Sujoy Ghosh

Great novels often have simple characters elevated by magical writing. Jhumpa Lahiri’s debut novel and source material for Mira Nair’s namesake movie is a prime example of that observation. Although the published reviews of the book have been mixed, leaning more towards the positive, I rate this book highly. Two decades have passed, but the book has remained relevant and aged well, providing a beautiful juxtaposition between the lives and philosophies of Indian immigrants and the first-generation American children of Indian origin.

The Namesake is the story of Gogol (named after the famed Russian author) and his parents – Ashima and Ashoke, the aspirational Indian couple who moved to the US seeking the North Star. The novel explores his relationships with Maxine, an American, and Moushumi, a Bengali; the latter of the two graduates to marriage. The novel creates a contrast with the life Ashima and Ashoke spent with each other, which continues even after Ashoke’s death through the memories they created. There is a soft touch in the character portrayals.  

Drawing from personal experiences, Lahiri introduces us to two diametrically opposite worlds in the same household in an intimate personal manner. She peels layers of conflicts and contradictions, figuring out a way to make the characters more relatable than likeable; something that holds up well even after a generation. Eventually, when the title of the book is explained in a backstory, although the conflicts are not resolved, it feels that, along with the protagonist, the reader also understands Gogol’s parents with a little more empathy than before.

About a decade back, I moved to the US with an aspiration to settle there. Although what transpired was not what I aspired to, in the course of three years in the American Midwest, I felt a sense of déjà vu due to my memories of this book. Not many books made me feel that I was tracing my steps while walking in an uncharted territory. I felt that feeling again when I lost my father. Despite many differences, like Gogol, I am connected to my parents through an umbilical cord. 

~Sujoy