BEGGAR’S FEAST
Author: Randy Boyagoda
Publisher: Harper, Rs 499
The book is a richly-layered story about a person struggling to outgrow his roots, and how after stumbling initially, he succeeds unexpectedly. It is also a portrayal of a world undergoing change, says ANURADHA DUTT
This finely-crafted rags-to-riches story comes from neighbouring Sri lanka, via Toronto, where immigrant Sri lankan writer Randy Boyagoda stays. The protagonist Sam Kandy’s odyssey, from wretched beginnings in his forefathers’ village, Sudugama, to his successful foray into the shipping business, and eventual return to the village as its headman, encompasses an entire age, 100 years to be precise. Events of the 20th century, spanning continents, form the backdrop for Sam’s saga, till its culmination in a glorious burst on the cremation bier. Hurtling towards his goals, he is a man in a hurry, with little patience or respect for the status quo. It is a world of shifting identities, adopted names and rapid social ascent, as old assumptions and taboos crumble and new ones take their place. It is a time when youth can outgrow the debilitating conditions of birth, to find fulfillment by moving away from their feudal past.
Work as a shipping agent requires Sam and his partner, an American Jew-turned-lord Curzon’s mythical nephew, Charles Curzon, to source and supply labour and services for ships going out. By the age of 30, Sam has enough money to buy a car and employ a blue-eyed Burgher driver, projected as the owner since British laws prohibit natives from owning cars. This becomes his stepping stone to the house of the village headman, who, unaware of Sam’s humble origins, is compelled by his urbane demeanour into giving his daughter’s hand in marriage to the young man from the city. High born and well-bred, she exemplifies privilege, denied to Sam by birth. After consummation, she is returned to the village, where twins are born. The father makes up for his absence by sending back gifts for his wife and the headman’s family. Visits are rare.
The celibate marriage to the trophy wife ends through an outburst of rage. It is triggered by her taunt about his real identity. His elaborate subterfuge seems not to have fooled her. He continues to keep contact with his in-laws and village after her death. His second marriage is overly carnal, perhaps intended to make up for the abstinence of his younger days. As a rich man of the world, he can afford to keep his Burgher wife in a classy hotel, and subsequently, a rented place. That marriage, too, is short-lived, terminated by phobia and suspicion.
The best is reserved for the last, when he reaches 60 years, feeling old and tired, with little money and no one by his side. He plans to return to the village as headman, his father-in-law having passed away. His two motor cars, en route to the village, collide with a victory convoy, proceeding to receive a political dissident of Portuguese descent, back from exile. Sam appears distinguished and handsome, even if his suit is old. He is induced to join the celebration, and eventually, the dissident’s unmarried daughter marries him. He now has fresh purpose to live for, growing old along with the wife, half his age, resisting her efforts to make him Christian, and spawning a vast brood of children. It is his time of rest as his wife manages everything. The village estate is turned into a popular tourist destination, replete with peasants, headman, temple and their custodians. This is suited to the new Sri lanka, long free of the colonial yoke, and zealously affirming its cultural identity.
Beggar’s Feast is a richly layered story about a person struggling to outgrow his roots, and after stumbling and fall, succeeding unexpectedly. It is also a graphic portrayal of a world undergoing change: Of incessant coming and going, as the dispossessed of one land travel to another for work and better prospects; of White poor partnering with Brown poor in business; and, of the old giving way to the new.