கறுப்புக் குதிரை [Karuppu Kuthirai]

by Sujatha

இந்தத் தொகுப்பில் உள்ள கதைகள் 'புதிய தூண்டில் கதைகள்' என்ற பொதுத் தலைப்பில் ஆனந்தவிகடன் பத்திரகையில் வந்தவை. இதில் கறுப்புக் குதிரை என்கிற கிரிக்கெட் சார்ந்த கதை மேட்ச் ஃபிக்ஸிங் என்றால் என்ன என்றே தெரிந்திராத காலத்தில் எழுதப்பட்டது. இன்று இந்தக் கதை உண்மைக்கு மிக அருகில் வந்துவிட்டது. சுஜாதாவுக்கே ஆச்சரியம் அளித்ததாக எழுதியிருக்கிறார்.

'தூண்டில் கதைகள்' என்கிற தலைப்பில் இவர் முதலில் எழுதிய 12 கதைகளும் தொகுப்பாக வந்துள்ளன. அவைகளைத் தொடர்ந்து, அதே வகையில் கடைசியில் எதிர்பாராத திருப்பம் தரும் கதைகளை எழுத வாசகர்கள் கேட்டுக் கொண்டதால் எழுதப்பட்ட கதைகள் இவை.

176 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2000

About the author

Sujatha was the allonym of the Tamil author S. Rangarajan, Author of over 100 novels, 250 short stories, ten books on science, ten stage plays, and a slim volume of poems. He was one of the most popular authors in Tamil literature, and a regular contributor to topical columns in Tamil periodicals such as Ananda Vikatan, Kumudam and Kalki. He had a wide readership, and served for a brief period as the editor of Kumudam, and has also written screenplays and dialogues for several Tamil movies.

As an engineer, he supervised the design and production of the electronic voting machine (EVM) during his tenure at Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), a machine which is currently used in elections throughout India. As an author he inspired many authors, including Balakumaran, Madhan.

Reviews

[Arvind Srinivasan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Titled as the sequel to Toondil Kathaigal, the book is a collection of 12 short stories that delve into human emotions and situations.

Story Summaries
Karuppu Kuthirai: A story about match-fixing, where an umpire is coerced into rigging a game. The match ends with the required result, but without the fix, revealing a twist at the end.

Ellamey Ippozhuthu: The owner of a large company falls for an employee's relative, who is already in love with someone else. The owner is an anxious person who wants to rush the relationship decision. The employee sacrifices his love interest, leading to her marriage with the owner. The twist lies in the true reason for the employee's sacrifice.

Ad 2887 Sila Vilasangal: An envisioning of the world in 2887. People lack freedom of choice and must take great risks for "unethical" activities, such as having sex with the opposite gender. As always, the end features an unexpected twist.

CBI Adigari Ninavalaigal: An aging CBI officer seeks marriage. His search leads him to fall in love with a girl, but the story ends with a confusion over names resulting in his rejection due to his age.

Eithavan: A person is targeted for assassination. Upon discovering he's the target, he attempts to buy off the killer to instead eliminate the person who ordered the hit. What happens in the end is the rest of the story.

Ayirathi Oravadhu Poi: A family is seeking a marriage alliance for a kind woman with below-average looks. They become frustrated by constant rejections. By chance, a lie secures a marriage proposal, as the suitor mistakes her for someone else. The twist occurs on the wedding day while inviting the bride.

Periyavanga Ulagam: An immature boy learns to understand the world of grown-ups, realizing, through life lessons, that love or lust for a woman is not more important than his studies.

Pai Niraya Panam: Four thieves successfully plot and execute a bank robbery but get caught in a peculiar way. The honest police inspector and the bank manager, upon finding them and hearing their story, plan a counter-move, which is the twist.

Louis Kudumbathil Oru Puratchi: A love marriage is on the verge of divorce. While the family is trying to arrange a remarriage for the wife, the husband returns, asking for forgiveness. The reconciliation appears to be going well until the woman gets pregnant. What happens after is typical of Sujatha Sir's critique on a vulnerable society.

Poi: A sincere person in an office fails to get a promotion, as a younger candidate is recommended for the post. To take revenge, this individual spreads a rumor that leads to the manager's resignation. The final lines, revealing the true reason for the resignation, form the twist.

Corporate Raththam: A rich man is killed by a gunshot, casting suspicion on his wife, who is having an affair. Investigation reveals the husband had incurred massive business losses and was nearly broke, except for his life insurance. Who killed him and why is revealed in Sujatha Sir's signature style.

Nan Malligavin Magan: The step-son of a popular politician finds out his father's name and comes to kill him. The father tries to say something before the son kills him. Since this was a new place and city, the step-son escapes and returns home. Someone comes looking for the person the next day, and the reason for their search is the twist in the tale.

All the stories explore human feelings and the situations that trigger specific actions. They are varied and maintain the high standard of Sujatha Sir's writing. This is a light, short-story read, a typical Sujatha experience. Go for it—it'll be a good way to pass the time

[Aruna Arriane · Rating 4 out of 5]

இது பன்னிரண்டு சிறுகதைகளின் தொகுப்பு. சில சிறுகதைகள் மிக அருமையாக படைக்கப்பட்டிருக்கிறது. எனக்கு ஒரு CBI அதிகாரியின் நினைவலைகள், பெரியவங்க உலகம், பொய் என்ற கதைகள் மிகப்பிடித்தது. புத்தகத்தில் அதிகப்படியான எழுத்துப்பிழைகள் இருந்தன. Visa Publications கூடியவிரைவில் அடுத்த பதிவுகளில் இதை திருத்துவார்கள் என எதிர்ப்பார்க்கிறேன்.

[Raja Gopal P · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book that stimulated me towards Sujatha's work began with this one short story book. If you ask me a man who's good enough to give a better twits even in small story. Yes, I can yell out loud , It's Mr.Sujatha.... I would suggest you to Read his book to experience it.

[Sriram Mangaleswaran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sujatha's style ending, may be some stories ending we can predict out, that is due to our experience in reading, but this book standalone in this short story colleciton.

[Ananya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a diverse range of short stories!!!