A Bouquet of Emotions
A short story is
a love affair, it comes glancing by, like fleeting emotions. Ram Kamal
Mukherjee’s first fictional work Long
Island Iced Tea, is a collection of short stories that adheres to this
myriad world of emotions and dreams. As one flips from one story to the other,
a dream unfolds within a dream, capturing ephemeral desires, tears of betrayal
and loss of trust. Having spent more than two decades as a celebrated movie
journalist and editor of Stardust, Mukherjee
brings in decisive moments of human relations with elan, probably ones he witnessed in real life, behind silver
screens.
His female
protagonists are bold, ready to break social rules. They challenge social diktats, yet at times die within
confines of common female attributes of jealousy and betrayal of trust. Like
his protagonist Madhurima of Madam, The
Shot Is Ready is insecure, she is the silver screen diva and not ready to
leave her throne even to a more talented daughter. A reader can instantly
relate to a complex mother-daughter relationship through Madhurima. While,
rebel Lopa ((On The Other Side) is ready
to bear the love child despite resistance from family and even after being
abandoned by the man she loved. But a woman’s heart can be emotionally
vulnerable too. Mukherjee captures this vulnerability through Moushumi (A Broken Frame), a woman betrayed by all
because she could not conceive and produce an heir.
The irony of a
short story evolves and culminates in an unexpected twist. True to this trend,
Mukherjee’s short stories create an almost poetic atmosphere, presenting a
unified impression of temper, tone, colour and effect. If Madhurima’s daughter
Naina forgives her mother and moves on, Lopa has a shocking news to face in the
end, while Moushumi reveals a greater surprise through her death. Such spins
and twists make Long Island Iced Tea
stand out from the rest.
The cover page
of the book by Pinky Roy is chic and happening, lifting the mood of the title.
Long Island Iced Tea; Ram Kamal Mukherjee
Jufic Books
