Tears in God's Own Country

<p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>Tears in God's Own Country</em><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)> revolves around a 26-year-old </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>chenda</em><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)> kettledrum player who dreams of performing at Carnegie Hall. The residents of Alumaram Village in the South Indian state of Kerala call him Chenda because of his love for the </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>chenda </em><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>music. Kerala is known as God's Own Country.</span></p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     In the evenings Chenda enthralls the villagers with his </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>kettledrum </em><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>music at the village junction near the landmark banyan tree. When not playing music he ekes out a living by delivering and chopping firewood. </span></p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     Chenda is dark-skinned. Black. Hence he is deemed a low-caste </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>parayan</em><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)> and is shunned by the predominantly brown and light-skinned villagers. The local music groups won't include him; parents won't let their daughters marry him; and upper-caste villagers won't invite him to their homes. However an elderly Brahmin woman defies the caste system and accommodates him on her back porch.</span></p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     To obtain an Indian passport and a U.S. visa-the first step toward fulfilling his dream-Chenda needs the support of a public official. So he urges the manager of a herbal medical store to run for office. But the manager has other plans. </span></p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     In his ambition to win the manager incites Hindu-Muslim conflicts with an eye on the majority of Hindu votes. Distraught Chenda confronts the manager. The following day Chenda is found stabbed to death. The police won't investigate because the deceased is a </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>parayan.</em></p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     Suddenly the villagers realize that no one knows Chenda's real name his parents religion or caste. The village barber Big-legged Appu sets out to find Chenda's relatives so they can claim the body. His search takes him on different routes in Chenda's life.   </span></p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>     Through Chenda's story </span><em style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)>Tears in God's Own Country</em><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)> paints a vivid picture of 1960s India and highlights the follies of colorism caste system and religious fanaticism that are still prevalent today. These issues are universal not unique to India.</span></p><p>      The symbolism in the novel doesn't go unnoticed.  </p><p><span style=color: rgba(14 16 26 1)> </span></p><p class=ql-align-center>-30-</p><p><br></p>