Analysis Of M Mukundan's Delhi 1981

Tombs where empathy sleeps ‘……. then both the young men began to drag her toward the tomb. The doves on the walls of the ruined mausoleum were watching the scene in a disturbed manner. "Arré yaar, they 're going to rape her," said Kishore Lal. He stood there watching as though it was an eastmen cinemascope movie. '- Delhi 1981, M Mukundan The story where doves are raising noise but humans are silent, M Mukundan 's Delhi 1981 is a strong political commentary on the despicable attitude of the spectators towards an act of violence happening just before their eyes. Mukundan, who is one of the pioneers of modernity in Malayalam literature, has shaped the story in the form of an unconventional narrative. Translated from Malayalam by V C Harris, the translation picks up the nuances of passive aggression from the original text with brilliance. Set in the evolving cityscape of Delhi, the story talks about the absence of uneasiness with violence, a ‘quality ' gained through city life. The reason for me to take up this particular text is, of course, the universality of the topic. There are only a few stories in which the part played by spectators are given due importance, and that makes the reader more interested. Written in Malayalam, my mother tongue, the story had a mass appeal among the literary enthusiasts. The story actually gains from the English translation in my opinion as there is more clarity in the thoughts of the characters in