India Re-located' in Arvind Adiga's The White Tiger
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36 RESEARCH ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION International Indexed & Refferred Research Journal, August 2012, ISSN 0975-3486, RNI-RAJBAL 2009/30097:VoL III*ISSUE-35 Research Paper-English August, 2012 Introduction: The White Tiger is an unflattering portrait of present day India as a society of servitude and ram- pant corruption. Poverty of rural Bihar, and the evil of the feudal landlords are shown mythically as an attempt to temper the society with the vision of justice against the brutal injustice at large in a vein of what writers like Balzac, or Dickens did in the 19 th century (Guardian). The story, a witty parable of India's chang- ing society, was the author's writing back and striking at the false notion of a modern transformed India. Unglamorous portrait of India was taken as an insult and indignity, but the author made it clear that "what I am trying to do -is not an attack on the country; it's about the greater process of self- examination"(Guardian). India has canvassed much of its socio-economic progress to the world, but the dark side of the story is unfolded laying bare all the trappings of gimmick and falsity at the dawn of the 21st century in its actual socio-political context in which the story affects the prime character the way he is a product of the soil and turns out to be a white tiger. The Dichotomy: The apparently didactic story exposes the stern reality and takes the glamour off the 'India shin- ning' even though the author never envisioned it as a counter narrative. He divides India as 'India of Dark- ness' and 'India of Light. It contains some of the very astute observations about class divide and disempowerment in India. The protagonist narrates his stories to the Chinese Premier, on the eve of his visit to India who was to witness the magic of IT entrepreneurship in Bangalore. Narre explains, "What keeps the millions of poor Indians work in servitude? How stable is such system? All these questions are answered through Balaram Halwai" (57). 'India Re-located' in Arvind Adiga's The White Tiger * Prakash Bhadury * 232, Panchwati Enclave, Meerut. A B S T R A C T The White Tiger (2008) explores the protagonist Munna's journey between an 'India of Light' and an 'India of Darkness' while the country is rising as a modern global economy. Narrated through epistolary form, Munna highlights the "Great Socialist's fall of values , social and political corruption, oppression of lower classes against 'Gandhian' values and his striving to come out as an entrepreneur, though in an corrupt way. Here, the protagonist is the White Tiger, a rare creature that comes once in a generation as a surprise and change. Adiga, here, is in permanent argument with the world he has inherited and has attempted to relocate India in a political and economic context. All the corruptions go before the big photograph of Gandhi. The author makes a sharp contrast of Gandhian value and present day corruption. Gandhi advocated non-violence, honesty and austere life, but Vivekananda made it clear that a race can not progress in empty stomach. Hence, the contrast is to show di- rectly that the race is in serious trouble .The Northern belt along the Ganges is the "Dark India" which ex- poses rampant corruption. The Ganges has turned as 'black river, and materially it is full of filth. Gandhi is doubly assassinated as the poor people in dark India work in a degradingly low work condition. They are the "human spiders (WT 51). Balaram, having under- stood this rival myth, breaks the shackle of child labourers via a servant of humiliation, to a chauffeur for his village's wealthiest man before making a giant leap (Outlook). India Relocated: The story unfolds and unearths the corrup- tion, the class divide, the vicious political system and Balaram comes out in the light as the White Tiger-"a rare creature that comes once in a generation" (Narre 56).For an Indian it's one of the most unpalatable thing that a Halwai caste could rise so high in the societal ladder. "This is a shameful and dislocating thing for and Indian to do", says Adiga in the Guard- ian interview. It's a dark book as Balaram compro- mises with wrong to cross over to the bright side. The issue of means and ends what Gandhi preached and practised throughout his life jolts every- one-is this the country heading to? An utterly bleak landscape is kept hidden under the camouflaged lamp of bright progress. Adiga himself gave a life line to this question in the Outlook magazine: "The book is an attempt to relocate India in a political and eco- nomic context" (21).The life and economic progress in big cities like Bangalore is not real India. The
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The White Tiger, Adiga-2008, Literary Article
Transcript of India Re-located' in Arvind Adiga's The White Tiger
36 RESEARCH ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION
International Indexed & Refferred Research Journal, August 2012, ISSN 0975-3486, RNI-RAJBAL 2009/30097:VoL III*ISSUE-35
Research Paper-English
August, 2012
Introduction:The White Tiger is an unflattering portrait
of present day India as a society of servitude and ram-pant corruption. Poverty of rural Bihar, and the evilof the feudal landlords are shown mythically as anattempt to temper the society with the vision of justiceagainst the brutal injustice at large in a vein of whatwriters like Balzac, or Dickens did in the 19th century(Guardian). The story, a witty parable of India's chang-ing society, was the author's writing back and strikingat the false notion of a modern transformed India.
Unglamorous portrait of India was taken asan insult and indignity, but the author made it clearthat "what I am trying to do -is not an attack on thecountry; it's about the greater process of self-examination"(Guardian). India has canvassed muchof its socio-economic progress to the world, but thedark side of the story is unfolded laying bare all thetrappings of gimmick and falsity at the dawn of the21st century in its actual socio-political context inwhich the story affects the prime character the way heis a product of the soil and turns out to be a white tiger.The Dichotomy:
The apparently didactic story exposes thestern reality and takes the glamour off the 'India shin-ning' even though the author never envisioned it as acounter narrative. He divides India as 'India of Dark-ness' and 'India of Light. It contains some of the veryastute observations about class divide anddisempowerment in India.
The protagonist narrates his stories to theChinese Premier, on the eve of his visit to India whowas to witness the magic of IT entrepreneurship inBangalore. Narre explains, "What keeps the millionsof poor Indians work in servitude? How stable is suchsystem? All these questions are answered throughBalaram Halwai" (57).
'India Re-located' in Arvind Adiga'sThe White Tiger
* Prakash Bhadury* 232, Panchwati Enclave, Meerut.
A B S T R A C T
The White Tiger (2008) explores the protagonist Munna's journey between an 'India of Light' and an 'India of Darkness' whilethe country is rising as a modern global economy. Narrated through epistolary form, Munna highlights the "Great Socialist'sfall of values , social and political corruption, oppression of lower classes against 'Gandhian' values and his striving to comeout as an entrepreneur, though in an corrupt way. Here, the protagonist is the White Tiger, a rare creature that comes once ina generation as a surprise and change. Adiga, here, is in permanent argument with the world he has inherited and has attemptedto relocate India in a political and economic context.
All the corruptions go before the big photograph ofGandhi. The author makes a sharp contrast ofGandhian value and present day corruption. Gandhiadvocated non-violence, honesty and austere life, butVivekananda made it clear that a race can not progressin empty stomach. Hence, the contrast is to show di-rectly that the race is in serious trouble .The Northernbelt along the Ganges is the "Dark India" which ex-poses rampant corruption. The Ganges has turned as'black river, and materially it is full of filth. Gandhiis doubly assassinated as the poor people in dark Indiawork in a degradingly low work condition. They arethe "human spiders (WT 51). Balaram, having under-stood this rival myth, breaks the shackle of childlabourers via a servant of humiliation, to a chauffeurfor his village's wealthiest man before making a giantleap (Outlook).India Relocated:
The story unfolds and unearths the corrup-tion, the class divide, the vicious political system andBalaram comes out in the light as the White Tiger-"arare creature that comes once in a generation" (Narre56).For an Indian it's one of the most unpalatablething that a Halwai caste could rise so high in thesocietal ladder. "This is a shameful and dislocatingthing for and Indian to do", says Adiga in the Guard-ian interview. It's a dark book as Balaram compro-mises with wrong to cross over to the bright side.
The issue of means and ends what Gandhipreached and practised throughout his life jolts every-one-is this the country heading to? An utterly bleaklandscape is kept hidden under the camouflaged lampof bright progress. Adiga himself gave a life line tothis question in the Outlook magazine: "The book isan attempt to relocate India in a political and eco-nomic context" (21).The life and economic progressin big cities like Bangalore is not real India. The
37RESEARCH ANALYSIS AND EVALUATION
International Indexed & Refferred Research Journal, August 2012, ISSN 0975-3486, RNI-RAJBAL 2009/30097:VoL III*ISSUE-35
"India of Light" represents huge economic activitythrough technology and entrepreneurship. Where as,India lives in villages and all the city glamour are dueto the disintegration of village life. This may wellallude to Mulk Raj Anand's ground breaking novel,Untouchable (1935) in Which Bakha, the protago-nist, 'bore the brunt of societal prejudice of untouch-ability' (Hindu).Conclusion:
The story is seen by many as a pessimisticbook on India's future, and the United States has takenit as a very optimistic book. The author has felt that"We've got to get beyond that as Indians and take
1 Adiga, Arvind, The White Tige. New Delhi: Harper Collins p,2008. Print2 Narre, Veena. "India as reflected in Arvind Adiga's novel The White3 Tiger". Rock Pebbles Magazine.13.1 (2009):55-58.print.4 Rev. of The white Tiger. Guardian.co.uk. n.p.Web.11nov'11.5 Rev. of The White Tiger.The Hindu.02 Nov.2008.n.p.Web.9Jan'12.6 Suri, Sanjay. "Arvind Adiga's the White Tiger".Outlook.27th Nov7 2008:23-25.print.
responsibility for what is holding us back"(Guardian).The corruption in social and political level, lack ofbasic amenities, degrading work-condition, servitude,and irregular growth leading to the wide chasm be-tween the rich and the poor are the seamy sides of thestory of the "India of Light". Adiga has deconstructedthe society in which people at the periphery push tothe centre and the center is pushed to the periphery.Munna, a peripheral man, is re-incarnated as a whitetiger, though politically incorrect way, to claim for thecenter what alarms us at the need of social overhaul-ing. Here, lies the author's merit of relocating India.
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