R. K. NARAYAN (1906 – 2001)

• Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami.
• Born on 10th October 1906, Madras.
• Died on 13th May 2001.
• His first published work was a book review of Development of Maritime Laws of 17th-Century England.
• In 1930, Narayan wrote his first novel, Swami and Friends and it was finally published in 1935.
• His first collection of short stories, Malgudi Days, was published in November 1942, followed by The English Teacher in 1945.
• Narayan started his own publishing company, naming it “ Indian Thought Publications”; the publishing company was a success and is still active.

15 novels

• The English Teacher (1945)
• Waiting for the Mahatma (1955)
• The Guide (1958)
• The Man-Eater of Malgudi (1961)
• The Vendor of Sweets (1967)
• A Tiger for Malgudi (1983)

Awards and Honours

• He won his first major award, in 1960, the Sahitya Akademi Award for The Guide.
• He received the Filmfare Award for the best story.
• In 1964, he received the Padma Bhushan during the Republic Day honours.
• In 1980, he was awarded the AC Benson Medal by the (British) Royal Society of Literature.
• In 1986, he was honoured by Rajyotsava Prashasti from Government of Karnataka.
• In 2000, he was awarded India’s second-highest civilian honour, the Padma Vibhushan.

The Guide

• Written in 1956.
• Published in 1958.
• Set in Malgudi.
• Transformation of the protagonist, Raju, from a tourist guide to a spiritual guide and then one of the greatest holy men in India.
• 11 Chapters.
• Divided into 2 main parts.
• Narration : Moving between present and past time and is narrated alternately in third -person and first-person.

Plot Summary

Raju - Born to a modest shopkeeper and his wife in Malgudi. Grows up at a time of great changes – Construction of railway line in Malgudi. Raju’s father opens a second shop in the railway station. After his father’s death, Raju takes over the rail station shop. ‘Railway Raju’ – Tourist guide – corrupt, greedy and crooked. Meets Marco, stern and dry , haughty and domineering academic tourist and his beautiful wife Rosie, who is trained in Indian classical dance. Raju takes Rosie to visit a snake charmer and watches her dance so gracefully along with the snake and realizes that she is the greatest dancer he has ever seen in his life.

At Peak House, where they lodge during their expedition, he sees that Rosie and Marco have a terrible marriage and fight constantly; she married him because he was rich and did not care that she was from a lower caste. Taking advantage of Rosie’s dissatisfaction, Raju flatters and compliments her. Rosie again tries to talk to her husband about commencing a career in classical dance, but she is rebuffed, and inadvertently reveals that she is having an affair with Raju.

When Raju comes to fetch her, he can tell something is terribly wrong with the couple. Marco tells Raju his services are ended, and Rosie yells at him to leave. Raju has a miserable month where nothing provides him solace. Rosie shows up at his doorstep one day and Raju announces to his mother that she will be staying with them. Trouble soon begins to brew with his mother, who has heard rumors that Rosie is a married woman, and has realized, moreover, that Rosie is a dancer who belongs to a lower caste.

Financial troubles also escalate: Raju’s creditor, the sait, begins pursuing Raju in the courts to pay back his debts. Raju’s mother packs up her things and departs with her brother. Rosie continues practicing her art. She takes the name of “Nalini” as an appropriate moniker for her public debut.

One day, Raju receives an unexpected parcel in the mail. It is the book that Marco, Rosie’s husband, has published on his research on the cave paintings in Malgudi. Raju also hides a letter which arrives for Rosie from Marco’s lawyers shortly after the arrival of the book. The letter concerns a box of valuable jewelry that Marco wants to release to Rosie. Raju forges her signature on the form sent by the lawyers, hoping to acquire the box of jewelry without Rosie’s knowledge.

Raju gets arrested for forgery and sentenced to two years in prison. Although he comes across reports of her continuing rise to stardom in the newspapers he reads in jail, Raju never meets Rosie again. After the prison life, Raju moves to another village, Mangla. He grows his beard and takes up residence in a temple by the river .

A villager by the name of Velan, confesses that he is having trouble with a younger half-sister who refuses to accept the marriage match he has arranged for her. After Velan brings his sister to visit Raju, the sister accepts the match arranged for her by her brother. Velan and his family credit this success to Raju. This begins Raju’s journey as a holy man. Dozens and dozens of villagers gather to see their Swami. When a severe drought afflicts the village, Raju is unwittingly drawn into undertaking a two-week fast on behalf of the villagers to bring about rains.

Raju finally discloses his full life story to Velan, including his history of deceit and imprisonment. However, after hearing Raju’s story, Velan’s view of him remains unchanged. He speaks and looks at Raju with the same reverence and respect he had on that first day they met by the river bank. Raju decides to undertake the fast in earnest, as a way of repaying Velan’s—and the villager’s—faith in him. On the final day of the fast, with Velan’s help, he musters the energy to reach the depleted river. On the brink of unconsciousness, he looks to the horizon, and tells Velan that he feels rain coming over the hills.