The White Tiger – it is more of a Black and White Picture

‘The White Tiger’  is a great, blunt, and scathing novel. It tries to give a true account of India.  As the cover rightly puts it, the book tries to talk about the lives of the rich and poor in India through the tale of the protagonist  Balram Halwai, who hails from Darkness.  ‘Darkness’ – the metaphor for rural, backward India comprising more than 60% of its population who are not fed amply or who die of diseases, which are extinct in several countries. The lack of electricity, education, primary healthcare fits the metaphor ‘Darkness’.

“Wherever the river flows, there is darkness. And the places near the ocean are rich and affluent’ – starts the novel. Balram Halwai wants to break the tradition of working in fields and dying of tuberculosis.

This book talks about the protagonist’s life through a series of letters written to the Chinese Premiere, Head of the Communist Headquaters of China, written over a period of seven days. The protagonist’s life starts in a village shared/divided among three landlords, moves to Delhi, and ends in Bangalore with its fair share of twists and turns.

Balram Halwai, a relatively intelligent person from a remote village, always holds the dream of doing something. When his dare wins over the fear to reach into the dark rooms of a destitute fortress, he wins over the tradition of working in one of the, one of the landlord’s field. He moves to the city – the light.

It depicts the role of caste-system even in the mundane actions. Halwai, meaning Sweet-Maker, proves a hindrance for Balram’s wish to learn car driving. Another driver hides his identity of Muslim. Corruption has an important role in this novel. True account of India cannot do away with corruption and it has to be given its due part. Corruption and greed drives Balram to murder his master and run away with the money to the IT HUB of India.  Balram becomes a social entrepreneur.

The simplicity of language makes it a light read. ‘The Family Syndrome of Indians has earned a new title ‘The Rooster Coop’. Liked it.  It makes the great Indian story woven by the elite and esoteric lot of India farcical and tries to unveil the honest nerve within. A great read.

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