The Hussaini Alam House- Book Review

This is an unusual book. In its 212 or so pages, it contains a history of Hyderabad, of its old jagirdars, of Muslim joint families, of India's independence and Hyderabad's 'liberation', and much more.

It also is a moving tale of many individuals, many of them female (yes, it is feminist in its tone), whose lives are entwined in each others' , and who live according to the rules of the times. Not always, though. You have a  communist (woman) among them, and many agnostics. Though the family is a Muslim one, they are not overly religious, and her own Muslim identity comes on strongly for the protagonist only when she grows up, and after the strident forms of communalism take over both Hindu and Muslim thought processes many years after independence.

Above all, it is a struggle to find meaning in one's life, that all the characters portray- even the 'weak males' who actually "don't do any household work, and add to the work that the females have to do"-probably true of most Indian households!

The magical parts are the everyday joys and sorrows, of summers spent in the courtyards performing for each other, with shaayari, singing, dancing and mimicry a part of the show, where everyone participates, much before the tyranny of TV soaps took over our lives. Of raat ki raani and other fragrant flowers adorning the myriad nooks and corners of the courtyard. Of the nazaakat in everyday routines and the tehzeeb in taking care of each other and the guests.

In other words, a story of a lost world, no matter who you are. The setting (after which comes the title, the Hussaini Alam House, a sprawling house with lots of character) is as beautiful as the narration. The story involves you totally, and makes you feel for every character. Particularly their stoicism, in bearing every affront of fate with a solid fortitude. Recommended reading, even if you are not a Hyderabadi.