STORIES FROM SARATCHANDRA

‘Some time ago, a sudden
rumour spread across our region that unless three children were sacrificed,
the railway bridge over Roopnarayan just could not be constructed. Two small
boys had already been buried alive under one of the pillions and only one more
needed to be caught…’ This book is a collection of twelve widely acclaimed
short stories of Saratchandra Chattopadhyay, one of the doyens of Bengali
literature. Divided into two sections, the first bunch of stories portray
childhood in all its unburdened innocence while the latter section leads on
to deeper sensibilities—the everyday experience of casteism, the lived
reality of social hierarchy and the bonds of almost filial affection forged
between man and animal that sustain both. Stories from Saratchandra shows
Saratchandra’s keen eye as a social commentator, presenting a vivid picture
of life in rural Bengal during the early twentieth century.