Book Review
By Dr Jyoti Laxmi Kashyap
Archana Painuly’s Nancy’s Kairali Massage Parlour is a multilayered narrative of a displaced, yet determined Nancy thrown by the wings of time and tide of circumstances to journey across the globe in quest of meaning, purpose of life, above all seeking her identity as a human being.
Twice displaced from being a Keralite to converted Christian, Nancy’s sense of displacement expands across continents seeking home and identity signalled in Kunjamma’s words, “You are like a migrating bird who travels with the wind”. The wind takes Nancy across various shores, with each diversified yet contradictory shares of emotions, experiences above all cultural variances offered by these shores. Archana Painuly’s style of weaving a rich emotional tapestry falls in the line of many tales unfolded within a tale of Nancy who eventually realises that home is where the heart is.
The novel reflects autobiographical shades of the author’s Danish experience in Nancy’s struggles and exasperations as an expatriate. Nancy’s decision to walk as a masseur in the footsteps of the century’s old rich tradition of Kairali Ayurvedic Massage navigates and anchors her to the rich roots of her native culture and tradition, thereby giving her a sense of fulfilment and meaning.
Archana Painuly draws on the flashback style to effectively unfold the narrative of Nancy’s quest. The plot begins in the present where Nancy having undertaken a turbulent marital journey with three of her husbands out of insecurity and desperation for survival, realises the gravity of hasty decisions that transformed her life’s ordeal. The massage parlour becomes the backdrop and Paul, her devoted client, to whom in the course of flashback she lays bare her displaced soul and continues the journey.
The open ending of the novel is particularly reflective, hinting at humanity’s enduring desire for improvement despite life’s disenchantments. Archana Painuly masterfully captures the complexity of human emotions and the universal yearning for a better existence.
In conclusion, “Nancy’s Kairali Massage Parlour” is a thought-provoking and emotionally resonant novel that seamlessly blends the personal and the universal, leaving readers with a profound contemplation on the human experience.
(Dr Jyoti Laxmi Kashyap is Assistant Professor, Department of English, Swami Shradhanand College, University of Delhi)
