Pakistani Literature

Topic: Why Sidhwa includes

Gandhi
Course title:
M.A (English)

Semester:
3rd

Submitted by:
Ali-Raza

Submitted to:
Sir Dr. Zia Ahmad

Session:
2019-2021

NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN

LANGUAGES MULTAN
Mahatma Gandhi, the father of Indian nation, who was acclaimed and worshiped not only in

India but throughout the world for his principles of non-violence and peace. But in the present

novel he presented as a problematic politician. Masseur says about him, “He is a politician, yaar,

it is his business to suit his tongue to the moment”. Lenny views him as an “Improbable tossup

between a clown and a demon”. And she is confused as to why he is famous. She recalls how he

interminably talks about enema, personal hygiene and sluggish stomach. In the heated discussion

among Ayah’s admirers, the butcher snortingly terms him as, “that non-violent violence monger-

your precious Gandhiji”. Lenny rememberd him as a small, dark and wrinkled old man very

much like her gardener-Hari. Thus, the sublime figure of Mahatma Gandhi is reduced to a

‘Bania’ and an eccentric politician whose unnatural association with women and his obsession

with enemas become a source of mockery: Unlike most of Indian historians who credit Gandhi

for single handedly ousting British from India, in Ice Candy Man Sidhwa reduces him to the role

of an eccentric dietician.

In the narrative of Ice-Candy-Man, one finds references to the names of political leaders like

Mahatma Gandhi, Jawahar lal Nehru, Lord Mountbatten, Subhash Chandra Bose, Mohammed

Ali Jinnah. Sidhwa eulogise them but presents them with their weaknesses, Sidhwa is critical of

Gandhi when she speaks through one of her characters: “He’s a politician yaar… it’s his business

to suit his tongue to the moment.” Lenny also passes comments on the personality of Gandhi

when she calls him “a mixture of a demon and a clown.” When Bapsi Sidhwa saw the film

Gandhi, she was shocked to find Gandhi presented as a saint. She was pained to see the role of

Jinnah in the film as negative. She found Gandhi completely deified, sanitized into a saint. She

confesses:

I felt, in Ice-Candy-Man, I was just redressing, in a small way, a very grievous wrong that has

been done to Jinnah and Pakistanis by many Indian and British writers. They have dehumanized
him, made him a symbol of the sort of person who brought about the partition of India…

Whereas in reality he was the only constitutional man who didn’t sway crowds just by rhetoric.

In short, Sidhwa tries to bring Gandhi down from the high pedestal and project him a purely

political figure like Jinnah. She does this from a Pakistani’s point of view. Political and ethnic

considerations and bias emerge stronger than secular thinking. Sidhwa shows that the Muslims

in East Punjab suffered more because of the majority of Hindus and Sikhs. She gives detailed

descriptions of attacks on Muslims by Sikhs with „much greater brutality. Sidhwa believes that

Hindu leaders failed to be just in their role as statesmen.

Sidhwa seems to be giving her own opinion about Gandhijee though the brief portrayal of

Gandhijee’s character in the novel narrated by Lenny. In the novel the author gives the

description of the event when Gandhijee comes to Lahore wherein the author has focused more

on Gandhijee's advices related to dieting and enema. Here it seems the author has portrayed the

character of Gandhijee focusing on very few traits of his personality. Gandhijee has been

depicted having feminine characteristics and the description sometimes appears to be laughing at

the personality and character of Gandhijee. When Gandhijee visits Lahore, Lenny and her

mother meet Gandhijee. He is knitting surrounded by women. When Lenny and her mother go to

Gandhijee, he politely puts aside his knitting and asks softly to practice enema, a medical way to

clear the intestines. "Flush your system with an enema, daughter, says Gandhijee...’Look at these

girl’', says Gandhijee, indicating the lean women flanking him. I give them enemas myself there

is no shame in it- I am like their mother you can see how smooth and moist their skin is look at

their shining eyes!" Further Gandhijee advices Lenny to practice enema, "Flush her stomach!

Her skin will bloom like roses.”

Here the author has depicted the character of Gandhijee talking only about enema. She presented

Gandhijee announcing, "An enema a day keeps the doctor away." The narrator has been shown

by the author wondering in following words, "I am puzzled why he's so famous."