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May 04, 2005
Ashok Ferrey, Colpetty People
A while back, I linked to an informative article on Sri Lankan writers -- in one segment, Louise Doughty talked to Ashok Ferrey, author of the Gratien-nominated collection, Colpetty People. I was recently lucky enough to meet Ashok, during my month-long trip to Sri Lanka. I had picked up his collection in a bookstore, read part of it, and enjoyed it enough that I called up the publisher and asked them to pass along my contact info to Mr. Ferrey. Ashok kindly called me back and invited me to join him and his wife Mandy at their home for morning tea.
Oh, his house. He described it on the phone as a ramshackle old house. What it actually is, is a gorgeous old mansion in the classiest part of Colombo (the part he so gently mocks in his stories), and I am half in love with it. It feels like you're stepping into a piece of history. They tell me that it served as the set for Deepa Mehta's forthcoming film, Water, a companion to the controversial and interesting Fire and to Earth (which I haven't seen, though I liked the book it was based on, Bapsi Sidhwa's Cracking India).
After four hours of fascinating conversation about writing and life and politics and culture, they ended up asking me to stay to lunch. Kiri bath and fish curry and something spicy -- luna miris sambol, maybe? With a bit more kiri bath and jaggery to finish the meal, and some perfectly ripe slices of pineapple. Simple, perfect. The stories in Colpetty People are similarly simple on first read, but with resonant depths -- they've stayed with me, and I'm planning on rereading the collection soon. I wanted to tell you my favorite, but honestly, I can't choose; so many are charming and funny, that it's impossible to pick between them. The tales aren't confined to Colombo -- Ashok lived in Sri Lanka until he was eight, but then spent a few decades abroad before returning to Colombo to live, and the stories reflect that expatriate sensibility, both in settings and tone. Many of them have a gentle snarkiness that I really enjoyed, a sense of life's ironies.
The book doesn't appear to be available through Amazon, but the publisher, Perera Hussein does have a web page. As they say, "This bestseller oozes with sarcasm and humour in its depiction of life lived by the Sri Lankan upper classes in Colombo. Extremely witty and entertaining, Ferrey amuses his readers with delectable vignettes of a social order that thrives on gossip, appearances and dwindling fortunes." I recommend to you this pleasurable and amusing read, and hope that if you're not in Sri Lanka, you might be able to e-mail the publisher and have them send you a copy, or possibly pick them up through Mary Martin Booksellers. A great summer read!
Another review of Colpetty People (second on page)
Posted by Mary Anne Mohanraj at May 4, 2005 05:55 AM
Comments
My god, that's not a house is it? It looks more like a resort!
Posted by: Purvi Patel at May 4, 2005 05:43 PM
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