A war not to be forgotten
Faruq H. Mallick retraces history through fiction
Shonar Paramtala, Mizanur Khan, Oitijjhya
Shonar Paramtala is a novel by Mizanur Khan. The author is a journalist, having completed his studies in journalism at Dhaka University. He is based in London, working at BBC as producer. I had been invited to attend the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Rabindranath Tagore at Oxford House in London, where I listened to the author's discussion as he introduced his book to the audience. Among the three authors who were being introduced, Mizanur Khan's ideology behind the novel stood out. In his words, ''I wanted to make my generation and the following generations aware of and feel for the Liberation War.'' Mizanur Khan was inspired into writing the book after reading a story about the Second World War. The night he finished reading it he put pen to paper on his own novel, focusing on events surrounding our own War of Independence and the events that followed. The writer, born in 1971, had not seen the war and 'his greatest misfortune', as he explained in his short speech, was that he could not participate in the war. The novel is a compilation of a number of stories straddling different times. Mizanur Khan's work is based on research of a wide range of sources and interviewing many families who were severely affected in the war. The stories, though they relate to various people, are written in the first person and describe the events related to the war from different perspectives. The novel starts with Ekush Nombor Bari (House 21) in Pioneerstruss Germany, which is followed by the next chapter, Godhuli'r Alo (Twilight). The second story is about a lady in Germany, who was injured in an accident and needed assistance to be taken home. During a conversation, the lady asks the author about his home country. When she finds out it is Bangladesh, she exclaims, "Oh! Bangladesh. The country that gained independence in 1971?" More surprise awaited Khan, as she showed him a stamp and said, "This is Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's picture." What struck a chord in the writer was that while a large part of the young Bangladeshi generation abroad seems oblivious to the country's roots, the lady in Germany, so far removed from Bangladesh, seemed effortlessly conversant about the country. Much of the book is a similar compilation of stories, made vivid by the author's rich use of similes, metaphors and epigrams. The focal stories commence from page 112, stories such as Judhher Kotha (Stories of War), followed by Mayer Mukh (Mother's Face), Paramtola '71 (Butcher of Bhairab), Dozoker Brishti (Rain of Hell) and more. The novel ends with a short story Jhora Pata (Fallen Leaves). The writer often refers to stories of the Second World War where the proponents of genocide (around twenty per cent) are still being tried, even though many of them are dead or absconding. In the same line of thought, he ardently expects our leaders and countrymen to come forward to speed up the trial of the war criminals of 1971. Of the millions of people who participated or fought in the War of Liberation, many may have passed away or are away from the limelight. According to the author, it is important for the younger generation to know about the War of Liberation in meticulous detail so that they can carry on with their efforts to rebuild a society that had been the objective of liberation. Reading the book made me reflect on my own involvement in the War of Liberation. When I was doing my master's in economics in the late 1960s, the whole campus was engulfed in passionate debates on questions of inter-wing disparity and the Six Point programme for regional autonomy. More importantly, later as a lecturer elsewhere, I regularly faced questions on this topic from my students and colleagues. The book also reminded me of other incidents, such as when two of my friends, Sardar Amjad (later an MP and subsequently a minister) and Abdur Razzak (now a professor in Australia) and I met a noted foreign journalist during the war in the border area. The journalist had commented, "Looking at the incredible spirit of the people, I have no doubt your country will soon become independent." I feel the writer has made a great effort to compile these stories. If such books are not published regularly the greatest event of our national history will soon be a forgotten chapter. Any freedom fighter would love to collect the book and the author deserves to be congratulated for making people remember both the atrocities and the victorious events of 1971, especially as they are eagerly awaiting judgment on the activities of the war criminals.
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