What is the first thing that you notice when you see a book? The front cover, book title or author’s name? ‘Chronicle of an Hour and a Half’ shines in all these three areas. The book cover of an abandoned umbrella besides a small stream, maybe by someone who was in a hurry, the forest cover, the river in the background; all these elements capture our attention and take us to the village where the story is set. The title suggests the happenings of an hour and a half which in itself is thrilling. Most of all, the unusual name of the author; Saharu Nusaiba Kannanari is striking. Nusaiba is the author’s mother and taking on his mother’s name as his second name, depicts the author’s love and respect for his mother. The book is dedicated to her.
The story is set in a fictional village in the foothills of Western Ghats in Kerala. It’s a first person narrative of multiple characters residing there and the way in which a particular incident unfolds and affects their lives and their reaction to it. Moreover, the novel portrays the adverse impact of social media in our lives, even in remote villages.
The book begins with the mention of an illicit affair of a middle aged woman Reyhana and a young man Burhan. Even though extra marital affairs of gulf migrants are not unique, it is their age gap that shocks the villagers and the fact that the lady in question is extremely beautiful and voluptuous. When the story begins, people are assembled in the mosque for the Friday prayers, the village is drenched in heavy monsoon showers and all are worried about a possible deluge. But once they start reading their whatsapp messages, their mundane lives get spiced up and lively. The basic human instincts of rage, jealousy, revenge, and honour bubbles to the surface and in a short span of an hour and a half the lives of almost everyone changes beyond imagination. The way people blindly trust whatsapp messages and form judgements and opinion without thinking about the consequences is beautifully portrayed in this book. Rain is an important element and its presence is felt throughout the book.
Now let us have a glimpse of the characters. First and foremost is Nabeesumma, an illiterate lady who was married off at an early age to worthless Ahmed, who gave her five sons and nothing else. Now they all are grown up but equally worthless. None of them contributes towards the household expenses and she has to fend for the entire family. She is not sure whether she loves her sons, but of course at the end of the day a mother is a mother.
Reyhana chose to marry a man at the age of 15 for financial security, but eternally trapped in an unloving and unsatisfactory marriage. Over the years she realizes that just financial security is not enough for a marriage to survive. Lonely and depressed in her forties, her desire to be loved leads her to cheat on her husband which ends up with tragic results. Even death defies her in the end.
The wise Imam Shahnawaz, who tries to avoid mob violence ,the sensible Pathumma and Panchami, the jobless youth Deepu and Gopu, the children June and Damu trying to make sense of all the happenings, the loud mouthed Chinnan whose babbling tongue was the starting point of all the rumours , the arrogant Shahid who can’t get over the heart break caused by the elopement of his wife, and finally the dumbwit Burhan who is unable to fathom the consequences of his action – All these characters are so real and the author has got into their minds and captured their egos and insecurities and moral dilemma. The author’s portrayal of the women and the vivid description of their fears, confusion and internal strife are really commendable. The language is flowing and captures the wild beauty of the terrain. The prose is intermittently laced with humour. Overall it is a contemporary socio-political drama which can happen anywhere in the country and anybody can relate to it. In today’s age of mob violence and lynching, it is an eye opener for all of us.
Cover: Jyothis Paravoor
