Book: Remnants of a Separation
Author: Aanchal Malhotra
Pages: 456
Publisher: Harper Collins
Read On: Hardback Edition
How Long it Took Me to Read: 3 days
Plot Summary: Remnants of a Separation is a unique attempt to revisit the Partition through objects that refugees carried with them across the border. These belongings absorbed the memory of a time and place, remaining latent and undisturbed for generations. They now speak of their owner's pasts as they emerge as testaments to the struggle, sacrifice, pain and belonging at an unparalleled moment in history.
A string of pearls gifted by a maharaja, carried from Dalhousie to Lahore, reveals the grandeur of a life that once was. A notebook of poems, brought from Lahore to Kalyan, shows one woman's determination to pursue the written word despite the turmoil around her. A refugee certificate created in Calcutta evokes in a daughter the feelings of displacement her father had experienced upon leaving Mymensingh zila, now in Bangladesh.
Written as a crossover between history and anthropology, Remnants of a Separation is the product of years of passionate research. It is an alternative history of the Partition - the first and only one told through material memory that makes the event tangible even seven decades later.
Things I Loved:
1. I had been meaning to read this book since it first came out some three years ago. It sounded allllll kinds of incredible. If you've followed Aanchal Malhotra on Instagram, you would have been familiar with her writing and her incredible story telling skills and the unique snippets of history she shares. This book was promising to be more of this and I was allll for it. Strangely, for no real good reason, it took me a year to finally buy it and then another whole year went by before I read it. Well, better late than never. I read this book back in August and it was everything and more. It exceeded my expectations and broke my heart and moved me all at once.
2. The writing in this book was an absolute pleasure to read. Each chapter, each story was brought to life with such heart and warmth that it made my heart swell. The writer is truly gifted in creating these rich, layered, yet simple stories that hit you right in the feels. I smiled, I cried (a fair amount) and felt uplifted and hopeful at the end these stories.
3. I have read quite a few books centred around the Partition and the aftermath of this catastrophic event. And each of these books and stories, whether fictional or non-fictional, have gotten under my skin and made me pause and think about the havoc we wreck on each other. How cruel people can be and the savagery we can unleash, all in the name of religion and vengeance. The history of our subcontinent and even our present has been affected by this event. The scars of this divide is something we have had to live with and endure. For better or worse, this is our history. These stories give us a glimpse of the personal stories and fates behind the Partition.
4. The people in this book was just...gosh..the urge to somehow magically jump inside the pages and give them a hug was overwhelming. We meet some amazing people from both sides of the border in this book and all of these people have lived through such difficult times and have gone on to live full lives, while nursing a homesickness that refuses to go away. They are inspiring and incredible people to get to know.
5. Home. Such a funny word no? Simple enough, yet mired in such complex feelings. What is home? Is it a piece of land? Walls and bricks and a gate? A place? Or people? Home is all of that and then some. It's easy to imagine that one would get over a separation that happened over 70 years ago. But how does one stop missing a place that was your own, a slice of your childhood and a land and a people that are entwined in your very soul. These stories, these people and their personal histories bring across this point so poignantly.
6. Whenever I've read or watched anything related to the Partition, I always pause for a moment or two and look around my home and wonder, if I was in that situation, what would I take with me? What would I save? My precious books.
My silver jewellery.
My clothes.
My stationery.
Every time I go down this path, I find myself getting worked up, because nothing is enough. I would never be able to take all that I need and all the things that make up my home. So reading these personal tales of material memory really resonated with me. I love stuff, if I were to put it simply, so the idea of leaving my things behind, things that hold memories and sentimental value, or things that I have bought with so much love and heart, is just too harrowing to even comprehend.
7. I loved the range and scope of the stories and people, from both sides of the border and people having very varied experiences of the exact same event. Some made a run right in the middle of the madness, others made the move a few years after 1947, some moved before the carnage began. But each person lost a part of themselves and no matter the exact nature of their exodus, this remained constant.
8. This book is a gem. I wish every person on this sub-continent read it. It really should be an essential read. Just so that we can bear witness to these stories, learn from the past and acknowledge the horrors of the partition. It will break your heart, move you, get under your skin and stay in your heart long after you've put the book down.
Rating: 5/5
Please, read this book if you haven't already. It's brilliant.
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