 70 years of Bangladesh.

MAA (Mother) represents the life of village people in Bangladesh of later half of 20th century and early stages of 21st century. Apart from political movements and social portrayal MAA (Mother) is also an excellent lyrical beauty. The events created and the detailed explanation of the backdrop in which the events occur represents creative and poetic story telling capabilities of Reza Ghatok. This is not a light reading kind of book. If you like to read serious literature, if you want to read how to portray the social history in a contemporary literary work, this book should be the first on your reading list.