A new milestone in Hindi satire
By R.L Singal

DR SANSAR CHANDRA’s magnum opus Vidushak Ki Yaad Mein contains 101 essays written by him during the last 50 years of his distinguished literary career. These pieces which are replete with humour, wit and satire have been gleaned from his published and unpublished stock of writings in the genre.

Reading these pieces, one muses how aptly Dr. Johnson’s definition of the essay as "a loose sally of the mind" befits them. Even Bacon’s description of this literary genre as ‘dispersed meditations’ should be a true comment on the author’s output; as almost all the essays in this anthology are the writer’s reflections (though in a lighter vein) on contemporary social life and cultural mores. At most places he is autobiographical in style and tone and has the capacity to laugh at himself. He makes even his better half the butt of his satirical comments while trying to poke fun on women and their foibles.

For example, in his satirical essay Baaten ye jhoothi hain, he is stung by the false allegations of his brother in-law. He asks his wife: "Is anything still left for me to hear?". She retorts: "Your ears are ringing!" At this point the author’s satirical statement soaked in Hindu mythology is indeed telling: "Mein sewa ka yaha apporv mewa lekar apni uma ko daksh ke ghar hi chhod kar nikal bhage; apni uma apne shankar ka apmaan hone par yagya-kund mein koodaney wali kahan thi".

The author repeatedly makes interesting and delightful references to famous characters and anecdotes from our literature and mythology to generate interest. At these places you discover that humour and satire are intermixed, which indeed is a rare capability in a writer. But all this seems to have been achieved by him naturally and effortlessly because he has an inexhaustible store of these literary and mythological yarns up his sleeve.

As you read a few essays (selected at random) from this anthology such as Agar Naradji Jammu Aate (If Narad had visited Jammu), Apni dali ke kaante ( The thorns on your own branch), Sewa nivritti ke avsar par ( On the eve of retirement), Chakkar lakiron ka (the web of lines), Sewa kare so mewa pawe ( Serve and be rewarded), Swagat bhashan (the welcome address), you simply wonder at the range and variety of his interests, and involuntarily exclaim: ‘Here is God’s plenty’. Almost every essay is a world in miniature though the length of the essays is about four-five pages. His canvas is vast, style urbane and polished and the tone basically witty. Society, during the period that Dr Sansar Chandra wrote these essays, was permeated by gloom and bitterness. He tried in his own way, to scatter away that gloom with wit and humour.

Dr. Sansar Chandra employs the weapon of satire to ruthlessly expose the ever-growing hypocrisy and chicanery in our social and political life today. We are amused but at the same time shaken out of our lethargy and indifference to the menace of these monsters of sham and deception around us.

His language is a mixture of Hindi and Urdu with a heavy dose of Persianised vocabulary. Though he uses this colourful diction with devastating effect, it is doubtful whether those who do not know Urdu particularly young men and women of the post-Independence generation, will be able to enjoy and appreciate his sallies and squibs. Of course, those familiar with Urdu will certainly relish the intriguing fare that he offers.

The book is a literary achievement for which he will always be remembered as a shining link in the chain of Hindi humour and satire writers such as Babu Gulab Rai, Hari Shankar Parsai and Sharad Joshi.