A Backward Place by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (Fireside Book)

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala was born in Germany. She married an Indian national and moved to New Delhi in 1951. She wrote many novels and several screenplays, including Room with a View which won an Academy Award. She is also the recipient of the Booker Prize for Fiction for her 1975 novel Heat and Dust. 

A Backward Place, which was originally published in 1965, is set in India, a comedic look at the life of a group of expats and one Indian national. It is the story of their lives, their hopes and dreams, and is also full of everyday drama which anybody can relate to. 

Bal, the Indian national and protagonist of the story, is a struggling young actor, who dreams of making it big in the theater. Although he is dedicated to his profession, he is married and has two children he must support. 

His wife, Judy, is an Englishwoman who works in a small office for the Cultural Dais and helps to support the family. While Bal is a dreamer, Judy is pragmatic and a realist. As Judy works with government officials and other important and wealthy people, Bal tries to convince her to receive support from the Cultural Dais in starting a new theater troupe and production. 

Judy is friends with Etta, a woman originally from Hungary who carries the attitude of a Parisian. She is not as young as she once used to be, tries desperately to hang on to her youth, and continues to use her charm and body to get the men around her to do her bidding. She still retains a colonial attitude and looks down on the natives while speaking her mind. 

Then there is Clarissa, a young woman who left her native Britain because she couldn’t stand the customs and attitudes of her own country. She feels as if she is more Indian than most Indians. For some reason, Clarissa enjoys being friends with the mean and spiteful Etta.

Finally, there are the Hochstadts, a German couple who had settled in England many years ago. They often think of themselves as English but still speak the language with a thick German accent and look very central European. Dr. Franz Hochstadt has accepted a two year appointment in India teaching economics at the University as an exchange professor. 

The story opens with Etta telling Judy she ought to leave her husband. Judy, who often comes off as timid or naive, is thrilled. Although she has no intention of leaving her husband, hearing Etta say it makes her feel worldly and proud. Judy loves visiting Etta because the older woman’s home is more elegant than her own. 

Judy’s husband tells her that he must work one particular evening. He tells her that he was called by the great Bollywood actor Kishan Kumar. Judy had met Kumar previously and did not like him. She knew he was a successful film star and has an entourage of hangers-on. Bal is one of them. 

The lives of these six characters take on a life of their own. Judy does get the Cultural Dais to support creating a new theater group, mostly at the persistent request of Bal, but when Bal’s dream seems to be coming to fruition, he tells Judy that he doesn’t want any part of it. Kishan Kumar has called him to Bombay with the promise of starting a new movie production office there. Now Bal is trying to convince Judy and the kids to move to Bombay. 

The story will make you laugh, will make you cry, and at times will even make you angry. If a story can make you feel all these emotions, you know you are in for a good ride and no matter what the outcome, you can’t help but support all the characters in their endeavors. 

Bal will certainly make you want to follow your dream! ~Ernie Hoyt