BOOK REVIEW #4: FAMILY PLANNING

BOOK REVIEW #4:

Title: Family Planning

Author: Karan Mahajan

Publishing date: 2008

Book Review written by: Shellyza Moledina

I picked up this book at my local Canadian library; they were having a theme of ‘INDIA!’, and knowing that my grandparents lived in Gujarat during their childhood years, I was extremely drawn to the literature on display.

I was even more interested when I looked at this particular novel’s back cover. Karan Mahajan, 24 year old, born and brought up in New Dehli and currently living in Vermont. As I am currently 21 years old, the initial similarity of mine and Mahajan’s background as Indo-Western-youth was very appealing. I wondered whether I’d identify with any of his characters, as an author’s writing is often a passionate expression of his own feelings and background.

To be very honest, Mahajan’s book confused me. It seemed like I was reading a book from an alternate universe, something that either confirmed that I was indeed a very sheltered girl who thought of life as coloured bubbles and rainbows, or that Mahajan was focusing on the most controversial topics in Indian culture, and putting less emphasis of other parts of Indian lifestyle.

I only have one sibling, the protagonist in Mahajan’s book has thirteen. I came from a very happy yet conservative childhood; the characters seem very ‘Westernized’ but hardly happy. I came from an environment where discussing and even thinking about sex wasn’t encouraged: but Mahajan’s characters do this openly. I didn’t necessarily dislike the book – it just confused me at first.

Much of the story in itself is heartbreaking: Mr Ahuja, a father of thirteen children who’s primary characteristic is his selfishness and pain. A primary focus of the book is how that selfishness and pain affects his family, especially his wife - Sangita. Another primary focus is sex; Mahajan seems to cut out all pretenses when it comes to the sexual culture in modern India and really hit it home. Both focuses aren’t necessarily wrong, but perhaps out of the comfort zone of an Indian audience.

If you ignore the initial discomfort and analyze the novel a little more, you realize that Mahajan has actually brought up very worthwhile issues, that need to be solved in modern India. Is the ‘gender sexism’ that ruled the previous centuries truly gone? What about the book’s attitude towards arranged and love marriages ? Does the author describe Ahuja’s sex life with Sangita as ugly? If so, why? What about the author’s atittude towards love, depicted in Ahuja’s first relationship: Rashmi? It’s easy to antagonize Mr. Ahuja for his selfishness, but how can one stop grieving a failed relationship and not let your own pain affect your loved ones? And above all, are we comfortable with the fact that our children may become little versions of ourselves?

I encourage Western readers to not necessarily take book this as the sole general representation of modern Indian life, but rather one of the few lifestyles that Indians may undertake. I also encourage Indian readers to have patience with this one – the initial discomfort and lack of Bollywood-movie-soppy-endings doesn’t necessarily mean that the book does not have something to teach us.