Every person’s journey through life is marked by the presence of at least one individual who has made a profound impression on them. The influence may be favorable, but it might also be detrimental. Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine is a short narrative in which the reader can relate to the main character, Lilia, who is affected by another character, Mr. Pirzada, who comes to dine with them. The short story is relevant to contemporary world issues, touching on food and culture, assimilation, independence conflict, and revolution. Many of these topics are quite heavy and complex, but their use in a contained narrative appears to give them enough room for development. The story brought me a mix of emotions that I cannot fully describe, including curiosity, regret, sadness and fulfillment. I think the story manages to precisely ground itself in an understandable human reality, appearing so similar to many stories of today’s immigrants.
Since Lilia’s parents emigrated from India to escape their complicated lives, Lilia is an American of the first generation. The customs and traditions of both of these countries are incredibly different from one another. Lilia’s parents are staunch adherents to their native Indian culture, but Lilia herself is caught between the Indian and American ways of thinking and doing things. Lilia herself discusses her history education as being very US-centric: “We learned American history, of course, and American geography. That year, and every year, it seemed, we began by studying the Revolutionary War.” (Lahiri). At home, however, she is expected to learn Indian history but to study American history at school. Her father is to teach her Indian history, and her teachers will teach her American history (Lahiri). This cultural dissonance is often found in real families too, where people are often unable to engage with their culture or learn it properly, often due to the presence of a larger, more prevalent culture. Many of my own friends talk about wishing to know more about their ancestry or having the ability to be more connected with the culture they feel was taken away from them. I think the text reminds me of their struggles quite a lot.
The outbreak of the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971 caused Mr. Pirzada to be concerned for the safety of his wife and girls. Lilia understands how distressing it is to be cut off from one’s native place and be in a dilemma of choosing two different ways of life. While Lilia and Mr. Pirzada struggle with the distance between South Asia and the United States, the story suggests living in a diaspora. The depiction of a war-torn nation and the people that have connections to it resonates quite strongly in today’s day and age. In recent months, especially, I have heard a lot of similar tales of people fleeing their homes because of the need to make money or because it is too dangerous to stay. I think that it is terrible that we, as humans, have allowed some live in such terrible conditions while others lavish in luxury. The presence of families such as Mr. Pirzada’s and Lilia’s in the real world is an example of a great failing of our global society.
In the beginning, Mr. Pirzada babysits Lilia, giving her candies and worrying about her safety. After Lilia witnessed children her age suffering in Pakistan, their roles gradually reversed. The more Lilia accepts responsibility for Mr. Pirzada’s well-being, the more she embraces the severity of the war, and the less she can keep her childlike innocence and naive viewpoint. Additionally, she starts praying in her own way, using the candy Mr. Pirzada gave her. “I had never prayed for anything before, had never been taught or told to, but I decided, given the circumstances, that it was something I should do” – this passage describes the creation of the two’s special ritual (Lahiri). While I have not experienced war as Lilia does, I can also relate to having to mature quickly in order to support those closest to me. Due to some problems in my family, I had to grow up quickly and assume responsibilities that might have been too large for me. Children not having the capacity to live in their innocence feels like a real social issue to me, one that must be addressed. It is not only a systematic failure of governments that overlook families but also often a flaw of the parents themselves.
After Lilia’s newfound friend returns to his family, Lilia abruptly ends her special candy ritual. Lilia now understands what it is like to miss someone thousands of miles and hours away, just as Mr. Pirzada had missed his wife and daughters. In some ways, Lilia’s relationship to him is similar to a familial one, as the older man becomes more than just a friend. Because time and ritual have been the foundations of Lilia’s familial bond with Mr. Pirzada, the bond crumbles in their absence. The feelings of losing an important person in your life, one that you might have considered family, also resonate strongly with me. I think that the bond between the little girl and the man was shown very well, and it speaks to the many individuals who lost touch with someone who mattered to them.
The conflict and war in Pakistan show how countries struggle to get independence from their oppressors. It clearly depicts that for freedom to be achieved, firm and tough measures need to be put in place, including being ready to lose lives. On the contrary, the history Lilia is taught in school paints a rosy picture of the American Revolt, omitting to mention the heavy price of the revolution. “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine” ultimately implies that the focus that Americans place on a sanitized story of their freedom makes it difficult for them to see those who are struggling in other nations or even those who are struggling on U.S. territory.
Lilia is not allowed to study the history of a conflict that is currently ongoing, even though she feels compelled to re-learn the history of a conflict that occurred in the past. Although Lilia and Mr. Pirzada are hundreds of miles distant from Dacca, their engagement in the Bangladeshi independence movement offers them a completely different viewpoint than Lilia obtains in school. By illustrating how complicated and torturous the experience of revolution can be, the narrative insinuates a demand for a more comprehensive understanding of the past and the present. One considers the human toll of both past turmoil and current conflicts taking place all over the world. While being in history class myself, I wondered why some stories are more important to learn than others. Why certain wars or events, can be considered tragedies while others pass by as nothing but a note in a history book? I haven’t been able to find a certain answer or at least one that does not lead me back to American exceptionalism and the flaws of the education system. I think it would not be an exaggeration to say that “When Mr. Pirzada Came to Dine” speaks to a lot of people. It is a story that touches at the nerve of multicultural problems, one that is so specific yet so broad, capable of being compared to people’s own narratives of living in multiple cultures.
Work Cited
Lahiri, Jhumpa. When Mr. Pirzada came to dine. Interpreter of Maladies, 1-7. 1999.