Kathmandu, 28th December: “What kind of fish did you catch, Ganthe! I escaped from a big pit, I used to cry when I remembered that incident”, this is an excerpt taken from Daju Gurung’s novel ‘Nirjoya’.
‘Nirjoya’ is a collaboration between Neeraj and Joya. Neeraj and Zoya are the main characters of the work. Neeraj, who went to Malaysia on a visit visa for seven days, meets Joya from Malaysia and lives there. Neeraj and Joya live in a living together. While living there, Neeraj’s life experiences, pain, and the pain within a happy life are beautifully presented in the work. While living illegally under a visit visa, Neeraj is tortured badly in prison. After escaping death, Neeraj returns to Nepal. At that time, when Nepal was experiencing a ten-year armed conflict, Neeraj and his family went to live in Hong Kong.
“Neeraj, who was born in Taplejung and lives in Malaysia, seems to have a divided mentality,” said literary critic Hem Bhandari, reviewing the work. “Neeraj cannot even leave Malaysia. Every memory of his village is always dear to him.”
When Neeraj, who is living illegally, is not comfortable working, Joya says, “You just do it, I’ll work,” but Neeraj, who grew up in Nepali society, does not find it easy. “Both of them are happy and joyful when Joya works, but Neeraj feels sad when he eats what Joya earns,” added Bhandari, a journalist by profession. “Neeraj feels that Zoya is a tool for use, he feels like a caged bird. Just as men in Nepali society indulge in pleasure, women in Malaysia indulge in pleasure in their works. Women’s freedom is more visible in Malaysian society.”
Neeraj, who grew up in Nepali culture, leaves his four-month pregnant wife, Jasmaya, and goes to Malaysia. Living together with Joya, who is from a Muslim culture, does not bring peace to his mind. After seeing Joya’s mother grab a dead bird in a cage and throw it in the dustbin, he feels that he has also been used and that his life is only used by comparing his body to the bird in the cage and that he is being used as an object. Neeraj realizes that one day he will also have the same life as the bird.
“The work also attempts to show the suffering of the people due to the failure to manage the conflict in their own country,” added writer Bhandari. “The work beautifully presents the fact that Nepalis have joined foreign wars in the name of brave Gorkhas and the culture of going abroad for employment has also flourished.” The novel attempts to send a message that escapist thinking should be stopped.
Reviewing the work, writer Anita Koirala said that the experiences of Nepali workers working in Malaysia have been beautifully presented. “Yesterday, in ‘Muna-Madan’, it was like the reason why Madan had to go and work on his vote, today the life of Nepali workers in Malaysia is the same,” writer Koirala added, “The suffering and experiences he faced while picking the flowers of happiness have been beautifully depicted.” Adding that even the unconditional love he had while living in Malaysia and the immense support he had provided while in prison could not bring peace to Neeraj, she added, “The question of how long he would go abroad after dreaming of earning money and finding happiness kept coming to my mind while reading this novel.”
The book captures the experiences of Nepalese who had to go on a Nepali visit visa and work there in hiding when there was no labor agreement between Nepal and Malaysia. The book highlights the pain experienced by Nepalese amidst the joys of working and the love for their homeland and family while living abroad. There is a wave of Nepalis migrating abroad, and the experiences of Nepalis who go abroad to work are similar,” said author Gurung. “I have written about what I have seen, experienced and heard through my novel. Earlier, those who went abroad were not allowed to work.”
An organization called ‘Kalamka Saathi’ discussed the work last Saturday. The novel, published by Phoenix Book, has 65 articles and 294 pages. The novel is based on the experiences of Nepalis who go abroad for work.
Born in Sankhuwasabha, Madi, eastern Nepal, and living in Hong Kong, Satyikar Gurung’s novel ‘Nirjoya’ is his third work. His first collection of stories is ‘Tankika Phoolharu’ and his second is ‘Lai-Si’. His fourth work, Niyatra, is in preparation for publication. After reading the work, which was written while remembering his country and the land where he was born while living abroad, writer Bharati Neupane expressed what she felt, saying, “The love of a mother’s lap and the love of a village are the same.”
