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Man-Eater of Malgudi, The - R K Narayan Reviews

saadityeshMouthShut Verified Member
Coimbatore India
Totally exhausting
Dec 24, 2016 11:45 PM (via Mobile)

This novel is a drag despite the fact that it's only 176 pages.Its absolutely exhausting. Additionally irritating. The characters are so idiotic. A taxidemist has welcomed himself to live over a printer's shop. The taxidermist doesn't need to pay lease. Everyone is truly irritated b/c the dead bodies smell awfull and in reality pets are being shot. So why can't the printer simply advise the taxidermist to get out? At that point individuals begin thinking the printer is to blame - why might he give the taxidermist a chance to remain there without paying rent?! There must be an association between the two. The failure of the printer to kick the person out is just so weak. I discover it a major exercise in futility perusing this. In the event that a book is so terrible I can't proceed with, well then it just gets one star. I think unfortunately that this contemporary Indian author is so very acclaimed. He wins a wide range of prizes. What would it be advisable for me to gain from this? Try not to peruse

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aashishkumardimriMouthShut Verified Member
Delhi India
A gentle villain
Dec 14, 2015 01:20 PM

Now, this is a funny book. Yes, this man eater is not a tiger;but an innocent temple  elephant.


RK Narayan made me believe that real man eater happens to be man himself who cheats his fellow mankind of its pleasures and happiness.


Before reading it; I used to think it as a ferocious jungle tale but it turned out to be very innocent and witty book.


RK Narayan has written so many books that I can only recollect so known ones(all read).-Guide, Malgudi Days, Swamy and Friends.


Now, who am I to comment on this genius who was promoted by no less than Graham Greene himself- who also nominated him for noble prize!

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WEST BENGAL (Kolkata) India
Work from the best of the writers
Apr 30, 2015 04:35 PM

The Man eater of Malgudi again comes from the God of writing, Mr. R K Narayan. He needs no description. The book, well very much like his other works, is an undoubtedly amazing work of literature. he just plays with the words and the form a tune in the book.


U don't go through the book, u flow with it. U get involved in the story. It is also based in South Indian town of Malgudi, which he has chosen for most of his literature works. This story is about Nataraj, who earns his living as a printer in the little world of Malgudi. He enjoys his living with his bosom friend circle, such as a poet, a journalist and his employee, Shastri. Their lives are provoked by the astound and deliberate entry of an authoritarian taxidermist and thus this give birth to a great story and many hilarious anecdotes.

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Bangalore India
An enjoyable and easy read
May 02, 2006 01:34 PM

R.K.Narayan's work is best described by the word 'empathy'. Narayan's storylines have reflected the state of society in his day and age, and people who have lived in those times will easily relate to and empathise with the characters of his story. Even in today's changed milieu, some parts of the plot still touch a chord. A lot of situations are allegorical and you are unconsciously taken off-track on your own journeys in memory, as u think of similar things that happened in your life.


The Man eater of Malgudi is one such story, where one is partly amused and partly sympathetic towards the hapless publisher who is overwhelmed by Vasu's presence and does things that he doesnt really want to do. Initially, he is overawed by Vasu's personality and partly out of admiration, allows him into his life and his property. Gradually, the reality of the situation hits him and he realizes that he is not really ''allowing'' Vasu to do things, rather Vasu is doing what he wants to do. By then, it is too late as Vasu is well and truly ensconsed in his life. He makes a few feeble and unsuccessful attempts to rid himself of Vasu, and is finally at his wit's end. Eventually, his problem gets solved in a unique denouement.


I have been reading Narayan since the age of 10, and the fodder of these formative years has made me a die-hard fan. This might serve as a disclaimer to my review !


Narayan's books are not about a meteorite striking the earth and wiping out life, or making wonderful journeys in a spaceship to the ends of the universe. They are about simple human emotions, and the (mis)adventures of the protagonists are the stuff that any Indian middle-class family would have seen in their own circles. This makes it all the more endearing and enduring in people's hearts.

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BHASMASURA - THE DEVIL, RELOADED!!
Jul 14, 2005 01:24 AM

Hi Friends,


Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayan Swami (in short R. K. Narayan) was born on 10th October, 1906 in his grandmother’s house in Purasawalkam, and old section of Madras city (Madras is now called Chennai). Narayan was a very celebrated author who wrote amazing fiction, most of it based in the fictional territory of Malgudi which is a town in south India, somewhere near Chennai.


Narayan is one of those authors who can not be easily criticized. Critics have tried to do it but without much success. Narayan’s stories are like drops of water trembling on a lotus leaf. He has enthralled and entertained generations of readers with his deftly etched characters, his uniquely stylized language and his wry sense of humor. His greatest achievement lies in creating and peopling the imagined landscapes of a town called Malgudi, located somewhere in south India, which has come alive in story after story in such a way that it has now become a part of modern Indian folklore.


The Man-Eater?!!


In ‘The Man-eater of Malgudi’, Narayan has taken the story of a demon – Bhasmasura. Bhasma means ash and Asura means demon. He was a demon who obtained a boon from Lord Shiva that anybody he touches will be burnt to a cinder immediately. (The story of Bhasmasura is a very famous tale in Hindu mythology. This tale is told every time one talks of Lord Shiva or Lord Vishnu).Bhasmasura, after getting the boon created a lot of trouble on the earth. To end the tyranny of the demon Lord Vishnu took the form of a beautiful woman and seduced the demon. When he desired for the woman, Lord Vishnu inside the woman said him to dance with her. During the dance woman made a gesture of placing her hand on her head which was to be imitated by the demon. The moment he did so, he himself was turned to ashes.


Taking this ancient mythological tale as base the author has written a story based in Malgudi.


Let us see the characters of the story.


The Characters and The Story


‘Natraj’ is a man who owns a small printing press in Malgudi. With him works ‘Shastri’ who is his support staff in press and a loyal employee. In his printing press ‘Sen’, the journalist and a poet are two of his regular companions. They just sit in the press all day but they leave when the press is crowded or someone comes to talk business with Natraj.


One day ‘Vasu’ walks in to get some cards printed. He is a taxidermist from Junaghar. As Vasu sees the attic of the press empty he requests Natraj to give him his attic to live in for some days until he finds his own residence. Natraj agrees.


Vasu is actually a very big, tall and strong person and everyone in the press feels intimidated by his because not only he is physically strong he is also aggressive in his attitude and he is very rude.


As Vasu starts his taxidermist routine of filling in dead animals in the attic space, whole press starts to smell of raw flesh. After some time, prostitutes start to come in dark hours of night and leave in the morning. Vasu was becoming notorious.


As the events start to take shape, a big festival is organized in temple and Kumar (an elephant from the temples of mountains that come in the way to Mempi, is called to Malgudi to lead the procession). Vasu wants to kill it.


But the morning after the procession Vasu himself is found dead in his attic and the elephant is safe. (For details read the novel!)


Final Views


Narayan’s short stories and novels are best known for their simplicity of characters and story. They are everyday characters. You can easily find the people of Malgudi all around you. This is also the same in The Man-eater of Malgudi. Natraj and his cronies are being bullied by Vasu who is creating trouble for the man who gave his shelter. He has two guns and everyone is afraid of his. They say he is a demon and Shastri says that every demon meets his end. What happened which Bhasmasura happed with Vasu too.


All in all, it is a pleasant read. The story progresses easily and one can enjoy Malgudi and the troubles of Natraj and the humor hence generated. It is a well written short novel which is very enjoyable. But it certainly not the best work of Narayan.


I, being a Hindu, personally enjoyed the analogy of Vasu’s story to that of Bhasmasura’s.


Happy Reading,


Khagesh Gautam

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