“The Ministry of Utmost Happiness”

This task assign by our Professor Dr.Dilip Barad sir.This Presentation is my group work Presentation which is about Arundhati Roy Latest Novel "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness"

1. “The Ministry of Utmost happiness” - Arundhati Roy

2. GROUP TASK BY, Trivedi Anjali Lak hupota Khusbu Gosai Stuti Gondaliya Pina Mahida Bhumika Submitted to “Department of English” Guidance Under Dr.Dilip P Barad sir.

3. 1.Author Introduction 2.Key Facts 3.Character List 4.Plot Summary 5.Themes 6.Book Review 7.Important Quotes 8.Conclusion 9.References Content Table :

4. 1. ABOUT AUTHOR : BORN : Full name - Suzanna Arundhati Roy 24 th November,1961 ( Age 60) Shillong,Assam.India. ( Present day Meghalaya) OCCUPATION : Writer,Essayist,Activist NATIONALITY : Indian PERIOD : 1997-Present NOTABLE WORKS : The God of Small Things NOTABLE AWARDS : Man Booker Prize (1997) -Sydney Peace Prize ( 2004)

5. CONTINUE….. Arundhati Roy was born in Shillong,Meghalaya.India. When she was two ,her parents Divorced and she returned to Kerala with her mother and brother. When she was Five her Mother started a School. She studied at Corpus Christi Kottayam,followed by the Lawrence School,Lovedale in Nilgiris,Tamil Nadu. She then studied Architecture at the “School of Planning and Architecture” in Delhi. She marries with “Gerard da Cunha” and after that they Divorce in 1982. Her 1st novel The God of Small Things won the Man Booker Prize for fiction in 1997 and became Best Selling book. She is also a Political Activist involved in human rights and Environmental Causes.

6. 2. KEY FACTS: F ULL TITLE : The Ministry of Utmost Happiness WHEN WRITTEN : 2017 WHERE WRITTEN : Minnesota WHEN PUBLISHED : 6th June 2017 Total Pages : 4 49 LITERARY PERIOD : Contemporary,Postmodern GENRE : Post Colonial Literature, Magical Realism, Political Literature, Realism,Fiction SETTING : India CLIMAX : Tilo moves into Jannat House Funeral Services to raise a baby with Anjum. ANTAGONIST : The Indian Government POINT OF VIEW : First and Third person

7. 3 .CHARACTERS LIST : ANJUM : -Anjum is the Major Character of the book who is a Muslim and Hijra.On her visit to a Gujarati shrine.Anjum gets caught in a massacre of Hindu pilgrims and subsequent government reprisals against Muslims.She is anxious about the future of her own Community, especially the new generation.She is born as” AFTAB”.The long-awaited son of Jahanara Begum and Mulaqat Ali. MULAQAT ALI : -The husband of Jahanara Begum and the father of Aftab.He is a Hakim,a Doctor of herbal medicine and a lover of poetry.Ali is the direct descendant of Mongol Emperor Changez Khan - through the emperor’s second born son,Chagatai. ZAINAB : -A three years old Girl whom Anjum picks up on the steps of the Jama Masjid.Zainab is brought up at Khwabgah and later goes on to become a fashion designer who marries Saddam. SADDAM HUSSAIN (DAYACHAND) : -One of the guests of Jannat Guest House.Saddam works odd jobs - in a Mortuary,as a Helper in a shop, a Bus Conductor,sells Newspapers at the New Delhi railway station,a Bricklayer on a construction site and as a Security guard.Saddam wants to avenge his father’s death by killing Sehrawat,the Station House Officer of the Dulina police station.

8. CONTINUE….. DR.AZAD BHARATIYA : - One of the very many protesters near Jantar Mantar.He continues his 10 year fast and runs a newsletter called “News & Views”. S.TILOTTAMA : - Tilottama is a student at the Architecture School who is estranged from her Syrian Christian mother - Mariyam Ipe.Tilo become friends with three men - Musa Yewsi ,Nagaraj Hariharan and Biplab Dasgupta whom she meets while working on sets and lighting design for the play Norman directed by David Quartermaine. NAGARAJ HARIHARAN : - Cast as Norman in the play.He later becomes a top-notch Journalist who works in Kashmir.Tilo marries Naga as suggested by Musa for strategic reasons and later abandons him. BIPLAB DASGUPTA : - Biplab was to play the role of Garson Hobart in the play Norman.He later works for the Intelligence Bureau as Deputy Station Head.Biplab secretly loves Tilo and rents her room after she walks out on Naga.

9. CONTINUE….. MUSA YESWI ( Commander Gulrez ) : - Musa is a reticent Kashmiri man who is classmates with Tilo in Architecture School and her boyfriend.Musa later returns to his homeland to become a militant and fight for AZADI.Musa marries Arifa and fathers Miss Jebben the First. BEGUM ARIFA YESWI : - Wife of Musa Yeswi.Musa meets Arifa in stationary shop where an grenade explosion takes place. MAJOR AMRIK SINGH : - A military officer in charge of counter - insurgency operations in Kashmir.Murdered of Jalib Qadri.A well known lawyer and human rights activist.Amrik Singh,subsequently seeks asylum in the US claiming to be the victim of the tortures he has inflicted on others. COMRADE REVATHY : - AMaoist from East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh who is raped and tortured by policeman.She’s the mother of Udaya (Miss Jebben the Second ).Revathy leaves Udaya in Jantar Mantar.

10. 4. PLOT : In the Ministry of Utmost Happiness ,Roy dissects life in India in the wake of the partition through the eyes of two characters; Anjum, a Transgender woman who comes into her own only to find herself redefined by Tragedy turning to a Cemetery in Delhi for refuge; and Tilo , a trained architect who journeys to the Kashmir region to reignite her on - and- off again love affair with Musa, a freedom fighter. Spanning the 1950s to 2010s novel follows the interconnected lives of several characters against the backdrop of Contemporary India. At heart,The novel consists of two main narrative threads, one of which is centered in Delhi and the other in Kashmir. Anjum - a Muslim Hijra - Born intersex - named Aftab - inicially raised as a boy. Adolescence - rejects male identity - Joins the Khwabgah or “House of Dreams”.

11. SUMMARY : Home - Graveyard - Behind Government hospital Iman Ziauddin - Companion,Anjum - born intersex - Aftab - Masculine - Excellent Singer - Father Mulaqat - Forces to undergo genderchange surgery. Beautiful Hijra - Follows her Khwabgah - Moves permanently devastating his parents . Aftab transforms into Anjum,male to female gender transition surgery. Anjum finds an abandoned baby,Zainab - ill health - pilgrimage with Zakir mian to a holy Muslim site in Gujarat - massacre,Zakir Mian killed Anjum - leaves Khwabgah - moves to graveyard - home Jannat Guest House and Funeral Services. Biplab, a bureaucrat in the Indian government discovers that Tilo has gone missing. Army has captured her,Biplab sends Naga to collect her from jail. Naga & Tilo marry but it doesn’t last long.

12. CONTINUE….. Wild public protest at Jantar Mantar.Anti Corruption protest by a Gandhian . The Mother’s of the disappeared finds a beauty abandoned;but Tilo takes away the baby - names her Miss Jebeen the Second. Tilo resolves to kidnap the baby,but the police are after her,so she needs somewhere safe to go. They move to Jannat Guest House permanently . Tilo begins to work as a Teacher for poor. Zainab & Saddam fall in love and get Married . Unlike her namesake,Miss Jebeen the Second is raised surrounded by Love,Peace & Safety.

13. 5. THEMES : Corruption,Political Violence and Capitalism Resilience and Hope Gender Identity/ Identity Crisis Social Division Religion and Power Social Hierarchy vs. Social Inclusivity Sexual Identity Religious Intolerence Struggle to fit with the Normal Freedom

14. 6. BOOK REVIEW : 1. It's moving, mystifying and yet nearer to truth of existence of every human being Reviewed in India on 30 August 2017 It was stark and real in portrayal of characters, their motives and mystery of existence. It was not anything that brought one in touch with finer feelings of ecstasy and joy, but absolutely absorbing to experience the the world of people far removed from us, in nature, in situations and facts which never appeared in one's day to day interaction with people. I won't say it was depressing but it was very sad to realise that there is a reality in life which we've never seen and made me feel safe where I am placed today. It's very different from the first book "God of small things" nevertheless I would recommend reading and creating the awareness within of the kind of lives different people have and then to find meaning in existence, one's purpose in life and striving to live for an all consuming cause.. about life, it's precious meaning and the ever sustainable emotions called love in every form, between humans, gods and animals .. -Elizabeth Verghese

15. CONTINUE…… 2. ….this was a very unusual book with lots of good points. And very topical with what is going ... Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 June 2018 I thought this was a very unusual book with lots of good points. And very topical with what is going on in India at present. There were times when I found it all a bit chaotic but fascinating and I really enjoyed reading it. -Dr.M.Clement

16. 7. IMPORTANT QUOTES : CHAPTER 2 Related characters : Anjum/Aftab,Jahanara Sarmad’s insubordinate spirit, intense, palpable and truer than any accumulation of historical facts could be, appeared to those who sought his blessings. It celebrated (but never preached) the value of spirituality over sacrament, simplicity over opulence and stubborn, ecstatic love even when faced with the prospect of annihilation.

17. continue…… Chapter 2 Related Characters : Nimmo ( speaker),Anjum,Aftab “But for us the price-rise and school-admissions and beating-husbands and cheating-wives are all inside us. The riot is inside us. The war is inside us. Indo-Pak is inside us. It will never settle down. It can’t.”

18. CONTINUE….. Chapter 4 Related Characters : Dr.Azad Bhartiya “But even if I was President of America, that world class Brahmin, still I would be here on hunger strike for the poor. I don’t want dollars. Capitalism is liked poisoned honey. People swarm to it like bees. I don’t go to it.”

19. CONTINUE…… Chapter 7 Related Character : Biplab Dasgupta “The city is still stunned by the simultaneous explosions that tore through a bus stop, a café and the basement parking lot of a small shopping plaza two days ago, leaving five dead and very many more severely injured. It will take our television news anchors a little longer than ordinary folks to recover from the shock. As for myself, blasts evoke a range of emotions in me, but sadly, shock is no longer one of them.”

20. CONTINUE…… Chapter 8 Related Character : Tilo ( speaker ) “I would like to write one of those sophisticated stories in which even though nothing much happens there’s lots to write about. That can’t be done in Kashmir. It’s not sophisticated, what happens here. There’s too much blood for good literature.”

21. CONTINUE….. Chapter 9 Related Characters : Tilo “ She described how,when her brother’s body was found in a field and brought home,his fists,clenched in rigor mortis,were full of earth and yellow mustard flowers grew from between his fingers”.

22. CONTINUE…… Chapter 12 Related Character : Tilo(speaker),Musa “ How to tell a shattered story? By slowly becoming everybody. No. By slowly becoming everything”.

23. 8.CONCLUSION : At the end we can sum up with this novel The “ Ministry of Utmost Happiness” is as much a heartbreaking tale of love,friendship and family;as it is an eye opener to the disastrous political situations in India.Corruption the prevailing caste and religious prejudices and terrorism and the never ending fight for AZADI(freedom) in Kashmir. This is a must read for every single Indian out there as many a youth are either blinded by the senseless political parties that they support or basking in the safety of their metropolitan environment.

24. 9.REFERENCE : Roy, Arundhati. The Ministry of Utmost Happiness: Longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2017. 2017 ed., Penguin UK, 2017. "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy Plot Summary." LitCharts, Hamish Hamilton (UK) Alfred Knopf (US), 6 June 2017, www.litcharts.com/lit/the-ministry-of-utmost-happiness/summary. Accessed 26 Dec. 2021. Arora, Chhagan. "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness by Arundhati Roy, (2017) Summary in Hindi." YouTube, English with Chhagan Arora, 9 Dec. 2018, youtu.be/7vu8-3aA9fs. Accessed 26 Dec. 2021. GradeSaver. "The Ministry of Utmost Happiness Background." Study Guides & Essay Editing | GradeSaver, Gradesaver, www.gradesaver.com/the-ministry-of-utmost-happiness.

25. THANK YOU !!