Folk Imagination and Singing Women in the Short Stories of Mulk Raj Anand

Abstract

In many of his letters and prefaces, Mulk Raj Anand confesses he started writing fiction under the influence of his mother and the oral tales narrated by her. In this essay I examine Anand’s confession and investigate his deep engagement with Punjabi folklore. I particularly analyse his short stories to locate the fiction of Anand within the folk boundaries of his native state. In the process, I look at the oral techniques embedded in his writing. Also, I discuss Anand’s close association with women’s songs and discover the various ways in which these songs shaped the author’s writing.