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When the Time is Right CAN daughters ever promise their fathers, "I won’t go anywhere, I’ll live with you..."? But that’s the promise that Swati makes to her father Rajen Babu and breaks it as all daughters have to do when they grow up. The novel is a family saga based upon the bonding of Rajen Mitra with his five daughters and his curious, estranged relations with his son Bijon. Rajen expresses his preference for daughters when he tells his wife, "This is wonderful! A lovely little baby girl!... Frocks of different colours, ribbons, long curly hair`85" He dotingly christens them Mahashweta, Shweta, Saraswati, Saswati and Swati. When Rajen’s wife dies, he is left alone to bring up his six children. Though his fatherly concerns mostly remain unexpressed by words, yet they are expressed by subtle affectionate gestures. He shares an exceptional bond with his youngest daughter, Swati. He manages to marry off his four daughters "in time", but cannot do so when it is Swati’s turn due to his fear of being left alone. He keeps on waiting for that moment "when the time is right" and brushes off an attractive proposal. Swati is the prettiest among her sisters and a pampered child. Spontaneous and chirpy Swati turns into an introvert, who, unlike Bijon and Sasawti, does not enjoy social gatherings. After Saswati’s marriage, she drowns herself in reading books, the avenues for which are opened to her by Professor Satyen. He instils in her a passion for the poetry of Coleridge and introduces her to the melodious world of Rabindranath Tagore. Slowly, they become friends and start exchanging letters when the independent, solitary Satyen travels to Siliguri and other places. They not only share their thoughts and perspectives but also their innermost feelings. The novel, set in pre-war Calcutta, talks about the times when going to a cinema was considered a luxury and the common form of entertainment was a soiree. It brings alive the Bengali way of life. Here is a family which lives apart only by custom and is happiest when together. When Bordi comes during Durga Puja holidays, Saswati and her husband Harit would visit often and the days would be full of banter, sumptuous meals, frequent outings and the house would resonate with laughter. Resplendent in descriptions of the settings and weather, the novel’s outer atmosphere constantly reflects the inner landscape of Swati’s heart. On a rainy day "all thoughts were obliterated in the pale, damp evening spread out against the sky". The author interweaves the public and the personal while describing the episode of Rabindranath’s death and how it solidifies Satyen’s and Swati’s hitherto unsaid commitment. The translator has tried his utmost skill to recreate the magic of this classic, but there are patches where the cracks between the two languages come to the fore. The fault does not lie with the translator, but with the limited English vocabulary when it comes to portraying the cultural milieu of Bengal. Yet the book is not lost in translation or time. The canvas of the characters of the novel ranges from the artistic businessman Bijon, simple and loving Jamaibabu to intellectual Harit, introvert Swati and independent Satyen. Swati’s character is portrayed in all its hues. The story is well-woven, though it gets too over-descriptive at places. This is both a bane and a boon of realistic tradition where not only the characters speak but also the curtains and calendars moving with the wind.
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