“Love does not claim possession but gives
freedom.” These heartwarming words of Rabindranath Tagore conforms elegantly
with his another novel, “The Kabuli Wala”. The author, who is renowned
throughout the world for his extensive contribution towards literature, fine
arts and every small and big things, has gracefully depicted the story of an
adorable little girl and her two fathers. They may not be blood related to the
adolescent girl, named Mini, but both of them retained the same amount of
affection and love for little Mini.
The story of “The Kabuli Wala” is set in the
beginning years of the 20th century and is about a little girl, Mini
and her pleasant bonding with the Kabuli Wala, which has been observed and
narrated by Mini’s father in the story. The Kabuli Wala’s name was Rahamat
Khan, a middle-aged Afghan trader and a dry fruit seller, who had come to
Kolkata for business purposes and would regularly visit the dingy lanes of the
city to peddle his merchandise. One morning, while vending his goods, the
Kabuli Wala came across a bubbly little girl, who was calling out at him from
her house. The trader had an instant liking for the little girl and felt the
urge of making acquaintance with the charming girl. That was the beginning of
the newfound bond of friendship and affection between the Pathan trader and
Mini. The narrator, Mini’s father, too had a special bonding with his lovable
daughter and he was quite pleased when he found out that his daughter had
finally found a patient listener to her relentless gossip, other than himself.
Earlier, when the Kabuli Wala was not a part of
Mini’s little world, then the narrator, Mini’s father, himself was the sole companion
of this little child and she shared a special bond with her father. But after
Rahamat Khan came into Mini’s life, he became her prime confidant and friend,
with whom she would share every little detail of her acquired knowledge. Mini
would continue with her chitchat and the Kabuli Wala was never tired of her
incessant talks. In fact, he enjoyed listening to the little girl and would
give her company during the conversations. The narrator was quite impressed
with the level of understanding which the Afghani trader shared with the little
child.
In this story, Rabindranath Tagore has
beautifully pictured not only the unique bond of the girl and the Kabuli Wala,
but also the significance of the two symbolic father figures in the story.
Although they come from different paths of life, yet they share the similar
affection for Mini. While the narrator belonged to a sophisticated Bengali
family, Rahamat Khan hailed from the snow-clad land of Kabul and both had a
different background. Both the narrator and the Kabuli Wala belonged to
different religions, castes, societies and places, but their care and affinity
for little Mini was unparalleled.
Earlier in the story, the narrator had not
acknowledged the Kabuli Wala and his growing attachment with Mini and he
couldn’t also trust him either. After Rahamat was convicted with murder and
sent to jail, the narrator and the little girl obliterated about the trader,
who would routinely visit them. After several years, when the Kabuli Wala
returned from jail and visited the narrator’s house, then the circumstances had
changed and the narrator no longer wanted the trader to be there, during the
auspicious time. But on realizing Rahamat’s sincere emotion for Mini, whom he
loved dearly, the narrator had a change of mind and beckoned Mini to meet the
Kabuli Wala.
Both the narrator and the Kabuli Wala were fond
of Mini and loved her with all their heart’s content. The trader was reminded
of his little daughter whom he had left in his hometown, and whenever he saw
little Mini, his concern and love for her, knew no bounds. Similarly, the
narrator, was not Mini’s biological father, yet he loved his daughter deeply
and protected her in every possible way.
Tagore remarkably indicates that a lower-class
person too can possess true love and can also be an outstanding father figure.
True feelings are always independent of money and social status and that is
wonderfully shown in “The Kabuli Wala”.
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