Postcolonial Responsibility / Nationalism as Reflected in R K Narayan's Waiting for the Mahatma

R. K. Narayan is one of the postcolonial writers of India who are found to project the nation building attitude in their writings. His Waiting for the Mahatma, set in the surroundings of the writer’s created village Malgudi, is woven against the unconventional backdrop of the freedom movement. But in spite of using directly the national experience as the central theme as did Raja Rao, Narayan puts it in the background giving preference to the personal narrative. Krishna Mohan Pandey rightly observes

          Rao depicts Gandhi’s impact on community but Nrayan focuses on   

         individuals. 

Again, motivated by the national feelings, he is conscious to present the after independence situation of the country. However, this consciousness make many to note that

“R. K. Narayan's novel Waiting for the Mahatma (1955) reflects a certain ambivalence towards the freedom movement.” (Aikant)

In Waiting for the Mahatma, the story develops through the development of Sriram’s character, his encounter with different situations and his romance with Bharoti. At first, Sriram is presented a lazy and complacent young high school graduate living with his grandmother. He has no knowledge of the condition of the country. But once he meets and falls in love at first sight with a young woman, a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi and is involved in the freedom struggle. Actually he is our medium to know different aspects of the novel.

Though the background of the novel is the freedom movement of India led by Gandhi, “the pre-eminent political and spiritual leader of India during the Indian independence movement”, he is given a minor part in the novel. We know his revolutionary activities for the nation when Sriram attends one of his meetings. Addressing the citizens “soldiers of a non-violent army”, he speaks of self discipline as the pre-condition “to attain freedom for our country”. He states the aspects of his discipline,

“we do not have to bask in the sun and cry “Left” or “Right” . But we have a system of our own to follow: that’s Ram Dhun; spinning on the charka and the practice of absolute Truth and Non-violence.”

Moreover, the Mahatma expresses his stern nationalism and anti-colonial sentiment while he addresses the people as follows:

“I will not address you in English. It’s the language of our rulers. It has enslaved us. I very much wish I could speak to you in your own sweet language, Tamil.”(p.27)

Here one thing is noticeable in Narayan that being a keen observer of the society, he portrays the reaction of the individuals of the country against Gandhi’s political and spiritual thoughts. We see, in the novel, that people were not conscious of the situation and could not realize the meaning and significance of Mahatma’s philosophy. Even the central character, Sriram, attends Mahatma’s order only to be close to Bharoti. He reflects, while he sees Bharoti with Mahatma,

“If the girl can be with Mahatmaji, I can also be there.”

The chairman of Malgudi town, Mr. Natesh, has been able to be a proud host of Gandhiji in his grand palace Neel Bagh only to show his property. Mahatma’s teaching can not make him change his attitude towards the untouchable. Thus, his revolutionary ideas as well as practices are contrasted with the views of different locales and also Sriram`s grandmother. Sriram`s grandmother does not like the Mahatma because,

“the Mahatma was one who preached dangerously, who tried to bring untouchables into the temples, and, who involved people in difficulties with the police. (P.62)

Actually, the Mahatma “pioneered satyagraha—resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience, a philosophy firmly founded upon ahimsa or total nonviolence” (wikipedia). But Narayan is critical to the situation when the Gandhi is in jail. Gandhi’s followers, even Sriram himself being leaderless, becomes “a blind slave of Jagadmish”, a violent activist. Thus, being misguided,

“Sriram did a variety of [violent] jobs which he hoped would help the country in its struggle for freedom”

Part five of the novel vigilantly portrays Narayan’s observation at the deplorable situation of the country immediately after independence. Released from jail, Sriram only notices “the food shortage”, “the post-war confusion” and “various difficulties”. A hotel boy says of the present condition:

“There is nothing very good now, sir, what with the present difficulty of getting rice and any food. Our government do not do anything about it yet.” (P.221)

Moreover, “thousands of people have been killed, bereaved, dispossessed, demented, crushed” as a result of “inter-communal fights”.

          Yet, we are suggested by Jagadwis that we should wait to improve the situation.

Ours is an infant state, still a baby, many things have still to be done, we must be happy that we are our rulers and no foreign nation rules over us.  

But the most notable aspect of Narayan’s novel is that loss and happiness happen simultaneously at the end of the novel. Pandey cemments on the ending:

Narayan’s novel ends with the death of Mahatma Gandhi which symbolizes loss at national level but it also ends with the marriage of Sriram and Bharati which symbolizes fulfillment at personal level. (p.90)
   

  




Works Cited: 

Pandey, Krishna Mohan. “Raja Rao’s Kanthapura and R.K. Narayan’s Waiting for the Mahatma: A Study in Comparison.” Indian writings in English, Volume 9. Ed. Manmohan Krishna. Atlantic Publishers & Distributors, 2000

Aikant, Satish C. “Colonial Ambivalence in R. K. Narayan's Waiting for the Mahatma”, The Journal of Commonwealth Literature, Vol. 42, No. 2, 89-100 (2007)