കൊമാല | Komala

by Santhosh Aechikkanam

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories

80 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2006

Reviews

[Deepak K · Rating 3 out of 5]

The short story collection did not offer anything remarkable, however some of the ideas covered were quite interesting.
Roadil palikenda niyamangal is a proxy for the rules one has to follow in dambathyam , in which upon advise from the driving instructor Ramakrishnan, the budhijeevi Ravichandran who has scant regards towards wife corrects himself.
In Oru parathi ezhuthukarante maanasika sagharshangal , Rajiv calls up Albert saying that he is his friend from college, visits him and then disappears.
Comala , a Kerala Sahitya academy award winner, refers to the town of dead, Comala, referred to in the novel Pedro Paramo. In this work, a person who has stood jamyam (assurance) for a friend is facing jepthi (confiscation), so he puts a board outside his house stating that he would commit suicide on a particular date. This gets discussed in the news channel, where a police officer comments that Kerala has become Comala. The person then travels to find the missing person, while learning some important life lessons during the journey.
In Charamakurippu, an obituary writer upon hearing the news of his friend's demise thinks about the time when he had to get a dead young girls picture.
My favorite story in this collection, Irayude manam is about a scheme that was started under the guidance of the India government. In order to get an Olympic Gold for archery, for which apparently India should have been performing well given its warrior myths, tribals are being kidnapped and forced, even sexually exploited by the trainer Ronal Wilbur.
In Thevi nanachathu, a lawyer who argues in court for a farmer on the verge of suicide, buys lunch to their hungry children, although his mind tells him to be unsentimental.
I finished Baby's breath in a rush, hence don't completely remember the concept, however I recall that it had a reference to sexual assault, when the protagonist meets his friend's daughter and hugs her, but she quickly moves away from him.
Panthi bhojanam is an interesting tale about how caste differences work. An SC/ST atrocity case being presented by Rukmini, apparently a Dalit, is the topic of discussion in the oppposite lawyers' firm, fully occupied by upper caste women. Amongst other things, they discuss the food habits of various caste.
നമ്പൂതിരി = മാമ്പപഴപുളിശ്ശേരി , ഓലൻ
നായർ = കൂട്ടുകറി, മെഴുക്കുപുരട്ടി , മോളൂഷ്യം , അവിയൽ
ഈഴവ = മുതിരകറി , കടലക്കറി
ക്രിസ്ത്യൻ = താറാവ് മപ്പാസ് , പോർക്ക് വരട്ടിയത്
മുസ്‌ലിം = ബീഫ് ബിരിയാണി , കോയി ബിരിയാണി
Finally, as a means of compromise, they all decide to have a panthibhojanam with Rukmini.
In Keeru, a politically correct writer, drunk and on board a train meets Mukundan. Mukundan engages in a conversation with him and amongst other things mentions his sexual exploits with his wife using a colloquial and politically incorrect term (keerum), the writer inadvertently kicks the person out of the train and he dies.

[Deepak Pacha · Rating 4 out of 5]

ടൈറ്റിൽ കഥയായ കൊമാല ആത്മഹത്യ ചെയ്യാൻ തീരുമാനിച്ച ഒരു സാധാരക്കാരന്റെ കഥ പറയുന്നു. റോഡിൽ പാലിക്കേണ്ട നിയമങ്ങൾ ദാമ്പത്യത്തെക്കുറിച്ചുള്ള രസകരമായ കഥയാണ്.
തേവി നനച്ചത് കർഷകരുടെ ദുരിതത്തിന്റെ നേർകാഴ്ചയാണ്. ഇന്നും വിട്ടു പോകാത്ത ജാതി ചിന്തയുടെ കഥ പറയുന്ന പന്തിഭോജനം, കാലംമാറിയതറിയാതെ പോയ പ്രവാസിയുടെ കഥ പറയുന്ന ബേബീസ് ബ്രത്ത് ഇവയെല്ലാം മികച്ച കഥകളാണ്.

[Anto James · Rating 3 out of 5]

the story 'babies breth' is fantastic. other stories are average or above average.

[Rahul Raj Chukkath · Rating 3 out of 5]

Something was lost in Translation.

[Thamburan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great stories. Compromises the modern world as well as the moral issues

[Varna Binu Sasidharan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Debt..,death

[Anand · Rating 3 out of 5]

കൊമാല ഉൾപ്പടെ 9 കഥകൾ. അതിൽ തന്നെ റോഡിൽ പാലിക്കേണ്ട നിയമങ്ങൾ, തേവി നനച്ചത്, പന്തിഭോജനം, ബേബീസ് ബ്രത്ത്, കൊമാല എന്നീ കഥകൾ എനിക്ക് വളരെ ഇഷ്ടപ്പെട്ടു.

[Meenakshi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yeah, Good. Though it really doesn't stick to the main topic, which is media.

[Chandraprasad Ponneth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thought provoking stories. Especially "Komala" and "Roadil Palikkenda Niyamangal".

[Safa · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's for the story 'komala'

[Arun · Rating 4 out of 5]

short stories heartily describing today's lives.