Making of the girl next door

It is a a story of an unforgettable childhood filled with love, adventure, mystery, tragedy and joy.

There are millions of circumstances and situations that arrange themselves in an intimate pattern to shape a person. The cumulative influences these have on life are far too many to understand, and a great majority of them are beyond control. Revisiting childhood and writing on it could be both amusing and exciting provided one looks at the simplest things of life with a little bit of whimsy to make them interesting, allowing the ghosts to finally rest in peace between the pages. In a beautifully written memoir, Deepti Naval excels in making her childhood immensely relatable, making the reader feel nostalgic about one’s own childhood.  

In the current climate, it is reassuring to read such a sober, sweetly textured text which brings out certain amount of affection and concern hidden in each sub-plot. It is a a story of an unforgettable childhood filled with love, adventure, mystery, tragedy and joy that makes A Country Called Childhood a screenplay with distinctive sights, smells and sounds of a bygone era. From having her ears cleaned periodically to coming of age and her first kiss, and from bunking classes for watching movies to lying on the terrace watching stars were the stuff of reality that found a permanent nesting place in her heart. Those moments of everyday life nurtured her imagination. 

Life in a typical post-independent Punjabi household reflects shared set of values despite economic hardship being the common social denominator. Many of the sub-plots may seem dated, but these were important in shaping what the author eventually became – a sensitive actor, a talented director, and an accomplished writer rolled into one multi-faceted personality. Readers who may pick the autobiography in search of learning about her work in life and films may not be disappointed, as Deepti Naval joins all the relevant dots of her growing up that led her to portray ‘sensitive and close to life’ roles in some 100 films that she had acted in her career spanning four decades. 

She had multiple influences at work during her childhood and adolescent life, which helped her curate many unforgettable on-screen characters. The middle-class sensibilities of growing up in a close-knit family is well evident in her characterization of a salesgirl in the classic comedy Chashme Buddoor (1981). Unlike the detergent, it’s brand name ‘Miss Chamko’ has stayed on as her nickname for the measured performance with which she gracefully conducted herself while selling detergent in a bachelor's pad without indulging in anything extravagant. Parental instruction to ‘put your head down, no need to look around’ was on display in this performance. 

Although the author grew up idolizing two actors – Sadhna and Meena Kumari - A Country Called Childhood stands apart amidst the plethora of banal biographies by the celluloid celebrities in recent times. In contrast, it is a visual imagery that records simple experiences of the place and people with eloquent description. In delivering an engaging, enriching, and entertaining narrative, the author doesn’t brush aside even the smallest detail. Each character comes alive through rich prose, and her memory serves her well in reviving the past after having burnt her diary containing ‘deepest thoughts and emotions’ at the time of leaving Amritsar. 

It’s a story full of ups and downs, with the author surviving failures and upheavals with equal calm. Her experience of blackouts during the Indo-Pak war, the shock of her mother's near electrocution, and her father’s daily ordeal during his first year in the US have so much in common for some of us who have spent time in Punjab. Having retained the cultural context of the local lingo and practices, the book serves a reminder on growing up years in the land of five rivers. The utensil polishing smell by the kaliewallah, the trademark twang-twang by the cotton fluffer, and open lice-picking sessions in the courtyards have retained their nostalgic value.      

A Country Called Childhood is a memoir of extraordinary brilliance, with the author valuing her childhood more than perhaps her screen achievements. For Deepti, these are the ‘stories that make my world come alive’. Insightful and reflective, the engrossing narrative offers a perspective in retaining and recalling childhood memories. More often, people are livid about their childhood and accord little purpose to the struggles and challenges which align with only fear and sadness. There is little denying that most of us have little by way of a proper perspective on how to relate with our childhood memories, which the book serves to convey. Not without reason it is said that if you carry your childhood with you, you are never too old.   

Deepti Naval leaves the reader with a soft glow of nostalgia. It is an empathetic storytelling in which the characters – her family and friends – come alive as our own. For once, the reader may begin to feel the accomplished actor as one amongst us – the girl next door!

A Country Called Childhood 
by Deepti Naval
Aleph, New Delhi 
Extent: 343, Price: Rs. 450.

First published in the Hindustan Times on Nov 7, 2022.