Shroud

 (e-content developed by Prof. (Dr) N. A. Jarandikar)

“The Shroud” is a short story written by Premchand, a major Hindi writer. “Godan '' is his famous novel penned by Premchand. He often deals with the common people, and his short stories shed light on the harsh realities of life. “The Shroud” is about the inhuman tendency and highlights the harshness of poverty.

The story features three characters: Budhia, Ghisu, and Madho. Budhia is Madho’s wife, and Ghisu is Madho’s father. This is a very poor family residing in a village.

Both Ghisu and Madho belong to the Chamar caste, but they are notorious for being lazy and shameless. They only work when they are on the brink of starvation. Budhia is the one who brings some moments of happiness into their lives through her hard work.

The story begins with Budhia suffering from labor pains, but Ghisu and Madho pay no attention to her. They are more concerned about the impending birth of a new baby. Tragically, the next morning, Ghisu and Madho discover that Budhia has passed away. They are so impoverished that they cannot afford the proper funeral rites for Budhia, so they resort to begging for money.

The zamindar and the villagers take pity on Budhia and contribute some money. As a result, Ghisu and Madho manage to gather a sum of five rupees.

The climax of the story arrives when, instead of purchasing the shroud, Ghisu and Madho go to a liquor shop to celebrate the evening. Madho inquires about the shroud, but Ghisu reassures him not to worry. According to Ghisu, people will take care of Budhia. He further explains that Budhia is now free from the web of Maya.

In this manner, Premchand portrays the harsh reality of human life. Ghisu and Madho are victims of poverty, and their only problem is that they don’t seek an escape from this trap. Although there are only two main characters in the story, Ghisu and Madho, our whole sympathy is for Budhia. Budhia is a character that can be found anywhere, anytime.

The story’s primary setting is an unnamed village, which could represent any village in any culture. The story is narrated in the third person point of view. The tone of the story is dark and serious, as indicated by the apt title. Right from the title, we can infer that the story revolves around someone’s death, setting a serious tone.