Freedom
- a word that is loosely used by almost everyone today. Freedom of speech,
freedom of religion, freedom of expression, freedom of almost everything. Most
of the people using it does not know its price. Here, Taslima presents her
experience in "Exile" how her freedom was curbed because how her
freedom of thoughts and speech was not considered so by whoever is against it.
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| Exile - A Memoir |
Hyderabad,
we all know as a city famous for its delicious Biryani changed her fate after
one event - a simple book release event. The troubles and struggles that
Taslima had encountered to live freely after this one event is the sole essence
of this book. She beautifully remembers and lists the conversations that
happened post that where even the ruling communists party did not want her to
stay in Kolkata. The conversation between Taslima and the then Commissioner of
Police induces lot humor, and you will laugh when his sole motivation is to get
Taslima out of Kolkata comes out through words like "Go to Europe, Go to
America, Go to Kerala".
Human
mind and brain are brilliant parts. They can convert threat into an
opportunity. The chapter "Death Waits Past the Window" exceptionally
portrays this phenomenon. How when the police officers tried to scare Taslima
and how her mind beautifully scripted the poems is just beautiful! The rest
sixty percent of the book is her diary excerpts. For about four months where
she was put in a house arrest in New Delhi (she calls that as Safe House), the
people she talked to including the journalists that we all know today - Karan
Thapar, Barkha Dutt, Vir Sanghvi. A safe house did not really give her safety
as she explains how she was threatened because her phones were tapped, many
people who are unknown to her eavesdropped her conversations. A physical
torture is worse, but what she refers to "a psychological torture"
experience is worst. How helplessly she called everyone that she knows to get
out of the safe house and get back even to Bangaladesh from where she was
ousted. The letters, conversations, articles, phone chats together form
'Exile'.
It
is always interesting to read one's memoir. Taslima's is no exception (she
herself says that it cannot act as a source of inspirations like other memoirs)
. But, how one interprets freedom of speech is one's own decision, and it may
not tally well with yours (after all, everything has its own limit - for
example, having driving license in a free country mean you can freely drive at
your own will without obeying traffic rules). Also, when it comes to religion,
some people are very much tied to what it dictates without even knowing or
realizing the meaning. Obviously, a sword cannot be an answer for uttering
words against religion because we say that all the religions teach us love. All
in all, a beautifully presented memoir which I have read and enjoyed with both
agreements and disagreements with Taslima's words.
PS: This book was received, read and reviewed
as part of Flipkart’s Blogger Review Program. The opinions in this blog are not
forced by the program. It is blog author's own.
