China - the land that lies just across the hills of the Northeastern border of the country- is a strong metaphor in Parismita
Singh's debut
graphic novel, “The Hotel At the End of the World”, commenting on the politics, turbulence and folklores of the region.
The illustrated novel by Singh, a native of Assam and a grassroots education worker in the state, has been published by Penguin Books -India this month.
In the hotel at the end of the world, it is business as usual as Pema dishes up rice and pork curry to travellers, who stop by for a drink and refuge from the rains. Everyone has a story to tell and at times they end up revealing more than they want to - under the influence of the local brew and food.
China comes across a illusive land that beckons. The road to it is full of adventure, suffering, myths and terror.
Kona and Kuja, two friends from a village, stumble upon the trail of the floating island- the promised land of plenty, on their way to China but they end up in the “Hotel at The End of the World” instead; after losing their mobile phone signal and way in the rain.
Pema, who is curious about China and also longs to see the mythical lake island, opens up about the love, pain and loss in her life, while her husband recalls World War II in Manipur. The couple, however, is resigned to their hotel and life.
A prophet, who is a guest at the hotel, makes prophecies and a little girl, who comes to work in the hotel chances upon a terrorist hideout. The action unfolds as the guests are trapped inside the little hotel in the rain. The tanks roll out along the Sino-Indian border and there is gunfire at night. The day after, the rain stops.
Kona and Kuja set out again in search of the lake and China. The book reads like a Buddhist fable- nuanced with local lores and animated drawings that rivet the reader.
Parismita Singh creates a world that is different from the one we inhabit. It is located somewhere in the northeast - and draws from a variety of sources like local folklores, artworks, Commando war comics of World War II and personal experiences that mingle with fantasy and philosophy to create a powerful pictorial narrative.
The concept of China, explains
writer Parismita Singh, is an idea lifted straight out of popular culture. Not her own invention.
“The Hotel... is my first full-length book. I had earlier written a short story which was shortlisted for the Time Little Magazine award in 2006,” Singh said.
The writer is not a trained artist. “I did not go to art school but I have always drawn as a child. It is something I always enjoyed,” the writer said. It took her two-and-a-half years to complete the novel.
Reading a graphic novel is slightly different from reading a conventional book, says Singh. “You have to learn to read pictures first and then read the text along with it. One has to develop two skills at a time. One of the reasons why I decided on a graphic novel was to reach out a wider audience. Lots of people, who don't usually read books can pick it up and read. Graphic novels are like reading comic books,” Singh said.
A graphic novel is more difficult to conceive than a normal book, says Singh. “I had to put in rigorous hours from 9 am to 5 pm. It needed two drafts. First, I made the first rough draft, it was chaotic. It was mostly drawings and then the second draft in which I put the two together,” says Singh.
The writer, however, refuses to comment on the multiple layers that she has woven into her book – border politics, the social milieu, the northeastern way of life, turmoil, bandhs and insurgency, poor connectivity and the inherent economic and educational backwardness of the seven sisters (as northeastern states are collectively known as).
“I am not going to disclose the geography, borders or the politics in the book. It is up to the reader to find out for themselves. I was deliberately ambiguous. The more I talk about the book, the more it will detract from it. People ask me all kind of things,” Singh says.
She is working on a graphic short story for “The Pao's Collective”, an anthology of illustrated stories that a group of graphic designers-cum-writers are trying to put together.
--Madhusree Chatterjee