Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja https://doi.org /10.5281/zen od o.14979170

Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja
https://doi.org /10.5281/zen od o.14979170

Author(s): Thinagaran B & Dr. Dharani P

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14979170

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Volume 16 | Issue 1 | Feb 2025

Pages: 747-755

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The Criterion: An International Journal in English Vol. 16, Issue-I, February 2025 ISSN: 0976-8165
www.the-criterion.com
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10448030
Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of
Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja
Thinagaran B
Student,
M.A. English,
PSG College of Arts & Science, Coimbatore.
&
Dr. Dharani P
Assistant Professor,
Department of English,
PSG College of Arts & Science, Coimbatore.
Article History: Submitted‐31/01/2025, Revised‐09/02/2025, Accepted‐21/02/2025, Published‐28/02/2025.
Abstract:
This research article focuses on the narrative integration of New Criticism’s close
reading methodology and New Historicism’s contextual approach that resulted in a complex
narrative paradigm. The merged approach is seen in the author’s view where she captures
historical events and created that through fictional characters. Taslima Nasrin’s novel, Lajja,
exemplifies this approach in which she masterfully humanise and personalize the suffering of
the people through the fictional Dutta family. By weaving together the historical facts into the
fiction, Nasrin crafts a powerful narrative that illuminates the far-reaching consequences of
sectarian violence, rendering Lajja a poignant and provoking literary work. The author creates
fictional characters to portray human suffering during the period of Babri masjid attack. Yet,
the characters usually over shadow the historical elements and it unconsciously suppresses the
reader in understanding the reality. This research article, illuminates how the author mends the
New Criticism and New Historicism approaches by reflecting the unsung trauma of the Hindu
families in a Muslim country during the Babri Masjid demolition.
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14979170

Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja
www.the-criterion.com
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10448030
Keywords: Hegemony, Fictional Reality, Trauma Studies, Narrative Integration.
Introduction:

Close reading always deals with the content which never considered the author’s
information, author’s intention, and social background of the text rather it emphasise the
message being shown and it has been one of the greatest influence for the greater novels. New
Historicism deals with the cultural context and social context in which the text is produced,
rather than only information of the text. This approach gives idea to the readers about the
purpose of the text and so they can easily connect with the characters if they understand the
historical context. Lajja, being the greatest influencing novel during the 1990s, speaks about
the sufferings not in the direct historical record of Muslim peoples savagery attack on Hindus,
rather it speaks about the issue through characters.

The title of the novel means ‘Shame’, that accounts the shameful actions of native
Muslims, but if the novel went wrong, the entire work would result in threat for Nasrin.
Considering the consequence, the accuracy of incidents recorded were magnificent in reality.
They speak about the exact identifiable incidents of breaking shops, temples, buildings of
Hindus and their unaccounted deaths.
Nasrin takes a bold narrative risk to capture the anguish of those affected by sectarian
violence in Bangladesh. By crafting relatable characters, Nasrin encourages readers to
transcend a detached historical perspective and empathise with individual sufferings. This
narrative enables the readers to grasp the human cost of the conflict, rather than merely viewing
it as a historical event. Unlike traditional novels, which typically focus on the character
development or plot progression, Lajja uniquely portrays the integration of the historical
context with that of the Dutta family’s struggles. Nasrin masterfully parallels the broader
historical elements with the experiences of the Dutta family, poignantly capturing the
tribulations faced by Hindus in Muslim-majority Bangladesh. And so, Nasrin creates a nuanced
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10448030
narrative that illuminates the complexities of sectarian conflict and its devastating impact on
individuals and communities.
The exploration of suffering characters in this novel is obvious, in which all the minor
characters had introduced only about their suffering. Here, the livelihood of people in
Bangladesh was juxtaposed in two ways. The happy, wealthy, and dominant Muslims
flourishing on one side, and the Hindu’s suffering, outcast and loss of livelihood on the other
side. But the portrayal had enough evidence to charge against the rule of Bangladesh
government.
It became myth that the writer should write for the pleasure of the readers, sometimes
the moral rendering to readers. Yet, there are very few novelists who speaks the reality
prevailing in a society without any adulteration as well as speaking of real incidents. Lajja
reached its success by gaining more attention by readers across the country. Yet, the novelist
quest for propagate the meaningless revolt and catastrophe was clearly noted.
Capturing historical reality in a novel is a significant risk for writers, who must balance
authenticity with creative expression. Besides capturing Babri Masjid incident into the genre
of historical writing, the author used fictional characters to breathe life into historical events,
providing a balanced and relatable exploration of the past through fiction. This approach
humanizes history, making it more accessible and impactful to readers. Nasrin quotes in this
book of the incident about the local riot in Bangladesh immediately after the destruction of
Babri Masjid “The puja office on North Brook Road, the idol of Kali in the zamindar’s house
as well as the temple were all destroyed completely [. . .] In Kushtia, six temples were attacked
at midnight by the Jamaat Shibeer people”(Nasrin 40- 41).
Through these words Nasrin demonstrates her commitment to historical accuracy, as
she elegantly recreates the original incident and the impact of the Babri Masjid destruction
without resorting to bias or misinformation. With unflinching precision, Nasrin captures the
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Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja
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far-reaching consequences of this pivotal event in Bangladesh, cleverly employing a narrative
lens that enables readers to connect with the real incident on a deeper level. Through the
expertly crafted roles of her characters, as well as the strategic incorporation of news accounts
(blends both new criticism and new historicism), Nasrin recreates the traumatic situation of
that time, thereby facilitating a profound understanding of the event’s impact on individuals
and communities.
The portrayal of characters in Lajja expertly produce empathy from readers,
drawing them into the heart-wrenching sufferings of the people of Bangladesh. Notably, the
novel’s frequent use of the word “raped” over 300 instances came across as mere a social
behaviour by Muslim men over Hindu women. This underscores the pervasive brutality and
violence that pervaded in the country. The tragic rape and murder of Maya, who is the
prominent character, serves as a catalyst, galvanizing the readers’ sympathy and compassion
for the Dutta family’s plight. This poignant narrative thread, powerfully captures the real-life
struggles of countless Hindu families in Bangladesh during the riots.
The brutal rape and murder of Maya by group of seven young Muslim men serves as a
reminder of the savagery committed against Hindu women during the riots in Bangladesh, in
which Maya became the tribute to all the suffered Hindu family of that time. Her lifeless body,
callously discarded into a river, symbolizes the senseless and animus violence that pervaded
the country. This tragic event is juxtaposed as a celebration for Muslim men who enjoyed their
nationality full of Muslim, but Hindu families were forced to flee their homes and seek refuge
with acquaintances and many went to their native country, while their properties were ravaged
and plundered. Nasrin’s unique perspective as a Muslim writer and atheist lens added a depth
and value to the novel. Her thoughtful exploration of Hindu-centric emotions and experiences
imbues Lajja with a rare authenticity, setting it apart from other novels in its genre. The rape
of other Hindu women, though documented as historical fact, fails to evoke the same emotional
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resonance as Maya’s tragic fate. By doing so, the author underscores the importance of
acknowledging and learning from the past and creates characters in the novel, which makes the
present readers think about the reality of past history in the spectacles of fiction.
Nasrin juxtaposes the aim of Bangladesh government by commanding the slogan in the
novel were people saying, “The State of Bangladesh was founded on the basis of four major
principles: nationalism, secularism, democracy, and socialism” (Nasrin 42). But contradiction
to this, the government never had national unity, social unity and no democracy and secularity.
They only had religious discrimination. Nasrin speaks the historical context through these
characters in which her aim is to raise the question against the government though she belongs
to Muslim community.
The writer beautifully blends the real history through characters making the waiting to
reach wider readers. She neither wanted to convey the history, nor she had supported Hindu
people but rather she wanted to point the insanity and cruelty which is against the human nature
and laws. She would not attained popularity if she had recorded the incidents as it really is
without characters, but she gave life to the novel by the characters, illuminating the readers to
understand both history as well as the individual suffering of Hindu people and simultaneously
made the readers mind filled with extreme sadness through traumatic experiences of each and
every characters.
The character Kironmoyee, who was the wife of Sudhamoy, was begging the Muslim
lads who abducted her daughter Maya from their own home in front of her eyes. Kironmoyee
yelled and ran behind the kidnappers in which she realised she’s helpless, though there are
family’s and peoples are around whereas her husband and the head of the family Sudhamoy
became paralysed and couldn’t help her daughter who was kidnapped by seven young Muslim
men, he shared his trauma in groan, but his voice is not heard. The only active member in a
family Suranjon wanted to take revenge of a Muslim prostitute for the incident of Maya, tried
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Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja
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to hurt her in dark room and exploited her half but left her alive because he realised it was not
meaningful to harm a prostitute. This shows the individual centric nature of Hindu man who
wanted justice but never reached out his voice. The complete agitation causes nothing but at
the end they had to leave Bangladesh to India because of brutality they faced.
The author’s narrative technique through character, moves parallel to the history. The
writer would be condemned to death or their work would be banned or burnt if their work is
against the government’s ideology. But the author Taslima Nasrin ventured against the
consequences, strived to write against her own Bangladesh country. She got ‘Fatwa’ for this
novel, consequently Bangladesh government condemned the way she recorded incidents in this
novel. This literary piece of work was remarkably completed within a span of just seven days.
Denying the conventional wisdom that novel-writing is a time-consuming process requiring
months or even years to capture the nuances of human emotions, Nasrin proved that intense
creativity and focus that can yield a masterpiece in a remarkably short period.
Nasrin envisioned Lajja as a catalyst for change, seeking to alter people’s perceptions and
prompt a more realistic understanding of the devastating impact of sectarian violence. Through
this novel, she aimed to challenge societal norms and inspire a more empathetic and
inclusive worldview.
Speaking of the historical context, the characters in the novel became invincible force
to grab the attention of the readers, which moves around Dutta family, and their daily routine.
Kironmoyee, a humble housewife who abandoned her wish of becoming independent women,
suppressed her desires because of the social context. Sudhamoy, the father of Suronjon and
Maya, was a doctor who helped every humans irrespective of their religion and race.
Meanwhile, the zeal hero Suronjon raised the voice against the Muslim people’s tyranny in the
country, and wanted liberation for Hindus in Muslim country.
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Here, the entire novel revolves around the family, symbolically representing the
mosquito (Hindu minority) in the web of Spider (Muslim majority) in which they encounter
the rageful deeds of Muslim in the country, yet they strived and managed to live there until the
end. Nasrin managed to cope the narrative technique without any side of personal and
subjective opinions. The characters and the historical context clearly defined the purpose of
this work, that is condemnation of cruel Barbaric behaviour.
Critics about this novel, states that Nasrin personally hate the governance in
Bangladesh, and she used novel as a weapon to represent her hatred of her country. But this
approach speaks about the splendid characterization and narrative technique used by Nasrin,
who without any bias, captured the historical elements with fictional characters to show the
impact she wanted to create in the novel .
Though Nasrin faced the problem of collecting facts, she made accurate significant
incidents, clearly stated the information precisely, not concisely but in bombastic record. She,
tried to imitate the historical incidents, and represent it with characters to show the detachment
faced by Hindus in Bangladesh during the riot. All the characters in the novel, succeeded in
remarking the impact of the insane riot. It is noted that the novel has more and more incident
of Hindu people’s catastrophic plagues caused by Muslim community people. She condemned
the government’s silence and their negotiation to ransack entire Hindu community people and
forced them to go back to India.
The novelist oppressed herself by not falling any side, either for Muslims or for Hindus.
She shades colours to the unknown news through creating characters and represented them in
hard circumstances to show the readers to understand the way the voiceless people suffered
against the roaring beast. She analysed the history, compared it with reality, and produced lens
for the unaware impacts of the people in Bangladesh faced.
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Sectarian Violence and Fictional Reality: A Dual Theoretical Reading of Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja
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Speaking of the narrative technique, the emotions were conveyed clearly and the
readers can empathise, sympathise and understand the characters suffered. The narration
became the greatest influencing factor for the readers who stood by the side of peace. This
narration, created harmony among the readers, made them think about the savage impact of the
meaningless conflict and its uselessness.
Looking the characterization, the characters of the novel had their own psychological
trauma at their earlier stages, longed for peace among their kins and neighbours. They were
tormented only because of their religion at school, at college, at workspace, at outside the home
and everywhere. This captures the vulnerability of Hindu in the Muslim country. At the end,
they were mercilessly forced to go out of the country, leaving all the asset to unknown Muslim
people. Their vulnerability and tired of fighting for liberty in the country revealed through the
last word in the novel “Let’s leave the country”
The fiction was not conditioned to be true, and all the fictions would not speak about
reality. But this novel, representing reality through history, representing fiction by characters,
speaks about the communal impact and trauma of the Hindu people in Bangladesh on the time
of destruction of Babri Masjid. Every fiction need not say about reality, but it should speak the
reason for life. Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja became the greatest novel at the end of 20th century
which blends history with fiction to say the agony of Hindu people.
Thus, the New Criticism approach of viewing and analysing the text alone would
illuminate the readers by providing them ability to sympathise the Hindu people in Bangladesh.
Parallel to it, the New historical approach explains the social context of the novel, which speaks
the reality through the art of characterization and their internal and external conflict reflecting
social phenomena.

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Conclusion:
Lajja is a masterful portrayal of the 1990s riots in Bangladesh, which elegantly captures
reader’s emotions through its unique characters and their traumatic experiences. By weaving
together fact and fiction, Nasrin condemns the brutal attacks on Hindu families living in
Bangladesh, providing a clear picture of the violence and intolerance that pervaded the country.
Employing a New Historical approach, Nasrin harnesses the power of fictional characters to
recreate real historical incidents, thereby illuminating the harsh realities of the past. Through
this narrative strategy, Nasrin enables readers to empathise with the victims and grasp the far
reaching consequences of sectarian violence, rendering Lajja a poignant and provoking literary
work.

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Language in India 19.3 (2019)
Dubashi, P.R. “Taslima Nasrin’s Lajja: A True Assessment.” The Indian Journal of Political

Science 57.1/4 1996.pp.115-20.
Zaman, Habiba.”The Taslima Nasrin Controversy and Feminism in Bangladesh: A Geo

Political and Transnational Perspective.” Atlantis: Critical Studies in Gender,
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