English babu, desi mem

 

One of my favourite novels is Mary Margaret Kaye’s The Far Pavilions. An epic romance set in 19^thcentury British India, the novel is, despite its unabashedly orientalistic tone, a heart-warming story of forbidden love against all odds. The aristocratic British army officer, Ashton Pelham-Martyn falls in love with the beautiful princess Anjuli and rescues her from a terrible fate. The awe-inspiring Himalayas, the bloody Afghan War, murder, intrigue and scandal are all woven into a grand narrative that makes the book deeply fascinating and engaging. Of course, it is full of stereotypes and is not quite politically correct. But that is Raj literature for you. Kipling’s work was like that too. One can love it and hate it, all at the same time.

But what if a story like were to happen in real life instead of in the realm of fiction? Well, it did. The BBC reported yesterday on just such an unlikely romance across borders. Ten years ago, on one of his footloose and fancy-free jaunts across continents, Tim Wallace, a one-time hippie from England met and fell in love with Tura, a village girl from a remote part of Meghalaya. Fighting the odds of cultural barriers, familial opposition, serious illness and class divides, the two were married and continued to live in Tura’s homeland. Tim and Tura have been man and wife for a decade now and have a bonny little daughter, Amazonia. The couple are still very much in love and very happy, although Tim seems to miss home.

Well, here’s wishing them all the luck and fortune. Good for you, people! May you prosper.

One has to wonder though, how things would have worked if the babu had been desi and themem had been English. The mandarins at the Home Office would not have taken a very romantic view of things.  There would be a mountain of paperwork and visa formalities and immigration questions to tackle. And in the interim, our desi babu would not even have been able to work, like the love-struck Mr Wallace could, in India.

To his credit, Tim Wallace does understand how privileged he is. “I come from a relatively rich, middle class, multicultural western society and can access any information I want. I have been able to travel where I want and do anything I like,” he says. Of course, you can do as you please, Tim sahib. Your compatriots have even bought off half of Goa benaami, haven’t they? Be that as it may, it is nice to know that in India there is still space for a romance verging on the foolhardy.