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Where Angels Face the Heat
The author, in his foreword, says this novel is a tribute to the exiled Tibetans and the ones suffering in China. There is no doubt that the description of life and manners that the writer draws from his store of familiar observation appear strikingly true and his political intelligence that analyses the trouble of Tibet shows remarkable penetration and real colouring. However, a discernible reader cannot overlook certain improbable probabilities: The first episode seems integrally separate from the rest of the story. One cannot help wondering whether the "romance" has been deliberately packaged, goaded by consumerist market trends. An Indian girl, Rina from Shimla in the 1960s openly expressing her love for Sqn Ldr Kiran Dev, who she met a few hours ago in a train compartment, and making love to him is rather unconvincing. Then Lily who continues the train journey from Kalka to Delhi with Sqn Ldr Kiran Dev, says "ours is a conservative family". However, she is shown the very next moment requesting her co-traveller to switch off the lights so that she can change and when the lights come on she is shown wearing a thin night gown! Why she carries the photographs of Rina lying in the arms of a man in nude, is another question. What the readers detect—that she is too scheming and shrewd—Kiran fails to notice. She too has a physical relationship with Kiran. Later, she even slips a ring into his finger during the same journey. Why she carries a ring and how it fits too well into his finger remains an unsolved mystery! His would-be mother-in-law too does not display an iota of surprise on meeting her future son-in-law but readily agrees, stating that "as soon as her father comes back, we’ll finalise everything". The character of Kiran comes under a scanner and the conservative readers would certainly not forgive his sexual laxity. He certainly does not meet the standards to be a hero, though he is shown to be bravely putting up against the Chinese while he is a captive. The writer lauds the Tibetans’ Buddhist doctrine of Ahimsa—all life is sacred—which is undoubtedly a need of the hour. But it won’t be a hazard to state that the reader feels the author’s subtle innuendo, that mere non-violent attitude may not necessarily bring their country total independence and that the endless exodus to other countries to escape the atrocities of the Chinese does not promise free Tibet, where peace-loving Lamas invent machinery to combat the Chinese. They device a new type of nickel-cadmium rechargeable heavy-duty accumulator based on solar energy for multipurpose applications and a secret anti-vehicle weapon mounted with an accessory using a laser beam to set any inflammable material on fire. The story bears a generous sprinkling of supernatural elements too. Dr Chandra married to Dolma while captive, with her assistance perceives visions and supernatural forms. She is shown to possess extra-sensory perceptions that make her see the future events, spirits and ghosts making prophecies. The narrative has certain discordant notes no doubt, but it produces vividly some dominant impression that is the suffering and tension suffered by Tibetans at the hands of aggressive Chinese allied to the evil practices for the sake of boundless power. The saga of their suffering certainly arouses the feeling of pity and horror in the readers, making one muse over a pertinent question that needs answering: How far is it viable to be selfless in a selfish society?
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Edel
