Since the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan last year, snippets of numbing news have been coming in almost every month:
- · Women
have been forbidden from venturing out alone without a male accompanying her.
- · The
heads of female mannequins have been wrenched off by Taliban representatives.
As these supposedly represent vulgarity.
- · Women
have to cover up if they wish to work outside home, either with clothes or even
with a blanket if required. They can only take up teaching and medical professions.
Somehow,
these seem like a chilling reminder of the Afghanistan of the nineties, that
has been portrayed so touchingly by Khaled Hosseini in A Thousand Splendid
Suns. The story of war-ravaged Afghanistan, it illustrates the devastating
consequences of prolonged conflict on the lives of ordinary folk.
The
novel traces the journey of two women from two generations - brought together
by extraordinary circumstances, who become each other’s support system and shield
one another in horrifying, inhuman conditions.
As
usual, the author’s piercing gaze, combined with lucid, heart-touching
storytelling touch a raw nerve. There will hardly be anyone who is not moved by
this sensitive, heart-rending, tragic tale.
And
what makes this story even more terrifying, is that those horrors are being
replicated once again in present-day Afghanistan. Women are once again bearing
the brunt of chauvinism and oppression. Hunger and starvation stare millions of
common people in the face. They have become dependent on the charity of
strangers to survive.
The Master Storyteller
Hosseini’s
stories speak of the common man or woman of Afghanistan, the strife that
splinters their lives, and the yearning for some stability and a sense of
belongingness. The reader gets an immersive experience reading his books, other
prominent works being The Kite Runner and When the Mountains Echoed.
A
Thousand Splendid Suns,
set in the Afghanistan of the 90s, mirrors his unapologetic stance on the
socio-political realities of Afghanistan. Without mincing words and spinning a
thoroughly engaging tale, Hosseini draws the reader into the painful realities of
the war-torn country (the vulnerable, the weak and the under-privileged being
collateral damage in any conflict).
The
newspapers bring us news of war-torn regions from across the world, but these
remain nameless, faceless people to us. Hosseini creates such memorable characters
that stay with us long after the last page is read, simply because they feel so
familiar, so personal. Small details make them come alive as everyman who can
be from any part of the world.
I
could feel Laila’s anguish, Mariam’s despondency, Tariq’s helplessness, and the
pain of countless Afghans like I was living through it. And sent a silent prayer
for them, hoping they find some semblance of peace and happiness in their
lives.
Women and War
At
the heart of this story is Mariam, the doughty daughter of a man who refuses to
acknowledge her existence publicly, as she is his illegitimate child. Shattered
by her father’s neglect and her mother’s subsequent suicide, Mariam sees little
joy in her young life. At fifteen, she is married off to the much older,
self-centered, brutish Rashid who takes out his frustration on her in the form
of beatings and other forms of cruelty. She resigns to her fate, and shuts her
heart off from all human relationships, until Laila enters her life.
Laila
who has lost her parents and teenage love Tariq to the sudden advent of civil
war, finds maternal love and warmth in Mariam’s shelter. Their common tormentor
Rashid leaves no opportunity to torture them both into submission (Hosseini
shows domestic abuse in its most horrific, repulsive form).
The
unshakeable bond of humanity and love is what sustains these two women through
their shattered lives that take the full brunt of the Taliban-led apocalypse.
Mariam’s
final act of retaliation releases Laila from her prison-like hell. Terror
begets terror and devastation, and no one knows and says this better than
Hosseini. Still, the story ends on a note of hope and optimism amidst all the
darkness.
(This
story exemplifies the undercurrent of hope that runs through South Asian
fiction, more typically those that are set in conflict zones. The Indian and
Pakistani writing of the turbulent post-partition era, and the works of
Bangladeshi writers portraying their struggle for independence, are bound with
this thread of optimism. Writers are acutely aware of their responsibility to
bring to the forefront the sufferings of common people in religious and ethnic
conflicts.)
Triumph of Kindness Amid Tyranny
Their
common tormentor leaves no stone unturned to torture Mariam and Laila, but
their sisterhood endures. The way Laila tries to shield her senior from
Rashid’s temper, or the manner in which Mariam fondly hovers over Laila and her
daughter, bring a lump to the throat.
Just
as the personal becomes public, the public tyranny translates into fractured,
skewed man-woman relations at home. Expectedly, children bear the terrifying
consequences of war. Their childhood is spent amongst explosions and kidnappings,
and public executions of dissenters. At home, Laila’s kids, especially her
daughter Aziza, are exposed to Rashid’s daily brutality. Along with the
man-made and natural miseries, there is the undercurrent of deceit and betrayal
that runs through these children’s lives.
The
book is primarily a condemnation of the terrible forces that tear the country
apart. The innocent civilians lose even the little joys of life like going to
the cinema, wearing their choice of clothes, learning in schools, and travelling
as they wish. Like the Bamiyan Buddha statues that are pointedly destructed,
everything that is good and pure is systematically torn down by the ravaging
rulers.
Among
the sea of oppressive males, are the exceptions of Tariq and Laila’s Babi who
retain their feminine qualities of empathy and tenderness throughout. They seem
to embody the author’s worldview of equanimity and empathy.
Reflections in Today’s Afghanistan
We
can’t help feeling a sense of despair at the present-day situation of
Afghanistan. Abandoned by the US, and at the mercy of the ruthless present
regime, how are the common people surviving?
Winters
are harsh there, and we know for a fact that food supply is short. Aid sent in
by friendly nations has been blocked, so what is carrying the people through in
this torturous winter? It is appalling that the UN turns a blind eye, and the
rest of the world pretend they don’t exist.
We
hope the lot of the wretched people in Afghanistan brightens with time. Hope
the children get a brighter future like Laila’s and Tariq’s kids eventually
succeeded in getting. Hope the reign of terror ends. And let’s hope the Mariams
wouldn’t have to sacrifice their lives to bring in that future.
#AfghanCrisis #AfghanPeople #KhaledHosseini
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