The Song of Kahunsha Book Review

With award-winning plays and critically acclaimed novels under his belt, Anosh Irani is one of Canada's most promising young writers. He deserves our praise again with The Song of Kahunsha, his second novel.Chamdi is a ten-year-old orphan who sets off into the streets of the Bombay in search of his father, despite the fact that he has no idea who he is or what he looks like. He is disoriented and apprehensive, but quickly meets Sumdi and Guddi, a brother and sister who also call the streets their home. As the religious tension rises in 1993 Bombay, Chamdi quickly discovers what it takes to survive, but never loses his hopeful optimism.Irani's first novel, The Cripple and His Talismans, was fuelled by the dark enchantment that lives on the city's streets. In this novel, however, the religious riots have Chamdi dreamily imagining a more peaceful, beautiful place; a city that he names Kahunsha. As the days (and horrifying nights) go on, we slowly come to understand that the
re is no Kahunsha to be found here, and we must accept the dismal truth of Chamdi's situation.Chamdi must ultimately decide between a life of desperation and street walking, or mere destitution while working for Anand Bhai, the kingpin of the city's crime community. The Song of Kahunsha compellingly redefines the notion of family and the significance of honour while at the same time demonstrates the beautiful melancholy that's apparent but often unnoticeable when we're met with personal tragedy.Even when he opts for what seems to him to be the better of the two, Chamdi leaves us with a sense of buoyancy that raises our hope as the curtain falls:"So he made up his mind to achieve something so wonderful that if he were to tell anyone his life story, it would take days to tell, even weeks, and the ending would be a happy one..."

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