There are times when I
picked up a book and just read it. This book, ‘The Legend of Ramulamma’ had a
kind of nostalgic feeling for me. Not that I have too much in common with Ramulamma
but the various other characters had a special feeling for me. I was reminded
of the household help with a similar name and would imagine her in all my
reading. The villages and the small towns, too.
The book is a
collection of twelve short stories, which revolves around Ramulamma, a Dalit
widow who is a middle aged midwife. The sufferings and problems of the poor Dalit
woman are well captured. She is all set to head out on adventures fearlessly,
and using her detective like talent, she manages to see that the poor are given
due justice.
Fighting the corporate
doctors, the rich landlords, the occasional foreigner, and even the local
police, she comes out, all the while evoking a smile on the reader’s lips. A resourceful
person, she is sought out by one and all.
The author, Vithal
Rajan seems to have captured this simplicity of the village life and the trips
to the city, with an outlook that is both witty and powerful. There are different
shades to Ramulamma’s character, which come out in the various chapters with a defining
edge.
A slightly off beat
kind of part of the book was the story ‘A Million Protestors’. It did not fit
in with the concept of the main story and seemed out of place.
Basically, the premise
of the story was well-maintained and I am looking forward to the second part of
this series. Ramulamma sure could give ol’ Sherlock Holmes a run for his money.
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