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The German Nobel Laureate for Literature, Gunter Grass revisited Kolkata after nearly 20 years in January – February 2005 on the invitation of Max Mueller Bhavan Kolkata. Grass’s earlier trips to (what was then called) Calcutta in 1975 and in 1986 – 87 motivated him to record his impressions of the city in his drawings, etchings as well as his literary works. The Bengali metropolis features in a chapter in The Flounder (1977) and in his diary-like descriptions and poems, Show Your Tongue (1988) where he expressed his views on the extreme social conditions in the city.
In his sketching book, Grass writes:
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I, that is, the novelist, forced the painter – again and again – to look, to perceive, shunning all artistic pretensions – because everything, every slum where a monument or bust from British times is the focal point of its huts, wanted to be seen; also the cow in front of the funeral pyre, concrete pipes where people dwell, cooking arrangements under a tree – all demanded my attention; and those lying in front of impenetrable walls of houses and factories, almost as if by
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| accident, those who in Calcutta have no roof over their heads (since no slum will accept them), the pavement dwellers as they are called in Calcutta – wanted to be seen and sketched. |
On his latest visit to the city, this wounding sense of bafflement was still there as he revealed to the Content Team of oxfordbookstore.com at Oxford Bookstore, Kolkata. Read on to find out more about the queer thinker and his sharp tongue that shocks Bengalis and Germans alike.
What are your new thoughts on Kolkata as you visit India for the third time?
After 20 years, you see a change surely but there are parts of North Calcutta that remains the same. I am very glad to see life full of situations here. Moreover, I am meeting old friends. I am also involved with many on-going projects in Kolkata and want to see it to the next stage. For me, it is a moving moment.
Is there any perceptive change that you have noticed in the city of joy?
Oh yes, the city is growing. It has become modernized with less power cuts better water supply, electricity and new flyovers. I see fewer cows now!
What astonishes you about Indians?
For me it’s Kolkata and the people of Kolkata. I sometimes wonder how people survive here. I am yet to see how poor people are living as I did last time when I was in India. I walked down the lanes, spoke to people and got to know them better.
Do you identify yourself with any aspect of the Indian psyche?
Yes, I have grown up in the European tradition of life – enlightenment. The basis of this enlightenment is tolerance. I think in India too the basis of life, unless politicians push people against each other, is tolerance.
People, whether Hindus or Muslims, don’t want to repeat the scenes of history. You see, people of different countries are coming together. Languages and cultures are divided. I am coming from Germany - a country that is divided. In Kolkata, you have refugee families from Bangladesh. Likewise, I too belong to a refugee family. So tolerance is everywhere.
In this world of “horrible inequality between the rich and poor, fuelled… by a market driven globalization” what is your vision or idea of “another world” that you are seeking?
The basic question that has to be addressed for progress is providing food to the underprivileged. It is very difficult to have a vision because we are surrounded by problems – overpopulation, water etc. But I feel these problems are created by human beings and the solution lies in them only. That’s my hope and answer.
I envision a tolerant world but not an egalitarian one. Struggle will always be there. But if we have struggle,there will openness and the possibility to speak. And if there is tolerance, differences can co-exist. I feel the army can solve no problem in their military way. I am a great admirer of Mahatma Gandhi and his non-violent ways. He is the most important person from India. Most people in India have forgotten about his ways.
Do you have any thoughts to share with the younger generation of India?
Here students learn about the English novel in the 19th century but they don’t know about the richness of their languages. What about knowing Tamil and Marathi literature? I have nothing against English language but India is still dominated by the language of the British Empire. I remember Tagore had this great idea on teaching students Indian languages at Santiniketan. I understand it is easier to translate everything into English but that is not the language of this country.
How do you read the controversy around your works?
I think this controversy is necessary. It is there because I catch the wounds in our society.
And finally, few words on Oxford Bookstore…
This is a very nice bookstore. I wish I could come and sit here every week.
Interviewed by Satarupa Ray
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