Kanthapura as a Gandhian Epic

           Name: Vaishali Hareshbhai Jasoliya

           Roll No. : 29

Enrollment no.: PG14101019

Topic: Kanthapura as a Gandhian Epic

Paper No.: 4 Indian writing in English

Email-Id: jasoliyavaishali@gmail.com

Submitted to: MAHARAJA KRISHNAKUMARSINHJI            

                                     BHAVNAGAR UNIVERSITY

                                     DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

●Introduction:

                                    There were three Indian modern writer of classic. Their contribution in classic is very significant. Mulk Raj Anand, R.K. Narayan, Raja Rao those three person are great dramatist of the Indian Writing in English. In Indian literature we have many forms like Epic, Lyrics, Drama, Short stories and Fables but we should wit of Novel very long time.

Raja Rao

                        Raja Rao is most remarkable person of Indian writing in English in novel. A novelist and a short story writer, he too is a child of the forces let loose by the Gandhian Revolution as also of he steadying pulls of past tradition. “An epic is a long narrative poem and a great and serious subject related in an elevated style and centered on a heroic or quasidivine figure on whose action depend the fate or tribe a nation or the human race.”

                        Gandhi was no less than the hero of an epic. The freedom struggle of Indian was an epic struggle. Thousands of people sacrificed their lives. It was remain in the background through the novel; Gandhi is no doubt the hero of movement on a small village called Kanthapura. By reading the novel one get idea about the methods and principle of Gandhi. Moorthy and the others freedom fighters of Kanthapura are followers of Gandhi and use Gandhian methods in their struggle against the government. They followed the path of non- violence.

● Kanthapura as a Gandhian Epic:

                        Kanthapura is Raja Rao’s first major Indian novel in English. It is published in 1938; the novel deals with civil disobedience movement. The title of the novel is adopted by village Kanthapura. The title is apt and suitable for the novel is about a south Indian village named ‘KANTHAPURA’.  The story is narrated in flashback by ‘ACHAKKA’. Kanthapura does not exist but it is a imagination of Raja Rao’s mind. Kanthapura village is situated on the Western Ghats in the valley of Himmavath River.

● Village’s Contemporary situation:

(I) Social Background

(II) Religion Background

(III) Political Background

·        Social Background:

“I will not let anyone walk

Through my mind with their

Dirty feet.”

                        The novel has a dormant pattern to the treatment of castes and communities Kanthapura, a tiny village representative of any other village in south Indian. There were four divisions in caste...

(1) Brahmin

(2) Pariah

(3) Potter

(4) Weaver

There were conflict between castisicm and other issues, but finally all get together and helped each other for the struggle for independence.

● Religion Background:

                        “I like your Christ, I do not like

Your Christians, and your Christians

                        Are so unlike your Christ.”

·        Political Background:

In  ‘Kanthapura’ novel political ideas also be found, earlier, British ruled over Indian and then slowly and steadily education got reformation and Gandhian ideas started by Moorthy.

The Gandhian movement was brought to Kanthapura by Moorthy and the other city boy. He went from door to door to tell people about Gandhi and his views and principles. He distributed charkhas among the people of Kanthapura free of cost. He had contact with the city congress and charkhas were given to him by free of cost for distributing among the villagers. In the beginning, he found it difficult to convince the villagers to take the charkhas’ and start spinning cloth on a regular basis. Ultimately he was able to convince most of them but also for achieving political freedom; with tine more and more people joined congress. And now people of Kanthapura regarded Moorthy as the Gandhi of Kanthapura. Moorthy did not stop working for upliftment of the pariahs though swami had said to him that he would be excommunicated. But Moorthy did not take it seriously. Like Gandhi he also kept a fast for three days because he felt that he had not been able to live up to the ideas of the Mahatma. He held himself responsible for the skeffington coffee estate.

Mahatma Gandhi

      Moorthy was a follower of Gandhi and told the people of Kanthapura about the views and ideas of Gandhi. After the violence at the gate of skeffington coffee estate when Moorthy had tried to enter Estate, he kept the fast because he felt that he had not been able to live up to the ideas of the Mahatma. Moorthy actually tried to follow Mahatma’s doctrine loving one’s enemies. He really respected Gandhi.

“An eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind.”

This all are Gandhian ideas which Gandhi has used in his life and used into freedom fighting. Though Gandhiji is not present in the whole novel but only Gandhian ideas remain and can be found which were adopted by Moorthy. These ideas helped the people of Kanthapura to get freedom from Britishers. Moorthy sticks to above Gandhian Ideas and reforms the position of village including social, Religious, Political background.

The novel encompasses with Gandhian ideology and freedom struggle. The story of satyagrahis moved forward steadily till it reached to its climax. It was story of the people of a small village who realized that they need to rise and fight for the freedom of their motherland. They made efforts in this direction and they fail. They left Kanthapura and settled in Kashipura. As a result of the final clash between the freedom fighters and the soldiers many people died many were injured. After this clash, the whole village was set on fire and destroyed and many people were arrested. The remaining people left the village and never comeback.

During freedom movement as a leader or Gandhi of Kanthapura Moorthy told villagers about the elements that were taking place all over the country. Moorthy told them about important events like Dandy march. Here Mahatma Gandhi never appears on the scene but his presence was felt all the time through the novel. As in inspired by Gandhi’s Satyagraha.

● Conclusion:

                        At last we can say that, at first Gandhian ideology spread as a music in every nook and corner of the village Kanthapura and it directs people against British rulers. It is Kanthapura in which Raja Rao’s music for Gandhi achieves its perfection. And truly made it Gandhian novel or Gandhian Epic.