The Lazy Conman and Other Stories

Genre: Fiction

Author: Ajit Baral

Published by: Penguin Books, India

Price: Rs 250

KATHMANDU: Nepal’s folk tales have been deeply embedded in religion, tradition, fatalism and superstition, which are inseparable part of our culture. But it is an unfortunate situation that folk storytelling, a part of our cultural heritage, has unbelievably diminished from urban areas as well as rural sphere of our country. On this harrowing backdrop, Ajit Baral’s collection of folk tales The Lazy Conman and Other Stories is a significant effort for preserving Nepalis culture in their original forms, through the stories with localised geographical and cultural settings.

The book contains 31 stories with a variety of themes and morals. One of the interesting aspects of the collection is that all the stories are based on Nepal’s cultural and religious philosophy and customs. If we envision the tales taking science as a touchstone, they may seem obsolete and at times, humorous. Yet the book is a fertile ground for exploring Nepalis culture, its simplicity and the myths behind their origin. The book bridges the gap between modernity and old traditions. There are a few stories like How the Newari New Year Began, which discloses the history and origins of our cultural practices. The readers will enjoy the simplicity of language and rhetorical presentation of the stories.

However, readers who are well aware of some of the original stories might time and again feel disoriented by the titles and contents of some stories, since the author has attempted to slightly distort them in their presentation from the original ground. When readers go through stories like The Invisible Death, which is a distorted version of the much-celebrated original tale Lalu ra Kaal, in which Lalu imprisons Death, The Owl and Elephant originally famous as Dui Mitra and the story The Farmer’s Victory originally popular as Mahadevle Pani Harnuparechha, readers will sense the deviation.

The author claims that folk tales as such are orally transmitted and their originality is largely affected by time and space. “My attempts have always been towards preserving folk tales in their original version. However, since folktales are orally transmitted from one generation to the another and one geographical location to the other, the originality as such can be slightly distorted,” Baral accepts.

All in all, the book, accompanied with fascinating illustrations by Durga Baral - a highly acclaimed cartoonist of Nepal, serves as a beautiful mirror plus a reservoir of our cultural heritage. The book is a fun read as well as a medium for cultural studies, which can contribute towards introducing our culture in the international sphere too.