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A good book will keep you thinking even after you have finished reading it. I think that is why a lot of good authors do not have a definite ending or conclusion in their book and leave it up to the imagination of its readers. Such is the book 'Palli Samaj' written by Late Sarat Chandra Chatterjee, an author who received equal criticism and praises for his work throughout.

This may be a biased review because this is the first Bengali classic that I have picked up and this book has left me mesmerized and emotional. Such beautiful depiction of characters and their personalities were sketched so beautifully - Raw, grey, real, and imperfect.

My grandma always wanted me to learn how to read Bangla so that I could get my hands on a few life-changing classics. That couldn't happen, but thanks to the good translated versions by Prasanjit Mukherjee- the purpose is solved.


About the Author:

Late Sarat Chandra Chatterjee, known for his heart-touching work like Devdas, Srikanto, Choritrohin, etc has never failed to throw light on the practices and beliefs of Rural Bengal and addresses serious issues prevailing in the society.
He had faced a lot of bitter and hostile criticism from many pockets of the society for outlining the realities that hid behind the blanket of casteism, rituals, and blind worship.

About the novel:

The book covers the darker areas of contemporary rural Bengal and how everyone is chained to a mediocre, rather low level, caste-based thinking. This book received a lot of criticism initially because the society back then was not ready to see the reality and the 'bolder' version of the society and labeled it immoral and destructive. A lot of issues addressed in this book may not be relevant today, but I think grey areas still prevail in the so-called modern societies today.

The book lifts the layer of perception that an outsider creates about a rural life and boldly shows the realities prevailing in a rural society. Ramesh, a young Roorke trained engineer tries to change the mindset of the villagers and give them a better approach towards life and living. His journey to make the rural pocket a better place to live is poisoned with casteism and corruption. Winning comes with a cost, and Ramesh had to pay a heavy price throughout the journey to his victory.

My review -

What I loved the most about this book is it's an unfiltered, raw, bold, and real version of our society, whether urban or rural. The shades of grey in every character, including the protogonist, will help you develop a close relationship with them keeping you engaged throughout. Even if you take breaks while reading, you will not lose the link - that is the impact of the story and characters from the book. When the whole village sins, everyone drowns together, and when the whole village finally sees light, it rises together. Sarat Chandra has captured every dirt, filth, politics, poisonous mindsets, narrow mentality, goodness, love, affection, enmity, etc and depicted it beautifully through his work, cover to cover. I do not think it is limited only till rural India but is widespread even to the society where we live in today.

A must-read for all those who are looking forward to getting indulged in reading cult classics of Bengal.

Fav line from the book

I know that those, who aren't afraid of sin or shame, must at least be afraid of their death; otherwise, this world would go to rack and ruin.