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The Patna-stories, then, deal with
issues of idealism and morality. Two stories, Homeward Bound
and Seraphim and Cherubim tell the stories of two
teachers. The first, Javed, inspired by Ghalib’s poetry and
integrity, is killed while going home in a train when he springs
to the defence of a female Hindu co-passenger who almost gets
molested by hooligans while her father and the other passengers
in the coach turn a blind eye to the incident for fear of their
lives. Ironically, though, idealism dies with the death of its
upholder and later the girl, too, commits suicide, defeating the
very purpose of Javed’s sacrifice. The teacher in the second
story victimises and physically abuses his young students.
Cherubim the teacher and Seraphim the victim-student, both named
after angels, exhibit devilish traits, the first in his desires
and the second in his retaliation to his teacher’s advances.
Outlaws
deals with two friends who shoplift to add thrill and meaning to
their lives while The Leader of Men and River of
Dreams show the plight of those who are pitted against the
middle class.
The Delhi-stories,
on the other hand, centre on the university campus and the new
found emotion of love in The Adolescents, Will You be My
Valentine? and 24. Magical Omelettes... shows how an
averagely intelligent student breaks down under pressure to
clear the Civil Services examination. All these stories are
bound to generate nostalgia among those who are or were a part
of campus life.
In the title
story, the Hollywood director, Martin Scorsese (also known as
the ‘directing god’) is canonised as St Martin. His movies,
especially Mean Streets, provide Chowdhury with a vision
of life and free him from the shackles of ignorance, as does a
guru. Therefore, the Hindu concept of diksha is
appropriately used in Diksha at St. Martin’s...
Written from an
omniscient narrator’s point of view, the stories show the
ironies of a middle-class life. They are not exceptional but are
told with a conviction that is honest. For the reader the thrill
lies in recognising known names from literature and movies
mentioned in the stories; and recognising the backdrop of the
Bihari-Bengali neighbourhood, Kadam Kuan, Patna, and D.U.
campus.
Chowdhury’s
achievement in characterisation lies in portraying "A
regular guy. There are thousands of them around like him, who
are our friends, brothers and other assorted strangers. People
who are the backbone of our society and family life... one of
us."
And a character,
Ritwick, appears in all the stories giving an impression of
continuity to the stories.
The only
unpardonable flaw in the book is the numerous typographical
errors and editing mistakes which reflect poorly on the quality
of the book.
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WE
all have stories to tell. Either we write them and become writers or
they die with us and are lost forever. It is this consciousness that
compels Siddharth Chowdhury to pen down a collection of short
stories. Diksha at St. Martin’s....These stories have
strong autobiographical overtones. Born in Patna and educated in
Delhi, Chowdhury’s collection is an example of the ‘two-locale’
phenomena polularised mainly by diaspora writers like Ruth Prawer
Jhabvala, Jhumpa Lahiri and Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, who use this
technique to express the duality of their socio-cultural
experiences. The difference between them and Chowdhury is that
whereas their stories span two continents, his are set in either
Patna or Delhi.
