Book Review

Revisiting a Manipuri Classic: Bor Saheb Ongbi Sanatombi
By: Tanya Sana Rajkumari

Bor Saheb Ongbi Sanatombi by MK Binodini is the first Manipuri novel I have read. When I first saw the book I did not even know it would interest me. I was not even sure if I could still read the Bengali alphabets. Thanks to the painstaking efforts of my teachers who taught me till the seventh grade I was able to read most of the words (some words had to be compromised, of course). And guess what! It kept me hooked till the very end. My enthusiasm after reading a few pages grew and made me crave for the unusual romance between the young Manipuri princess and the ageing British Political Agent. I had tears in my eyes when I flipped the last page.
Besides the romance, the book’s great insight to the society, the norms and the customs of Manipur of that particular period captured my attention throughout the story.
Even though I have read other books on Manipur in English notably My three Years in Manipur and Escape from the Recent Mutiny By Ethel St. Claire Grimwood, I like Bor Saheb Ongbi Sanatombi because it is an imaginative novel and also because I read it in my mother tongue. Though I took a long time reading and trying to figure out what some of the words meant, it was fun reading it. It is one of the best books I have read. It served the purpose of an enjoyable read as well as an insight to the culture and the royalty before the British takeover of our land and just after. The royalty with its grandeur complete with polo was great to read in the beginning then the various subplots like the love story between Sanakhomdon and Meri Selungba highlighted the rigid class system of the time. Though he was a favorite of the King and a talented artist he was not allowed to marry the princess because of his low profile family name. And the powerful Sanakhya masi’s role in the family and the overall women’s role at the time are fully captured in the story.
So the thematic issues in the book included the rigidity of class system that made Meri Selungba an outcast and the strict punishment of shaving his head off and tying him on streets. Then there were polygamy practiced by the royalty and the choosing of one of the wives as Maharani and the prince born from her as the crown prince. The king’s (Chandrakirti) dilemma to choose which of the queen as Maharani showed the bizarre complexity from his part. Thereafter, sibling rivalry which we know destroyed the dynasty after the death of King Chandrakirti plays a vital part in the story. This rivalry has been well highlighted in the book as we know this changed the fate of Manipur.
There is of course, the main story of Sanatombi, the protagonist’s life intertwined with the rigid culture she was brought up in and her whirlwind romance with the ageing British Political Agent and the consequent social outcast that she became. Her marriage to first husband was a loveless marriage which ended in a failure. This led her divert to the attention she received from the British Political Agent where their love saga starts and also of her being blacklisted from the rigid Meitei Society. The outcast part is not explicitly mentioned; however there is no escape of this in the story. The story goes on to narrate on the free and open life Sanatombi led with Maxwell Saheb and then her illness after his departure leading to her death. Yet it is well known that the society at the time treated her with an evil eye and even her funeral pyre was not allowed to be lit by her blue-blooded relatives or any Meitei adult.
The book is a great read for the imagination and use of history of the land as depicted in this romantic novel. Also because it is a story about coming out of one’s shell, defying the norms and leading a life the way you want. Though the tragedy filled life of the young princess ended without any climax. Her story is worth telling. A grim reminder that every story does not necessarily have a “happily ever after” ending. It is a must read!!