Zakir and his Forest of Memories

The novel touches on a number of themes particularly partition and the 1971 War. But above all it revolves around a greater theme of change and temporality. Zakir, the protagonist of the novel is not distinguished by heroism but rather through the passivity of the person. There is constant passivity on his part because he is forever consumed in his forest of memories.  In Chapter one only, he wonders

“ The more the turmoil increases outside, the more I sink into myself. Memories of so many times come to me. . .. . My memories are my forest. So where does the forest begin? No, where do I begin? And again he was in the forest".

The metaphor of the forest is essential to understanding his passivity. Memories serve as a psychological function. It is important to note that the process of recollection is triggered by the turbulent events of the present amidst the Partition and the 1971 War.  For Zakir, the memories of the past are a way of escaping the turbulent present reality.  Thus far in the novel Zakir comes across as the classic flaneur. However his lack of action as an observer or lack political opinion does not result from lack of emotion or concern but emerges from a distinct world view shaped in Rupnagar where everything gradually becomes a thing of the past and is eventually forgotten.  For example, we see temporality of the gas lamps, the plague and the resulting deaths of many and the monkeys. This understanding of temporality therefore is firmly etched into his person.

Zakir is holding on tightly to these memories because it is in these memories that moments are immortalized forever and not sullied by the imperfect world. He seems to be constantly chasing and yearning for the Utopia he left behind in Rupnagar. More so because his childhood cousin and love interest Sabirah is a part of the idyllic city. He deliberately chooses not to pursue her but rather immortalize her in his memories. This decision again is firmly rooted in his person because of his world view and unique perspective that his love will not blossom in such an imperfect world but can only thrive in the idyllic Rupnagar .Which incidentally is also the same place where Hindu Muslims were once united and the earth was not sullied by discord amongst them. This reinforces the idea that his memories served as a coping mechanism for the aftermath of the Partition and 1971 war and the intense feelings of displacement and alienation associated with it.

In this light the title Basti is ironic yet appropriate because the word Basti means settlement but the novel talks about the unsettling events of Partiton and 1971 War. However simultaneously thorough the figure of Zakir we see a constant yearning for the stability and permanence that the Basti provides.