Aravind Adiga's Apothegm for Apotheosis in the White Tiger
Odisha Review October - 2015
Aravind Adiga¶s Apothegm for Apotheosis in the White Tiger
Dr. Narayan Panda
Amidst the Indian writers who could hitch their securing the 2nd rank in S.S.L.C and first rank in wagons to a star by dint of their excellent ingenuity, P.U.C in the state. Aravind Adiga is undoubtedly a precursor. He Aravind was privileged to emigrate to shot up in prominence by virtue of his debut novel, Sydney, Australia along with his family. The µThe white Tiger¶, which won the 2008 Man emigration was a turning point in his life so far as Booker Prize. his higher education was concerned. To begin with, Aravind Adiga was born in Chennai on he studied at James Ruse Agricultural High October 1974. He was born to Dr. K. Madhava School. Succeedingly he went in for the study of Adiga and Usha Adiga; both the couple hailed English Literature at Columbia College in New- from Mangalore. Aravind¶s paternal Grand-father York. During his sojourn there, he happened to K.Suryanarayan Adiga adorned the position of prosecute his studies with Simon Schama. He Chairman, Karnatak Bank; his maternal great- succeeded in graduating at Salutatorian in 1997. grand father U.Rama Rao was widely acclaimed Furthermore, he was facilitated to study at as a popular medical practitioner and eminent Magdalene College, Oxford and fortunately one Congress political heavy weight from Madras. of his tutors was Hermione Lee. Aravind grew up into adolescence in Aravind Adiga embarked on his Mangalore. He went in for High School education journalistic career as a financial journalist whereby at Canara High School succeeding at St. Aloysius he was facilitated of interning at the financial times. High School and there he completed his S.S.L.C Then flowed in cornucopia conglomeration of in 1990. He came out with flying colors by publications in the Financial Times and Money. securing the first rank in S.S.L.C in the state. It is He left no stone unturned to add to his plaudits relevant in this connection to mention that his elder by covering stock market and investment and in brother Anand Adiga also attained excellence by that perspective, he interviewed Donald Trump.
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Aravind¶s excellent review work of previous bookers prize, Adiga had, the preceding year got Booker Prize winner Peter Carey¶s book, Oscar out of his contract with Atlantic Books at the 2007 and Lucinda was brought out in the second circle. London Book Fair. He was inspired by the Subsequently he got the opportunity to work for announcement in April 2009 that the novel would the TIME and remained a South Asia be metamorphosed in to a feature film. It goes correspondent for a period of three years. Then without saying that winning of the prize was a he went freelance. Adiga¶s unique novel ³The propellant which boosted the sell to exceed white tiger´ was brought out during his freelance 20,000 copies. period which won the 2008 Booker Prize. Hence Adiga¶s second novel was between the credit goes to him as the fourth Indian-born writer assassinations which was brought out in India in to obtain the prestigious prize succeeding to November 2008 and in the U.S and the U.K in Salman Rushdie, Arundhati Roy and Kiran Desai. mid-2009. The book is on anthology of twelve V.S. Naipaul, another winner of the prize is of interlinked short stories. Adiga¶s third book, last Indian origin, but he was not born in India. The man in tower was brought out in the U.K. in 2011. five other authors is inclusive of the Indian writer Aravind Adiga is a journalist and writer Amitav Ghosh and another debutant Steve Toltz. of name, fame and renown. His debut novel ³The The work is an anatomical survey on the white Tiger´ won the 2008 Man Booker Award; comparison and contrast between India picking which elevated his position sky-high. up as a modern global economy and the prime mover character Balaram, who hails from The debutant novel by Arabind Adiga persecuting persisting rural poverty. According to depicts the awakening of a low-caste Indian man Aravind Adiga, At a time when India is going to the downgrading of servitude. While the early through great changes and, with China, is likely tone of the book makes one conscious of the to inherit the world from the West, it is important heartbreaking inequities of Rohinton Mistry¶s A that writers like me try to highlight the brutal Fine Balance, a rather better comparison is to injustices of society (India). That¶s what I am Frederick Dougless¶s narrative about how he trying to do; it is not an attack on the country, it is emancipated himself from slavery. The main about the greater process of self-examination. The character Balaram Halwai, is initially delighted at writer exploits the opportunity to reinforce his the opportunity to become a driver for well-to- point by stating that ³The criticism by writers do man. But Balaram gets increasingly enraged Flaubert, Balzac and Dickens of the 19th century by the discriminatory ways of the society and helped England and France become better pooh-poohed by the rich. In the long run, Balaram societies. The event of winning the coveted assassinates his employer. He reveals the murder
48 Odisha Review October - 2015 from the very beginning, so the mystery is not what perfect gentleman, an adorable employer. he did but why he would kill such a benevolent Eventually it so happens Balaram drives a knife man. The climactic murder scene is mysteriously through Ashok¶s throat. What makes Balaram to tense, and Balaram¶s evolution from a lovable take such horrendous step. Ashok¶s business in urchin of rustic origin to cold blooded murderer coal trading involves greasing the palms of is fascinating and believable. More astonishing is government officials with large sums of money. how well the narrative works in the way it is written The money laundering business illegally carried as a letter to the Chinese premier, who is on through clandestine ways, proves irresistible scheduled to visit Bangalore, India. to Balaram. In the heat of anger and protestation, Adiga¶s Fierce satirical debutant novel he goes to the extent of killing Ashok. Adiga who says empathically, what makes an entrepreneur was born in India, lifts up his pen to write in the prevailing time in India? Balaram Halwai emphatically about a corrupt culture. happens to be a thriving young entrepreneur in Unfortunately Adiga¶s commentary on all things Bangalore, India¶s High-tech capital. China¶s Indian comes out at the expense of narrative premier is scheduled to visit Bangalore, and the suspense and character development. In this way, novel consists of a series of Balaram¶s letters to Adiga writes prevailingly about the so-called the premier in which he focuses on his life¶s Rooster Coop which snares family-oriented anecdotes. Balaram feels India is bifurcated into Indians into submissiveness, paradoxically he fails two countries; the Light and Darkness. Like the to describe the stages by which Balaram evolves multitude of masses, Balaram was born in the from solicitous submissive servant into cold- darkness in a village which was afflicted with blooded assassinator. The clean picture of India destitution and his father, who worked by the as a society portrayed in the white Tiger by Adiga sweat of his brow to make both ends meet passed exposes the rampant corruption and servitude has away due to tuberculosis. Balaram is brisk and caused turbulence in homeland. Adiga told Stuart buoyant according to a school inspector and that Jeffries why he made a bid to lay bare the is why he is endowed with the moniker white tiger. country¶s dark side. The credit goes to Aravind Circumstances compel him to relinquish the Adiga, a young, middle class Oxford educated persual of studies and he goes to work in a tea- genius to have created his central character, the shop; then Balaram was tired as a driver by the raga muffin, uneducated son of a rickshaw puller stork, a village land-lord of prominence and turned an amoral entrepreneur and killer. consequence. Balaram was dispatched to Delhi, Adiga won the 50,000 man Booker where Mr. Ashok, the stork¶s son puts up with award with his maiden novel ³The White Tiger´ his westernized wife, Pinky Madam. Ashok is which frankly spoken blew the socks off Michael
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Portillo, the chairperson among judges and more of bribery, debauchery, skullduggery, vexatious importantly it has started causing offence in India traffic jams, stealing and murder. It is doubtful for it¶s defiantly unglamorous portrait of India¶s whether Communist China can import such economic miracle. For a foreign reader, Adiga¶s business model. Balaram tells emphatically that novel is brain-bombarding; there is an un-remitting the yellow and the brown men would take over realism evident from Indian novels. According to the world business prerogative from the white men, Adiga: ³I don¶t think a novelist should just write most positively who have become effete through about his own experiences. Yes, I am the son of a the practice of homosexuality, too much reduced Doctor, yes I had a rigorous formal education, in body, weakened by too much taking to mobile but for me the challenge of a novelist is to write phones. about people who aren¶t anything like me.´ Adiga Halwai haiks from what Adiga thinks the might have come across as a literary tourist others mysterious darkness the heart of rural India. He suffering and captioning the pitiable anecdotes to escapes from his family and grinding poverty by fulfill his literary ambition. This is the reality for a becoming a driver to land-lord from his village, lot of Indian people and it is important that it gets who is dispatched to Delhi to bribe Government written about rather listening to stories about just around 5% of people in India who are doing well. officials. What prompts the employer to make In a state like Bihar, there will be no doctors in Halwai a chauffeur? Because of the whole active some hospitals. In northern India polluted politics passive thing, the chaffeur is a servant but he is, makes a mockery of democracy. India is a country while driving in charge, so the whole relationship where the poor fear tuberculosis which kills 1000 is subverted. Adiga has read the Hugelian master- Indians a day but middle class and higher class slave dialectic from reading. It is admitted the people with facilities to avail health services are dialectic is the spine of Adiga¶s novel; the servant most likely better off than affluent people in goes to the extent of killing his master to achieve western countries. his freedom. Balaram Halwai depicts his story through Adiga says, such is India-even as Delhi letters. He writes to the Chinese premier but rises like a more eastern Dubai, call-centres doesn¶t send them. The premier when Jiabao is attract young people from villages and India is all set to visit Bangalore to have an on-the-spot going through urbanization that affected the West experience as to how India is so good at two centuries ago. According to Adiga, ³Friends producing entrepreneurs. Balaram narrates to the who came to India would always say to me it premier how to win power and influence people was a surprise that there was so little crime and in the modern India. Balaram¶s story is a narration that made me wonder why´ Balaram comes
50 Odisha Review October - 2015 forward to provide the answer; servitude. ³A hand work without their tops on so you can see their full of men in this country have trained the ribs. But also their intelligence impressed me. remaining 99.9% as strong, as remaining talented, What rickshaw pullers, especially reminded me as intelligent in every way to exist in perpetual of was black Americans, in the sense that they servitude.´ Balaram¶s phraseology trustworthiness are withy, acerbic, verbally skilled and utterly of servant is the basis of the entire Indian without illusions about their masters. economy-paradoxically India doesn¶t need a There is no shadow of a little doubt that dictatorship or secret police like China to engage the greatest literary influences on the White Tiger it¶s people committedly achieving economic goals. were Ralph Elison, James Baldwin and Richard Adiga says, µif we were in India now, there would Wright. ³They all wrote about race and class, while be servants standing in the corners of this room later black writers focus on just class. Ellison¶s and I wouldn¶t notice them´ Adiga conceived the Invisible Man was extremely important to me. novel when writing for Time magazine he travelled That book was disliked by whites and blacks. in India: ³I spent a lot of time hanging around My book too will cause widespread offence. stations and taking to rickshaw pullers. What Balaram is my invisible man made visible. This struck him was the wide gap between the poor white tiger will break out of his cage. and the rich. ³In India it is the rich who have Reference: problems with obesity. And the poor are darker- Adiga Aravind: the white Tiger: first published in India skinned because they work outside and often in 2008. Harper Collens Publishers, India.
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