I have roamed this lockdown with An Endless Journey by celebrated poet Bhisma Upreti, beautifully translated in English by famous critic Mahesh Paudyal, which is a recently published novel by Brosis Publishers and Distributors, New Delhi. Now, I would like to take you on the journey of western Nepal. Let us fasten our seat belts to travel with Upreti’s endless journey. The writer takes us on his journey of Western part of Nepal. He unfolds the hypocrisy of development and the serene interconnection with beautiful lands and people’s lifestyle. This is a travel description condensed with poverty, social discrimination, the hardship of hilly people, etc. The writer navigates his journey with the poetic melody, hypnotizing readers along with his extraordinary explanations of places, incidents, cultures, traditions, foods, and socio-economic conditions. The writer’s magical story-telling style traps the reader until the end.

Rupsingh Bhandari

The sudden shift of his job to Nepalgunj begins the journey. The writer’s mind swirls in imagination about the western part of Nepal. Centering on Nepalgunj his journey of western parts of Nepal vivifies the reality. His imagination starts the journey and takes him to Nepalgunj. Soon after he takes readers to the most famous lake of Karnali- ‘Rara’. The detailed explanations of the journey attract readers to be glued with his journey. Wherever he travels he communicates with unknown strangers as if he has known them for years, which helps to comprehend the local social economic situations. As Russian philosopher Mikhail Bakhtin believed, the dialogism of characters in novels creates the truth. In An Endless Journey,

Bhisma Upreti

the dialogues of writers with the common people wherever he goes brews up the foundation to guess the reality. Writer imagines and sometimes interviews and sometimes simply talks to people, whoever he encounters during his journey. The encounter with local people with organic questions leaves readers with many unanswered questions. The writer does not bring the conversations into concrete conclusions in a judgmental way; rather he leaves readers to think.  This art of the writer hooks the reader into a book and tempts them to turn the pages.

Originally, the writer as a poet also seems in the voyage of hunting poetry. Wherever he arrives in virgin land he arrests the poetry from there. Sometimes, I feel jealous of the writer that being from Karnali I have not traveled and written poetry of my homeland. But, as he belongs to the Eastern part of Nepal, he has hunted poetry form Karnali as the first visitor of the highland takes the best Yarchagumba. He contemplates into nature’s beauty and the difficulties with the people of western part of Nepal, but paints the beautiful poetry of hope. In other words he nestles in the people and places and sings the original song as he bemuses with organic inner and outer conversations. Somewhere he melts, somewhere he spills…but continues to unfold the journey of truth. During his journey he seems a disguised detective.

He bundles the story as he encounters the incidents and explains beautifully, the story of fourteen years old girl Noor Jahan… and her suicide can melt everyone’s heart. He describes the incidents but reader can easily understand the underlying fragile socio-economic spectrum of country.

As we know Nepal is multicultural and multi-religious country, the writer describes such multicultural city of Nepalgunj, where the Muslim community and people of many other religions exist harmoniously. He tries to dissolve and learn the dynamic of Nepalgunj and the border city India, Rupaidiya. Similarly, he opens the secret of Urdu literary practice in Nepalgunj.

The writer beautifully depicts the trail of Yarsagumba. How rural people struggle for this Himalaya’s rare caterpillar fungus. His conversations with the common people of highlands, people, and their innocent-like baby responses lead readers to contemplation. Their unhesitating answers and the writer’s pauses are the mystery of this journey. The book is a story of western Nepal: wherever he goes, he talks with people and brings their stories as organic as they are. The reader can enjoy every story and its background. He takes the reader to all the beautiful places of the western part of Nepal and explains how lively the place and people are. As Plato reminds us that intellectuality means the capacity of understanding, this writer’s quick understanding of the temperament of rural people and the easy adjustment with them punctures the silence of every place. Readers also need the same capacity to travel and comprehend the hidden messages of the writer’s journey.

As the novel unfurls the new places readers can encounter many strange cultures and their struggle in society. As for an example, the Badi people and their tradition and suffering attracts readers to know more about them. Therefore, throughout the novel the writer do not just explain the geography of places but also shows keen interest in the people of the places and their daily lives.

Translator Mahesh Paudyal

There are some limitations such as that the writer should have described the history and facts when he reaches new places. And it can be juicier if writer explained the journey chronologically with date. Beside those, the writer explains beautifully western Nepal; he laughs, cries and enjoys with people and more than that his simplicity magically snatches the untold stories of people which is the main strength of the writer. The writer’s interest and his capacity make this journey adventurous as well as full of secrets of the west which are painted well in this journey. This compelling travel novel also anticipates unnoticed the political quagmire of Nepal and its consequences on common people. It is a bunch of secrets that he collects during his stay in Nepalgunj. Moreover, he experiences our untouched historical land of Nepal, Karnali, where still the culture, language, food, pain and suffering are the same. His dramatic explanation also retakes me, my own hometown in this lockdown as I always miss my place. This book of two hundred thirty-six pages, beautifully designed and scripted, is easily available. Do not forget to travel with the writer’s unending journey.

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