#418 When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine- Jhumpa Lahiri
It is the era of Partition. India, Pakistan and the soon to
be created Bangladesh is on the brink of war. Mr. Pizada is a visiting scholar
in New England and is away from his wife and seven daughters. They are Bengali
and lost among the millions of refugees.
Mr. Pirzada comes to visit Lilia’s family every night to
watch the news. He is welcome in their house, as they are Indian, but Lilia
cannot understand what is happening nor can she make sense about what is
supposed to make him different from them.
“It made no sense to me. Mr. Pirzada and my parents spoke
the same language, laughed at the same jokes, looked more or less the same.
They ate pickled mangoes with their meals, ate rice every night for supper with
their hands.”
In a short time, they become close, and when he eventually
returns to his family, they feel the loss sharply.
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