My Eulogy to Bishan Singh, The truth beyond the borders

Creative expression: 

 https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1N7PIQNfWeelJY7icZf93_76tsnOxDYrg?usp=sharing

General English CIA

Nijal M Sebastian, 20SJCCC338

1 BCOM D

Report –

A Eulogy is normally addressed to a crowd or a third party, but in this case, Toba Tek Singh is talking directly to his dead brother, thereby intensifying the love and connection he had with his twin brother, Bishan Singh. It depicts my way of taking you through the life of an ordinary yet mysterious human being, Bishan Singh. I have assumed Toba Tek Singh to be the twin brother of Bishan Singh who reads out the Eulogy, explaining to the readers the historic background of Bishan Singh.

The historical context I’ve carefully chosen is that of the time of post-partition, I’ve expressed my personal views on the pitiful and disastrous nature of the partition, the unwanted sufferings which had to be borne, especially by the poorer sections of the society. Through Toba Tek Singh, I’ve expressed the grievances and difficulties of people through real-life examples that I’ve portrayed through stories in the eulogy. I’ve hinted at one of the short stories of Raavi Paar, about the women who tragically lost both her sons which has been encapsulated in a slightly different version. I still remember when this story was discussed during class, it opened my mind to the unfortunate events which happened during the partition, which aren’t outspoken or rather which are unknown to most people. In the eulogy, Toba Tek Singh is initially confused or rather ambiguous about the whole situation, then later on through the people he met and saw, he began to realise the horrors that stood in front of him through the partition. He was able to see how the partition triggered riots which caused mass casualties. He saw millions of people move to a so called, “safer place”, with Muslims heading towards Pakistan, and Hindus and Sikhs in the direction of India. 

As he reached Lahore and heard the final cry of his long-lost twin brother, in his subconscious mind, all he heard was, “Uper the gur gur the annexe the be dyhana mung the dal of Toba Tek Singh and Pakistan.” My personal interpretation of this is – From the mountains above (Uper the gur gur), and from the very essence of our food (dyhana mung the dal), we’ve now been separated from not only ourselves but also from our motherland. (Toba Tek Singh and Pakistan).

An alternative to this would be if there was no partition, no division among the land, a free land belonging to all who reside in it, and we would believe that this meant that there would be no hatred nor torment. But I believe this wouldn’t be the case, as still, through our differences of religion, caste, creed and colour, there would still be wars and conflicts causing massive disarrays. If there was no partition of the land, there was even a higher chance of the two twin brothers finally meeting each other, as both of them wouldn’t have been under such mental torment. Another such ramification would be if neither of them had any ailments, then they would not have been banished from Quetta and they would’ve grown up together changing the entire perspective of the story.

Through the podcast, I wanted the audience to understand the remorse and internal sorrow Toba Tek Singh felt while delivering the Eulogy. I wanted to encapsulate the readers mind with the horrors of partition and war, its deadly nature and its treacherous outcomes. I wanted to add more to the script and give it a voice and hence I opted for a podcast of the script. I wanted the readers of the script to relive the grief of the lady who lost both her sons and the confusion and chaos burdened in the mind of Harbhajan.

Through the sketch of Toba Tek Singh, I wanted the readers to be able to visualize a picture of the protagonist’s brother, or rather both, Toba and Bishan Singh as they were identical twins. At our first glance of the sketch, we may not notice it but the figurine of Toba Tek Singh lays on a red background which represents the bloodshed caused through the partition. Another element which I wanted the audience to perceive is that, in spite of the partition, swollen legs and his lost brother, he still has a smiling face, this has two aspects to it, initially it seems as though he may be happy cause he’s still confused about what’s happening around him and as to why the partition even happened, but another reference we can make from it is that he has a positive attitude and tries to best with what he has. Like in the story, how he strives to find his long-lost twin brother in spite of all the difficulties imposed in front of him.

We can see through the sketch, his lean body structure depicting the extreme poverty which has forced him into and not even having three square meals a day. The orange turban signifies not only his Sikh origins but a hint at the Tri colour flag of our country, thereby showing his desire for a united India rather than a divided nation. The curled-up moustache shows his masculinity or rather his courage and determination, which is clearly made known throughout the Eulogy. In spite of being banished from his own home and the pain from his swollen legs, he’s constantly on the move and finally reaches his brother. He was determined to reach his brother, no matter what the circumstances were.

A creative mode of expression appeals to the audience, helps them understand the different aspects I’m trying to portray through the podcast. The audience is able to comprehend and understand the script better, they’re able to internalise, remember and recollect what they have read and heard, thus adding to the historical reimagination. History is something that’s already happened and people tend to jump into conclusions with an initial read, but through a podcast, I’m able to connect with the audience and express my thoughts and feelings for the subject in an intriguing story like manner.