Vaikom Mohammad Basheer needs no
introduction. He is a favourite writer of mine. Though my Malayalam is rather
sketchy, i have read most of his work. Must say the charm is in original
Malayalam. Basheer is an influential Indian writer, and i see Basheer in the
same mould as Franz Kafka and Saadat Hasan Munto. His Fathumma’s goat is part
of collective psyche as much Samsa is of Kafka and Toba Tek Singh of Munto.There
is so much compassion in his work. The lines in his fictions are deceptively simple
but striking in its impact. Furthermore
he was not much into nuances of the language and kept it simple and colloquial,
that made his characters real and endearing. This quote from him reads “I can
live without literature. In the matter of living life nobody can defeat me”.
Writing was just an 
extension of life, that he didn’t give exaggerated
importance. And that precisely is the reason he happens to be one of the
greatest. His fictions are sensitive portrayal of common people and their
reality. Contrast that with arrogance of contemporary writers (particularly the
one writing in English) and their exclusive claim on “freedom of expression”. Just
being a writer it seems they are superior to normal mortals or that they
believe they have insight on truth that other ordinary people most surely lack.
It is this haughtiness and lack of compassion/empathy that breeds this clique of
“culture torchbearers”. Shallow creativity that thrive on exaggeration and
controversy. It is not without reason i use terms like neo-brahminism, it’s an
Indian reality. We live in amazingly mediocre times, and the so called art/artists
that market churns out creates props that seek to safeguard great ideals. The
mediocres manipulate these for their very narrow end. Thus the farce.
extension of life, that he didn’t give exaggerated
importance. And that precisely is the reason he happens to be one of the
greatest. His fictions are sensitive portrayal of common people and their
reality. Contrast that with arrogance of contemporary writers (particularly the
one writing in English) and their exclusive claim on “freedom of expression”. Just
being a writer it seems they are superior to normal mortals or that they
believe they have insight on truth that other ordinary people most surely lack.
It is this haughtiness and lack of compassion/empathy that breeds this clique of
“culture torchbearers”. Shallow creativity that thrive on exaggeration and
controversy. It is not without reason i use terms like neo-brahminism, it’s an
Indian reality. We live in amazingly mediocre times, and the so called art/artists
that market churns out creates props that seek to safeguard great ideals. The
mediocres manipulate these for their very narrow end. Thus the farce.
I had the good fortune to visit Basheer’s
home the other day at Beypore (a coastal town of historical significance). The
family has kept a room as a museum, which i was told is visited by lots of
people. Fabi Basheer, wife of Basheer, turned out to be a gregarious lady and
it was fun to interact with her. She spoke and spoke, everything from where she
did her schooling to how she got married and learned cooking fish curry!! She
spoke Basheer and Fathuma’s goat (about the attractive statue that has come up
in Calicut city, of the goat devouring a book). She reads atleast five newspaper
a day!!.She also mentioned about her desire to learn cycling when she was child
and how it was prevented. She talked about the need for muslim woman to learn and
stand on their own feet. She though has no regrets in life. I took a picture
with her, she looked at it and said that she doesn’t look all that good. I
assured her she looks very beautiful, she blushed. It was an honour to meet the
lovely lady. 
