Download - Paper 14; Module 24; E Text
Paper 14; Module 24; E Text
(A) Personal Details
Role Name Affiliation
Principal Investigator Prof. Tutun
Mukherjee
University of Hyderabad
Paper Coordinator Prof. Asha Kuthari
Chaudhuri,
Guwahati University
Content Writer/Author
(CW)
Ananya
Bhattacharjee
Guwahati University
Content Reviewer (CR) Dr. Farddina
Hussain
Dept. of English, Guwahati
University
Language Editor (LE) Dr. Dolikajyoti
Sharma,
Assistant Professor, Guwahati
University
(B) Description of Module
Item Description of module
Subject Name English
Paper name Indian Writing in English
Module title Raja Rao: Kanthapura
Module ID MODULE 24
Module 24
Raja Rao–Kanthapura
Introducing the Author
Raja Rao is one of the most acclaimed writers of Indian English Literature. He was born in 1909
in Mysore and belonged to a south Indian Brahmin family. He did his matriculation from
Hyderabad and then went to Aligarh in order to pursue higher education. There he was inspired
by Prof. Dickinson to study French language and literature. He got his B.A. degree from a
college in Hyderabad and received a scholarship from Hyderabad University with the help of
which he went to France and started studying French literature there. He did his Ph.D. under the
guidance of Prof. Cazamian at the University of Sorbonne. He lived in France for quite a long
time from 1928 to 1939. He returned to India in 1940 and lived for some six to seven years and
again went back to France in 1946 and stayed there till 1956. While living in France he got
married to an American actress named Katherine and also has a son by her. His first novel
Kanthapura was written during the times when he was living in France. Before going to France
Raja Rao wrote a number of essays to convey love for his nation and also show how fascinated
he was by Indian culture and tradition and the philosophy of the Vedas. His works show a perfect
blend of eastern and western sensibility. As far as narration is concerned he was a lot inspired by
James Joyce, Joseph Conrad, Valmiki and Ved Vyas. The novel Serpent and the Rope shows his
feeling of love towards Indian culture quite vividly. He received the Sahitya Akademi Award for
the same novel and this was called the best Indian English novel ever written. He has also been
awarded with the Padma Bhushan by the Indian government and has achieved national and
international recognition.
Raja Rao was the famous novelist of the Gandhian era whose works show an acute
consciousness of the forces that came into existence by the Gandhian movement. His works
include Kanthapura (1938), The Serpent and the Rope (1960) and The Cat and Shakespeare
(1965). Besides these novels he has written a novella called The Policeman and the Rose (1978)
and a number of short stories in collections titled The Cow of the Barricades and Other Stories
(1947) and The Policeman and the Rose and Other Stories (1978). His short stories can be
divided into two categories. The first collection contains remarkable stories such as Javni,
Akkayya, Narasiga, The Little Gram Shop, The Cow and the Barricade and Nimka. The second
collection of short stories contains much elements of fantasy although realism serves as the
background. The stories are named Companions, Khandesh, Kanakapala, Protector of Gold, The
Policeman and the Rose, India: a Fable and The Premierre of Shakuntala.
Introducing the Novel
Kanthapura by Raja Rao is an Indian novel in English that deals with the influence of Gandhi’s
freedom movement in a South Indian Village named Kanthapura. The novel is a portrayal of the
situation of India during the tumultuous period from 1919 to 1931. Kanthapura and its scene of
action is a representation of what was happening all around India during those years. Gandhi as
the leader of the nation does not physically appear in the novel as is shown in The Untouchables
by Mulk Raj Anand but his presence is always felt in the form of the various nationalist
movements and resistance against British dominance which was gaining grounds during that era.
The protagonist of the novel is a young and city-educated man named Moorthy. He is one of the
staunch followers of Gandhi and the civil disobedience movement finds its way into this remote
south Indian village, Kanthapura, with the arrival of Moorthy from the city who has some
messages from Gandhi to deliver. He makes an endeavour to go to every house in the village
also to the pariah quarters to pass on Gandhi’s message and explain how important this struggle
for Independence was. Moorthy urges the villagers to opt for charka spinning and thereby make
their own clothes and boycott foreign goods. Eventually a Congress Committee and a volunteer
corps are set up in the village and the publicity material from the city is distributed in
Kanthapura free of cost. The volunteers are given proper training so as to maintain the non-
violent stand during the period of government repression. During the time when Moorthy
introduced the freedom struggle, he was supported by Ratna, a progressive lady of the village,
and Patel Range Gowda who was the Patel in Kanthapura.
The government tries to take firm steps in order to scourge the attempts of the followers
of Gandhi and his principles and hinder the nationalist movement. People like Bade Khan, Bhatta
and Swami are the agents of the Britishers and oppose Moorthy’s freedom struggle strongly.
Moorthy is also excommunicated by Bhatta and Swami for his meeting with the pariahs.
Although some people are affected but the majority of the people remain high spirited regarding
the freedom struggle movement. The news of Mahatma Gandhi’s Dandi March and his breaking
of the Salt Law reach the village and boost the enthusiasm of the people of Kanthapura. Then the
Satyagraha movement is evoked throughout the country which also has a great impact upon the
people of the village. Under the leadership of Moorthy the village organise Satyagraha outside
the toddy plantation. As a reaction to this, the police took to lathi-charging and a large number of
people were injured. Some of them were sent to prison but the movement did not stop. The
villagers also adopted picketing outside the Skeffington Coffee Estate and this time the
opposition from the government was more severe. Most of them got wounded and the repression
did not spare women and children who were hurt seriously. This scenario deeply affected the
feelings of the workers of the estate and they also participated in the movement. Slogans echoed
in the place and people shouted “Mahatma Gandhi ki jai”. Many people were sent to jail
including Moorthy and a long term imprisonment was declared. During Moorthy’s absence,
Ratna handles the working of the Congress in the village. A large number of women are brought
together and trained for the upcoming struggle for Independence.
The next move of the villagers is the no-tax campaign. People are made aware of the fact
that the British were unjustly taking land revenues from the ignorant and poor people and so they
offered resistance against paying the taxes. The villagers are motivated to carry on the movement
peacefully and remain non-violent even in the worst circumstances. But gradually violence
breaks out and the government adopts ruthless measures to bring down the mob. They offer
strong resistance against the merciless oppression but ultimately gave up their struggle. The
villagers are compelled to leave and find refuge in remote village miles away from Kanthapura.
The kind of brave resistance shown by the people of Kanthapura and also in other different parts
of the country came as a jolt to the British government which was ultimately overthrown in
1947.
Characterisation in the Novel
Moorthy-He is the central figure in the novel and is called the Village Gandhi. Inspired by
Gandhi’s philosophy he starts his own movement towards Independence in the village of
Kanthapura. Being an educated man, he works towards eradicating superstitions from the minds
of the villagers and made them understand the economy of Khadi and the significance of
charkha. He inspired the villagers to offer resistance against the British government and work for
their Independence following the principles of Gandhi.
Ratna-She is a young and educated woman with a liberal and forward-looking outlook on life.
She was widowed at a young age but does not lead a life as a conventional widow. She wears
dresses and make up which is strictly prohibited for widows but she does not pay any heed to the
criticisms that are made by the society. She is bold and follows her own path of life and chooses
to support Moorthy in the freedom struggle. Ratna plays an important role in the whole
movement conducting Harikathas, trains the women members of the volunteer corps and
manages the congress work in Moorthy’s absence.
Patel Range Gowda-He is called as the Tiger of the village due to his forceful and commanding
personality. He is a government servant and man of immense power and authority in the village
and everyone follows his orders. But he also is drawn towards Gandhi’s ideas and values and
provides full support and help to Moorthy in order to carry out the movement successfully. He is
a generous and kind man who helps people who are poor and needy.
Bade Khan-He is the policeman in the village of Kanthapura. Being a Muslim he finds it
difficult to get a house for him to stay in. After long struggle and final settlement, he starts to
collect information secretively from the village and passed it to the government. He has been
endowed with the duty of maintaining law and order in the village and also opposes Gandhian
movement within the village.
Swami-He is a Brahmin who is narrow and conservative in his outlook towards life. He resides
in the city and is quite an influential person amongst the orthodox upper class people. Swami is
in compliance with the British government and causes many hindrances in the freedom
movement. He is responsible for getting Moorthy excommunicated and also a reason for his
mother’s death.
Bhatta-He is the first Brahmin who is seen as a contrast to the character of Moorthy. He acts as
an agent of the British government and works along with Swami and Bade Khan to fail the
Gandhian movement that was taking place in the village. He was penniless during his early life
but gradually earned a lot of money by adding several acres of the lands of the peasants to his
own territory. In him we see a degradation of values of the older generation Brahmins who
exploited the ignorant to serve his own means.
The White Owner of Skeffington Coffee Estate-This estate is a large coffee plantation near to
the village of Kanthapura. The owner of this plantation is a white man who is famously known as
the ‘hunter sahib’. He is in a habit of using a hunter or a whip in his hand to beat the workers of
his plantation who ignored their work. The working and living conditions of the workers are
pathetic but nobody speaks a word against the hunter sahib. However he also has some good
qualities in him. He gives toffees to the children of the workers and when they fall ill mostly due
to malaria, he goes and distributes quinine tablets to them.
Advocate Shankar-Another Gandhi man, Advocate Shankar is a staunch follower of his
principles. He works in his own way towards the freedom struggle of the nation. He wears khadi
and rarely goes to attend events where people are seen in dresses made of foreign cloth. During
Gandhi’s stay in prison, he keeps fast as he believes that it is way towards self-purification and
spiritual strength. He does not fight cases which are based on lie and strictly follows the path of
truth.
Waterfall Venkamma-Such a name is given to the lady because she is often seen shedding tears
like a waterfall. She is a pitiable figure who takes delight in the failures of others. She is jealous
of people who flourish especially of Rangamma because she possesses a big house. She hates
Moorthy since he declined the offer of marrying her second daughter. She also dislikes Ratna for
her unconventionality and abuses her all the time. Venkamma is also against the freedom
movement and takes the side of Swami and Bhatta to oppose it.
Narsamma-Moorthy’s mother, Narsamma is a conservative and orthodox woman does not have
any understanding of the freedom movement in which her son was engaged in. But she expects a
lot from her son who she believes will have a bright career in future. Unfortunately she is broken
down at the news of her son’s excommunication by the Swami and faces death as a result of this
shock.
Rangamma-An educated lady that she is, Rangamma is a widow with progressive ideas. She is
an enlightened person as she always keeps herself updated with the day-to-day progress in and
around her by reading newspapers. She is actively involved in the struggle for Independence and
offers a helping hand to Moorthy in organising the Congress work within Kanthapura.
Achakka-She is the narrator of the novel. Introduced to the readers as a typical Indian story-
teller, we see Achakka as a grandmother who narrates incidents about her village to a new
comer. It is through her that the story unfolds and also we get a commentary on the lives of the
people and the history of Kanthapura.
Themes and Issues in the novel
Nationalism and Resistance
Raja Rao’s Kanthapura depicts the Gandhian freedom movement during the 1930s. The novel
mainly deals with the theme of struggle for Independence but also aims at raising the
consciousness of the people and social reform at large. Gandhi believed that Swaraj could be
achieved if the people of the nation are socially reformed and awakened. The social reform aims
at eradicating evils and superstitions from the society, freedom from economic injustices meted
out by the Britishers which was possible through boycotting foreign goods, spinning one’s own
cloth, removing rigid social caste system like untouchability and enforcing educational
opportunities. All these issues are represented in the novel vividly and act as active forces
towards nationalist movement and resistance from British rule.
Kanthapura offers a glimpse of nationalism in India under the leadership of Mahatma
Gandhi. We see how Gandhi was able to hold almost the entire nation together and work towards
the Independence from British rule. People from every part of India even the remote village of
Kanthapura observed fasting and showed their integrity with Gandhi as he initiated his Dandi
March. Many towns and villages started their won independence movement and set up volunteer
groups which brought together people, introduced charkha and formed ambulance corps to take
care of the wounded satyagrahis. Moorthy sets a good example of the innumerable men who
were inspired with patriotic feelings to such an extent that they left schools and colleges while
some resigned their jobs and many renounced their expensive cloths made of foreign materials to
join the movement. Ratna and Rangamma stand for the women section of the society who also
took interest in nationalism. There was strong resistance seen towards the British government in
the protests of the people in the form of dharnas, picketings and satyagrahas. The voice of the
people echoed Gandhi ki Jai and Inquilab Zindabad in order to show their solidarity and boost
up their spirits. The people observed Satyagraha outside the toddy plantation which was followed
by the picketing outside the Skeffington Coffee estate and the no-tax campaign. Many
satyagrahis like Moorthy, Rangamma and Ratna were sent to jail for a period of time. However
this did not deter their patriotic feelings for the nation and the struggle towards freedom
continued. Minor characters like Advocate Shankar also showed his national solidarity and
patriotism by following Gandhi ideals. He is always seen clad in Khadi clothes and never took
up a false case in his life. Moreover he did not demand money from the poor people and in this
leisure time he went to a school and helped the Hindi teacher as he believed that Hindi would
become the national language of India in near future.
The British government and its ways of working in India are depicted in varied manners.
The white man in the Skeffington Coffee Estate stands as an example of the colonial rulers in
India who always exploited the native people. The government hired people like Bade Khan,
Bhatta and the Swami who worked as their representatives and opposed the freedom movement.
The people who are arrested and sent to prison are treated cruelly by the authorities. There are
references in the novel where we know about the atrocities done towards the Indian people in the
Jallianwalla Bagh in Amritsar. Although there is every effort made by the government to stop the
movement, the people showed undaunted resistance against it first under the leadership of
Moorthy and then Ratna. Finally they had to surrender but the unfailing nationalist spirit with
which they fought had an indelible impact upon the government. This was happening in the other
parts of the nation as well. Resistance against the British rule all over the country culminated in
their leaving India in 1947.
Regionalism and the Indian Sensibility
Many novels represent the topographic aspects of particular regions on which the story is set. A
place is described with all its features such as hills, valleys, rivers and so on. Apart from these
the life and customs of people living in that region along with their habits, manners and language
are also depicted. Such novels can be referred to as a regional novel and Kanthapura is no
exception. In this novel, we get a vivid account of its geographical location, its crops, the
economic condition, the caste system, the blind beliefs of the people, illiteracy and so on. This
selected region whose people stand for undying patriotism and heroism become symbolic of the
world at large, a miniature form of the world that was beyond it. As we move further into the
action of the novel we see that the picture presented speaks of a larger and wider world and not
just limited to its own region. For example we can consider the case of the workers in the
Skeffington Coffee Estate and compare it with the working conditions of other people working
under the colonial rule. The scenario is almost similar and therefore we can say that Raja Rao has
shown not the uniqueness of this particular region by talking of its local colour, the local legend,
Goddess Kenchamma, local rituals and so on but also takes into consideration universal human
feelings, passions and suffering.
Coming to the local legend of Kanthapura, there is the Goddess Kenchamma who protects the
village and its people and controls their destiny. We are given a description of the Goddess,
Kenchamma is our Goddess. Great and bounteous is she. She killed a demon
ages ago, a demon that had come to ask our young ones as food and our young
women as wives. Kenchamma came from heaven-it was the sage Tirpura who
had made penances to bring her down and she waged a battle and fought so many
a night that the blood soaked and soaked into the earth, and that is why the
Kenchamma hill is red.
She is believed to have helped the village at all times when they were in need of her. She had
showered blessings in the form of rain when it was much needed by the peasants in order to save
their crops. The Goddess is said to have never failed them. However the villagers perform certain
rituals to please their Goddess. In the novel there is mention of the ritual where the bulls are
yoked together to plough under the Rohini star. There also is a belief that during the beginning of
the month of Kartik blue and bright eyed gods can be seen passing by. Kanthapura has its own
legendary history or sthala-purana but Raja Rao has created a regional novel that deals with a far
more important theme that is the freedom struggle and self-sacrifice of the villagers for their
motherland.
Raja Rao has represented the Indian sensibility in the novel in a variety of ways. The
theme is typically Indian which deals with the fight for freedom against the British and the
treatment is also Indian in so far as the way of story-telling is concerned. Raja Rao has also made
ample use of Indian imagery, proverbs and idioms in the novel. We also find references to
peasant speech and many words Indian words are used without any English translation for the
word such as Ahimsa, Harikatha, Dhoti and many others. The narrator in the novel can be
compared with the most typical of Indian story-teller, the Grandmother. In Kanthapura, the
narrator is Achakka who is also a grandmother and she narrates the story to a new comer. Her
narrative style is typically Indian, use of long and quick speech, digressions which are full of
gossips, use of blanks and so on. The theme of Shakti-worship also depicts the Indian sensibility
which pervades throughout Kanthapura. There are different ways of looking at the forms of
Shakti in the novel. One can consider the immense tolerance and spirit that the women folk
showed during the atrocities done to them by the Britishers in their protests. Although Indian
women are considered to be meek and docile but Shakti rises in them during at adverse situations
and they display much courage and solidarity as shown by almost every women of Kanthapura.
Narrative Art and Technique
It is quite interesting to note the art and technique of narration in Kanthapura. In the Preface to
the novel Raja Rao says that telling has not been easy. He himself comments, “We in India think
quickly, we talk quickly, and our paths are paths interminable.” He captures this swiftness of
Indian life in the novel where he uses the narrator, Achakka, to depict the tempo of Indian life in
her narration as well the theme with which she deals. According to Srinivas Iyengar, Achakka’s
manner of narrating the tale is “characteristically Indian, feminine with a spontaneity that is
coupled with swiftness…” Achakka not only narrates but also constantly comments on the
characters and the incidents which provide a scope of not over-idealising. The narrative acts on
two different levels, there is a main plot and a sub-plot of the novel and both are fused together
to make a complete sense of the text. The main plot is the Gandhian movement and its influence
upon the village of Kanthapura. The sub plot deals with the incidents of the Skeffington Coffee
Estate and gives us a detailed account of the exploitation of the Indian workers by the British.
The Independence movement acts as a binding force for both the people of the village as well as
the estate workers who also join the movement later in the novel. There is enough use of
suspense in the novel which heightens the dramatic effect. For example when Moorthy was set
free from prison people awaited his arrival with much suspense and anxiety, “And hearts began
to beat and yet we saw no Moorthy, and yet no Moorthy, and yet no Moorthy, and yet not a hair
of his head was seen…” The use of repetition intensifies the effect of suspense and thrill in the
novel.
The narrative comprises of a fine blend of poetry and fantasy that goes along with the main
structure of the novel. There are many poetic passages in the novel which are imparted to the
ordinary to make it look unique and uncommon. The coming of the rains in the month of Kartik
is described in poetic language, “The rains have come, the fine, swift-footing rains that skip over
the bronze mountains, tiptoe the crags…” A similar use of poetic language is seen in the
description of the festival of Diwali,
Kartik has come to Kanthapura…with the glow of lights and the unpressed
footsteps of the wandering gods; while lights from clay trays and red lights from
copper strands, and diamonds lights that glow from the bowers of entrance
leaves…and gods walk by lighted streets…Kartik is a month of the gods.
The elements of fantasy and poetry are intermingled with each other and touch upon those ideas
and experiences that are typically Indian and portrays the Indian sensibility.
Story-board
Raja Rao: His Life and Works
Raja Rao was born in 1909 in Mysore and belonged to a south Indian Brahmin family.
He did his matriculation from Hyderabad and then went to Aligarh in order to pursue
higher education.
He was fascinated by Indian culture and tradition and the philosophy of the Vedas.
His works include Kanthapura (1938), The Serpent and the Rope (1960) and The Cat and
Shakespeare (1965).
Besides these novels he has written a novella called The Policeman and the Rose (1978)
and a number of short stories in collections titled The Cow of the Barricades and Other
Stories (1947) and The Policeman and the Rose and Other Stories (1978).
He received the Sahitya Akademi Award for the novel, The Serpent and the Rope.
Kanthapura
Kanthapura by Raja Rao is an Indian novel in English that deals with the influence of
Gandhi’s freedom movement in a South Indian Village named Kanthapura.
The novel is a portrayal of the situation of India during the tumultuous period from 1919
to 1931.
Kanthapura and its scene of action is a representation of what was happening all around
India during those years.
Gandhi as the leader of the nation does not physically appear in the novel but his
presence is always felt in the form of the various nationalist movements and resistance
against British dominance which was gaining grounds during that era.
The protagonist of the novel is a young and city-educated man named Moorthy.
He is one of the staunch followers of Gandhi and the civil disobedience movement finds
its way into this remote south Indian village, Kanthapura, with the arrival of Moorthy
from the city who has some messages from Gandhi to deliver.
Themes and Issues in the Novel:
Kanthapura offers a glimpse of nationalism in India under the leadership of Mahatma
Gandhi.
We see how Gandhi was able to hold almost the entire nation together and work towards
the Independence from British rule.
People from every part of India even the remote village of Kanthapura observed fasting
and showed their integrity with Gandhi as he initiated his Dandi March.
Ratna and Rangamma stand for the women section of the society who also took interest
in nationalism.
There was strong resistance seen towards the British government in the protests of the
people in the form of dharnas, picketings and satyagrahas.
Narrative Structure:
The narrative acts on two different levels, there is a main plot and a sub-plot of the novel
and both are fused together to make a complete sense of the text.
The main plot is the Gandhian movement and its influence upon the village of
Kanthapura.
The sub plot deals with the incidents of the Skeffington Coffee Estate and gives us a
detailed account of the exploitation of the Indian workers by the British.