Maria, a Tragic Romance of Adventure and Exploitation

Abstract

Maria, a tragic romance of adventure and exploits, narrates the participation of Satyagrahi volunteers in Goa’s struggle for freedom from the Portuguese rule. The novel ends tragically for the central character, Maria and the country after independence. The seven Indian characters represent seven regions of India: Goa, West Bengal, Punjab, Madras, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Maharashtra. Before Independence, all of them were patriots and fighters for freedom; after independence most of them get involved in an atmosphere of anti-national parochial activities. Abbas seems to have been fascinated by the symbolic significance of the number seven. The importance of choosing seven characters belonging to seven different regions of the country is obvious; it gives him an opportunity of presenting the human condition in the country in seven vivid scenes in a fairly representative manner. The cinematographic technique of montage, employed in the novel, shifts the focus of our attention from the situation in one region of the country to that in another.