Sunday, 23 March 2014

Double Meaning in Woh Jo Kho Gaye


Woh jo kho gaye begins with the search for one person who has been lost somewhere along the way; and all this happens while there is a constant reference to the past; the past in which the trauma occurred and where these four men lost their families and relationships.

“Kia soortien thi kay nazron say ojhal hogayi” (483). Again, this is all in reference to the past and the four men continue to discuss their doubts over what has already transpired.  

But as the story progresses forward, the narrative starts to acquire a double meaning when the men begin to question their own existence at present. It’s absurd as it is, but they realize that each one didn't include himself while counting the total men earlier.

Speaking of that one missing man, the injured man says: “tou phir yun hain ke jo ek admi kam tha woh main tha”.

In itself, the statement makes no sense. The injured man is present, as our others, but this is where the narrative starts to attain a double meaning, when these men impose their doubts on their present state. For they don’t know where they are or where they are going, they are lost as well.

In connection with the title, woh jo kho gaye aren’t only the people who have been left behind in the past but also these four men in the present who are equally lost, with no sense of time, place and destination. So the narrative is not only about that which cannot be recovered from the past but also something out of grasp in the present, desperately needed to advance into the future. The four men appear to have no such source of development/advancement. 

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