KAMALA MARKANDAYA’S PLEASURE CITY
Dr. V. Anuradha
Pleasure
City, the latest of
Kamala Markandaya’s novels, is based basically on the motto ‘live and let
live’. It has all the elements needed for a happy living. All the terms
associated with comradeship like love, affection, co-operation and
understanding are significant.
Pleasure
City is very much
akin to some of Kamala Markandaya’s earlier novels Nectar in a Sieve and The
Coffer Dams, in respect of the East-West contact and enccounter, native
tradition vis-à-vis and versus imported technological civilization and their
over-all relevance to the scientific and technical development of India.
The theme
includes the building of a pleasure complex in a coastal village of India. It
is the productive work accomplished by the two representatives of the East and
West. Rikki, the fisherboy of coastal Indian village and Tully, the director of
British enterprise on duty to set up the pleasure resort – ‘Shalimar’, jointly
work to build the complex. The rapport between the two characters flourishes
and blossoms into a fruitful venture.
Kamala
Markandaya appears to have created Tully’s character in Pleasure City to
neutralise the negative aspects of Clinton, to iron out the inadequacies and
revamp the image. The inherent defect of Clinton to shut himself off from any
humanistic side of problem is more than compensated by the abundant showering
of love and affection by Tully towards Rikki in particular and towards all the
fishermen in general. Tully seems to be the continuation of Clinton in The
Coffer Dams. But his approach proves to be a wiser one than that of
Clinton. It looks as if Clinton has changed for the better and transformed into
Tully, the loving and lovable character. He is a perfect gentleman, kind and
understanding towards his subordinates at the work spot. He takes care of their
living conditions and offers better compensation for using their fishing
village as a venue for the pleasure resort to come up. Here he differs greatly
from Clinton who ignored the pitiable state of the tribals of the village where
the dam was to be constructed; they were simply asked to vacate their age-old
living habitat heartlessly. In contrast, Tully got work done by love and
appreciation. His treatment of all men was alike. His intimacy with Rikki on
the work site grows as he finds the boy innocent, sincere and dedicated towards
the work allotted to him. Both Clinton and Tully, it seems, have identified
themselves whole-heartedly, thoroughly in letter and spirit, with their
respective projects. Clinton having been entrusted with the project of
construction of a dam, cocooned himself from the tribals by a water-tight
approach towards their emotional and human problems. On the other hand, Tully
saw to it that, in the construction of Shalimar, the pleasure and happiness of
the fishermen involved in its work. The relationship between Tully and Rikki is
something great, devoid of inhibitions and in spite of the socio-cultural
differences, they seem to be one in more than one aspect. They become an
indivisible work-team, always in need of each other’s company and support. The
two of them move about more like friends than like the employer and employee.
Their emotional rapport is fascinating. It is thicker than blood relationship.
The two of them together, form an inseparable unity—though they seem so, their
separation is inevitable as, Tully is responsible in his domestic side and
returns to England. The mutual understanding and love created and maintained
between Tully and Rikki is a note-worthy feature as they belong to two
different nationalities and this aspect does not become a barrier. On the
contrary, it engulfs and envelops them into a harmonious relationship. Their
responses to each other are such that they can be understood only by an open
loving heart which both possess. Their unique, wonderful, close-knit bond
blossoms parallel with Shalimar. Rikki, in his own humble way, gifts Tully, the
small objects that he makes, as a token of love for him. Thus their intimacy
and feeling of one-ness grows, with ‘Shalimar’.
‘Shalimar’
meaning ‘love’, is the name of the most beautiful of the gardens that Shahjahan
the Moghul ruler had constructed for his wife Mumtaz as a token of his love for
her. So also, in naming the pleasure resort as ‘Shalimar’, Kamala Markandaya
has maintained the Indianness and making it appear a real pleasure resort – a
resting place, a welcoming avenue to stay away from the usual busy schedule,
enabling people coming to it from far and near, to gather and greet each other,
share each other’s views and communicate, creating a small world of their own
in a atmosphere congenial for friendship and love to grow healthily.
Tully,
Knowing very well the art of managing situations, excels in his project work
tremendously. The transformation of the serene and sullen-looking village
towards modernisation as a consequence of Shalimar, obviously create a conflict
between traditionalists and modernists. The immensity of the change is so much
that the fishermen were drawn away from their age-old and traditional
occupation of fishing, trawling and engulfing the whole of their settlements.
The traditionalists represented by Apu lamented and cried hoarse, but their
protests were drowned and stalled off by the majority representing modernists
who welcomed the universal increase in the earnings and the modern amenities
available to them as a fall-out of the pleasure city. Thus the conflict which
could have built up was averted by the imaginative and innovative approach of
Tully which included both a humanistic and materialistic consideration towards
the people concerned, got nipped in the bud stage. If the people involved in
the construction of coffer dams meekly submitted themselves, though participating
actively in the work, the fishermen involved in the taking shape of Shalimar
gave their heart and soul to it. The East and West differences were not just
removed by Tully by paying them in their own coin and making them join (the
mainstream), but also by a caring word and a helping hand wherever it was due.
Shalimar thus
gave the luxuries and the minimum comforts to the people. It made a drastic
change over the whole community. The people directly involved in its
construction and the people who visited the resort, enjoyed thoroughly. It
became a centre of attraction for one and all. As the pleasure city grew, along
with it grew the tender loving affection between Tully and Rikki. It was a
unique, a totally special bond that united them. “In fact”, writes S.K. Tikko,
“Tully and Rikki are tied together not by the master-worker relationship but by
relationship based on sincerity, honesty, sympathy and commitment to work”.
It is obvious
that Pleasure City aims at fostering friendliness amongst people, irrespective
of their caste, creed, religion or nationality. It is a novel which provides a
positive turn in Indo-British relations with its trend of positive thinking and
progress. It acts like a binding force between two individuals with divergent
personalities representing two nations – India and Britain.
Their mutual
love showed in their joint work at the pleasure resort which took shape into a
beautiful complex – a comfortable resting place, in the coastal area. It
provided comfort and luxury where people could relax peacefully and spend time
and enjoy a holiday. The novel Pleasure City, therefore, is a portrayal
of a splendid workmanship achieved through sincerity and love. It is a healthy
sign of co-operation and an example to be followed for good relations to be
maintained between two countries or more – Tully, representative of England and
Rikki, that of India.
This is one
example of the two opposite poles representing the East and the West coming
close, forgetting the racial barrier happy in each other’s company. Here, it is
the meeting of two souls, devoid of any differences. It is to be acknowledged
that progress can be had when there is mutual co-operation and understanding
among countries and people of all regions, taking part in the world’s integration.
The novel, therefore, teaches values of brotherliness in order to accomplish a
heavenly place to live in, for one and all.
In this
novel, the novelist does not probe into the mental recesses of her characters,
but depicts them to be in the mood of rejoicing and a lighter vein. As the name
suggests, the whole affair appears to be a natural drama, where the characters
involved, play their role in their own natural vein – nothing more and nothing
less. All of them or most of them seem to be gentle and lovable – least
harmful. They have the natural humanistic temperaments and express their
feelings of joy, friendliness, love, affection and jealousy.
The
expressions are subtle, situations so created as to bring forth the tenderness
and humane aspects which touch the heart gently, leaving one with warm feelings
of peace and love.
Pleasure City leaves a mark of undoubted, innocent love engraved
permanently, in one’s memories, cementing the bond between the two characters
which speak of universal brotherhood, care and understanding.