Various dimensions of political behavior in the novel 'Mahabhoja'

Abstract

Mannu Bhandari's novel Mahabhoj, published in 1979, is considered to be a political novel. ''Mahabhoj'' is a reflection of the writing excitement born from the then 'Belchikand' (the incident of Dalit massacre in Bihar). This is indicated in the stories 'Third Hissa' and 'Isolation' collected in the author's collection of stories 'Trishanku' Now the question arises whether ''Mahabhoja'' is completely different from other works of the author. A look at Mannu Bhandari's works reveals that most of his works are written about personal problems such as the novel "Aapka Bunty" Furthermore, when we look at his contemporaries, it becomes clear how ''Mahabhoja'' is different from other works. Himanshu Joshi's "Time is Witness" (1979) is written against the backdrop of the emergency. Its plot is based on the stakes of a minister and the idealistic character of the hero (like folk hero 'Jaiprakash Narayan') while 'Rahi Masoom Raza's novel "Katra B Arzoo" (1979) is about the 'Smt Gandhi' in an interesting way, but both works lack a description of social disparities. His Barks but "Mahabhoja" is neither a political document nor a fiction bound within the realm of gender relations.