IRIS : Keeper of the Light and Anitha Nair
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Disappointment, Disillusion ??
Anitha Nair, has let an opportunity slipped out of her fingers - A vast canvas unexploited is IDRIS:Keeper of the Light.
Idris Maymoon Samataar Guleed, previously of Dikhil and the eternal traveler in the novel, seeking the measure of earth and man is a wonder creation by the author. At times his stature looks so huge that he doesn't fit into the minute world in the book.
The son born to the Somalian Idris with a golden eye out of a Gaandarva Union with a matriarch, Kuttimalu somewhere in the God's Own Country was named Vattoli Kandavar Menavan and the father son duo meet accidentally and coincidentally in the land of Mamamgam.
The readers get a cocktail mix here - Mamangam in the land of Thirunaavaya, the legends of chavers and Zamorin, the silk route and then a journey (though wasted) through the shores of Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea.
Idris: Keeper of the Light would have been a delight if Anitha Nair would have been patient enough to let the readers explore Cape Comerin, Ceylonn/ Galle, Thoothukudi, Nagapattanam, Caracal, Paliakatta, Petapolee and Musalipattanam.
A reader can easily empathize with Kandavar, who is always unhappy with his Aboo for not letting his exploring the places they are in. Is it the fault of Idris or his creator, Anitha Nair. She moves on from one place to another perfectly like a vagabond even before getting to know the flavors and tales of the land.
A perfect opportunity to explore the wide vivacity of the India which was slowly moving into colonized land from that of a country of golds and diamonds was lost in the book.
Characterization: The women in the land of Unniaarcha, the warrior woman who lives through folklore are here matriarchs, sans power. And it is mismatching too with the stories we have grown up with.
A good book to read. Expectation must have reduced my JOY
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