Reading heart-warming essays from London in TSE

Yangsorang Rongreisek *

ln my humble submission, I don't claim to be a scholar nor a historian of lndian English Literature and I had never dreamt that way either. But I would prefer to write what I have read on it. ln this write-up, I have a short collection of some verses spoken by lndian English writers. 'He or she must not try to be Matthew Arnold in a Saree or a Shelley in a Salwar, or a Byron in a Burkha or a Lawrence in a Lungi, or a Joyce in Jodhpurs or a Babu Beckett.'

ln the words of Kamala Das, Don't write in English, they said, English is not your mother-tongue. Why not leave Me alone, critics, friends, visiting cousins, Everyone of you ? Why not let me speak in any language I like ? The language I speak become mine, its distortions, its queernesses, All mine, mine alone. lt is half English, half lndian, funny perhaps, but it is honest, lt is as human as I am.

It is also reminiscent of a south lndian novelist, who is not widely known in our region as I believe. What he had said about English may be cited. Raja Rao (1908- ) the youngest of the trio hailing from ancient South lndian Brahmin family wrote four novels beginning with Kanthapura (1938), the story of a small and remote South Indian village.

ln his Foreword for his book, Raja Rao wrote, "We cannot write like the English. We should not. We cannot write only as lndians. We have grown to look at the large world as part of us. Our method of expression therefore has to be a dialect which will someday prove to be as distinctive and colourful as the lrish or the American. Time olone will justify it." The six verses that he uttered have become a classic today.

Likewise, it is an uphill task for an average writer like me to hunt for the best i.e. lmpeccable English and it is only impossible to do so. Years ago, a distant relative of mine living in New Delhi told me NE English is not brushed clean and essays written in English are full of faults and jargons, only relevant for the region. Whoever has a penchant for English has to climb a long pole until he gets tired to get the opportunity to know that only futility will gnaw at his or her soul - a sort of discouragement to be refused outright.

Even then, I used to write for the TSE more often than not eight years back without any reservation. lt is nice to struggle to acquire knowledge about what form of English writing is current in London and elsewhere in the Commonwealth realms. As an admirer of Dr. lrengbam Mohendra Singh who writes from London for The Sangai Express as a regular columnist every Sunday and placing reliance on his essays, I am in favour of saying that his writing is an encouragement for us in the North East region of lndia.

Marrying an English Rose to mingle in the polished society, Dr. Singh has now become an enlightened man. ln a healthy trend, he has been writing ceaselessly without even being harsh or abusive even once in all his essays. An appealing aspect of his writing is his rich emotional nature, his cosmopolitan outlook, pride in the ancient culture and tradition of the people of Manipur and his aversion to organized religion, saying he is not a Christian though he reads the Bible. That's bizarre.

The range and variety of quotations in his essays reveals a man well read in several disciplines. Truly, his essays are for widening and sharpening one's vision and faculty for self-scrutiny. The essays of such a towering writer only soothe my fevered mind to say the least. lt is not an exaggeration that Dr Singh is a prolific and tireless writer making a readable account of any episode. ls the end-result sheer reportage ? Never.

Here again, the emphasis of his writing appears to be more on the structure of the lucid language than on narration—useful for English teachers in the region. His recent article titled "My reminiscence & political renaissance of Manipur from 1945 to 1949-ll' is refreshing to read. lt is a rare piece. So, all his essays written in London for TSE are always heart-warming.

One of Dr Singh's earlier essays had also mentioned the name of Christopher Gimson, ICS, the Political Agent in Manipur in 1940. By reading his Sunday column, I knew that the political agent and Dr Singh's father were close to each other. Dr Singh and his English wife met Mr Gimson in his London home in 1967. I wished I also were present there together with them to see him.

Because it was Mr Gimson who had reserved nearly a half of the vast Yonga Koireng village land for the State when he surveyed it on the 14th February, 1940. ln his long hands he wrote - I have seen all the places concerned from the top of a hill between Leinganglok and the Sajilok. Even though the land is recognized as being within Yonga Koireng's boundary I see no reason why the State should not claim the right to the thatch mahal, which is now sold by the Hillmen to the Manipuries of neighbouring villages, and so on.

According to the village elders who were alive till the late 1990s, the speciality of the visit of the whiteman to the hill hamlet on horseback was that village functionaries led by its chief killed a big enough mithun for the visiting political agent and members of his immediate entourage.

The story has it that Mr Gimson and his Muslim cooks dined together with the hill villagers on plantain leaves. In return, contrary to the expectation of the peace loving Yonga villagers, the Political Agent who showed up there had given the precious Thatch Mahal of the rugged Loiching landscape to the State. lt's a dismal tale.

Now, it is my turn to preserve historical accuracy for the youngsters to know how the Mahal was gifted away to the State without the consent of the villagers.

To conclude, the truth can be spoken out to be heard across the length and breadth of the land-all because of a thriving press that we have in this part of the world-

lt is also realistic to argue that interest in English dailies have grown tremendously in the decade, thus making possible a much larger readership than it could claim any time earlier.

The continuity and growth of English dailies thus remains assured, and a further impetus to its growth and popularity is provided by weeklies in English published by various tribal groups in the State, some already flourished and others newly started for a resurgent and glorious Manipur.'