The Liftman and other stories by Sheela Jaywant Hindon, Mumbai, 2008 Review by Mridula Murgai 16 June 2009
Sheela Jaywant is an experienced writer; this is her third book. She has written countless articles and stories for newspapers and magazines ranging from the Times of India to The Gomantak Times. Her expertise lies not just in writing Flash fiction and short stories but also in translating Marathi books and in writing on various subjects. With a background of a well-travelled Air Force wife and of working in a large hospital in Mumbai, she has a wealth of experiences which are the basis of her fascinating tales. She draws upon her observations of life in its various facets, and using these vignettes of life she presents us with stories which are real and riveting. Sheela has a great ability to write simply, without going into deep long-winded descriptions of people and their surroundings. A few deft sentences, a wry observation and some bits of humour thrown in, and you have a character emerge before you. When talking about a new mother she says : “Demure Janaki had metamorphosed into something strong, firm. Motherhood, had happened,” These are ordinary people, people who you may meet in your everyday humdrum life, and somehow she makes them seem so real and so normal. Most of them are middleclass people based in or around Mumbai, and lead an average existence, like most of us. But then she begins a story – whether a short flash fiction piece or a short story – and you are lost in the narration. The beauty of this book lies in the tales she tells. The stories are quick and short, but each one complete in itself and somehow in the space of a few pages, (or as in the case of a flash fiction a few paragraphs) she tells the tale of retirement, or of ill-health, or of malice, or just of loneliness and frustration. Short stories are not a very popular genre of writing, they require specialised skills, and often they are little more than summaries of short novels!! But Sheela seems to have the ability to cover a whole range of emotions, and many years in the lives of her protagonists in a few words. She has a crisp style of writing; there is no attempt at writing philosophical tomes, the focus is on the characterization and on the storyline. Her innate ability to weave a story based on her research and her knowledge is evident throughout the book. I have enjoyed reading the stories. I read them over a period of many days and specially enjoyed the story ‘THE VRS”. Most retired bureaucrats will emphasise with that story! She writes about a bank official who has taken retirement and suddenly realises that he is really not needed anywhere. But gradually he moves into another persona, takes up another profession, totally incongruous to his old job, and suddenly begins to earn more money. “He stepped into the mediocrity of retirement, into high excitement, shed old friends, made new ones half his age, discovered his sinews and nerves were still functioning well, triggered his adrenaline glands now and then, laughed more, relaxed more, got out of his wife’s way and often blessed the day he took VRS. He’d learnt to make money whilst having fun. More importantly, he’d learnt to spend.” If you are a short story fan, you will thoroughly enjoy reading these, if you are not, pick this one up, and watch as Sheela’s stories make you change your mind. Mridula Murgai is a part time freelance writer and a full time wife, mother, and grandmother (though not necessarily in that order ). Books are her lifetime companions and they have influenced the core of her life in many amazing ways. http://www.sawnet.org/books/reviews.php?The+Liftman+and+other+stories