‘The Thinnai’ is a rollicking saga of the colourful past and present of Pondicherry
Scroll.in
An excerpt from ‘The Thinnai’, Ari Gautier, translated from the French by Blake Smith.
Continue reading: https://scroll.in/article/1006927/the-thinnai-is-a-rollicking-saga-of-the-colourful-past-and-present-of-pondicherry
Book Reviews by a Pioneer: The Thinnai by Ari Gautier (Translated from the French original by Blake Smith)
sanjay chandra, authorsanjaychandra.com
I first came across the term Thinnai last year in a novel by a friend – it means a shaded verandah at the entrance to a home. I could not resist my temptation to read a novel named The Thinnai – was the verandah a lead character in the novel? I was not disappointed – the thinnai is indeed the lead prop where most of the action takes place.
Continue reading: https://authorsanjaychandra.com/2022/01/12/book-reviews-by-a-pioneer-the-thinnai-by-ari-gautier-translated-from-the-french-original-by-blake-smith/
A million stars and more for this book please!
rebel arunaa, rebelarunaa.wordpress.com
Reading The Thinnai brought back fond memories of my gallivanting about in Madagascar, Mauritius and the Reunion 2 years ago. I am a lover of island life. The islanders sense of music and rhythm is indeed captivating.
Continue reading: https://rebelarunaa.wordpress.com/2021/10/01/le-thinnai-the-thinnai-by-ari-gautier-translated-by-blake-smith/
Ari Gautier’s The Thinnai breaks new ground in Franco-Indian Dalit writing
Dr Chinnadevi Singadi, The Punch magazine
The Franco-Indian Dalit novelist portrays the life and times of Dalit communities in the postcolonial world…
Continue reading: https://thepunchmagazine.com/the-byword/review/ari-gautier-amp-rsquo-s-the-thinnai-breaks-new-ground-in-franco-indian-dalit-writing
Time Travel: Of thinnai, the Stone of Sita and a Pondicherry that was an ‘artificial paradise’
neha kirpal, The new Indian express
The book is beautifully translated from the French original by Blake Smith, a historian who specialises in the cultural exchange between France and India…
A window to a melting pot of confused cultures
Anamika A, The hindu businesss Line
Ari Gautier’s The Thinnai takes you on a delightful journey into the mindset of a former French colony…
Continue reading: https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/books/reviews/fiction/a-window-to-a-melting-pot-of-confused-cultures/article37415607.ece
Set in South India, The Thinnai and The Grand Anicut share a common thread of time travel and intertwining histories
Bindu Menon, The tribune
THINNAI, which in Tamil means a shaded verandah, is the organic setting for Ari Gautier’s eponymous novel. It is from this thinnai of a house in a working class suburb…
On a verandah, retracing Pondicherry’s past through a mysterious diamond
IANS, The statesman
Masterfully translated from the French original by Blake Smith, Ari Gautier’s “The Thinnai” (Hachette) offers a panoramic view of Pondicherry’s past, the whimsical eccentricities of its present and shines a light on the quirks of history that come to define us….
Continue reading: https://www.thestatesman.com/books-education/verandah-retracing-pondicherrys-past-mysterious-diamond-1503001201.html
Diamond and rust
Geeta Doctor, The Hindu
A boisterous look at the colourful Creole culture born of India’s contact with Europe…
Continue reading: https://www.thehindu.com/books/diamond-and-rust-geeta-doctor-reviews-ari-gautiers-the-thinnai/article36891799.ece
PAPER FRENCHMEN: FRANCOPHONE INDIAN LITERATURE
Natasha ryan, adventures on the bookshelf
In late November, Oxford welcomed the writer Ari Gautier and his translator into English, Prof. Blake Smith, for a discussion about Francophone Indian Literature and about Gautier’s writing in particular. Part of the ‘World Literatures’ strand of the Creative Multilingualism programme, this event was convened by Prof. Jane Hiddleston and Sheela Mahadevan. Here we reflect on a few highlights…
Continue reading: https://bookshelf.mml.ox.ac.uk/2019/12/04/paper-frenchmen-francophone-indian-literature/
Unseen, rarely read but still present: The persistence of French writing by Indians
Adrija roychowdhury, The Indian express
French has been a South Asian language since the 17th century, when agents of the French East India Company and French travellers arrived in India…
Continue reading: https://indianexpress.com/article/research/unseen-unread-the-sad-story-of-french-writing-by-indians-7488139/
“Nocturne Pondichéry” par Ari Gautier
inde-en-livres
“Nul ne peut empêcher la nuit de tomber” et c’est justement à cette heure “entre chien et loup” que l’auteur et poète Ari Gautier a décidé de nous faire découvrir la ville de sa jeunesse, Pondichéry, à travers sept enchanteresses nouvelles. La ville apparaît à son lecteur sous une autre dimension, différente que les scènes se déroulant en plein jour, presque irréel et pourtant si authentique…
Continue reading: https://www.inde-en-livres.fr/post/nocturne-pondich%C3%A9ry-par-ari-gautier
Temple elephant Lakshmi, the protagonist of French fiction
Annie Philip, The hindu
Ari Gautier weaves a story around her highlighting the hypocrisy of society…
Continue reading: https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/puducherry/Temple-elephant-Lakshmi-the-protagonist-of-French-fiction/article13987993.ece
CARNET SECRET DE LAKSHMI DE ARI GAUTIER
Véronique-Atasi, Overblog
Vous l’avez peut-être croisé mais avez-vous pris le temps de la regarder ? Voir un instant son regard triste et mélancolique ? Avez-vous essayé de deviner à quoi elle pense ? A quoi elle rêve ? Avez-vous songé une seconde qu’elle est plus qu’une attraction pour amuser les touristes et satisfaire les pèlerins ? Qu’elle a une âme comme tout être vivant ? Une âme avec des envies, des rêves, des blessures, une histoire, un parcours. Un être sensible, fragile et qui aspire à la liberté ? Une liberté sans chaînes, sans horaires et sans contrainte, loin de la ville, à l’air libre dans une forêt, à être parmi les siens…
Continue reading: http://atasi.over-blog.com/2015/11/carnet-secret-de-lakshmi-de-ari-gautier.html
PAPER FRENCHMEN: FRANCOPHONE INDIAN LITERATURE
Natasha Ryan, Adventures on the bookshelf
In late November, Oxford welcomed the writer Ari Gautier and his translator into English, Prof. Blake Smith, for a discussion about Francophone Indian Literature and about Gautier’s writing in particular. Part of the ‘World Literatures’ strand of the Creative Multilingualism programme, this event was convened by Prof. Jane Hiddleston and Sheela Mahadevan. Here we reflect on a few highlights…
Continue reading: https://bookshelf.mml.ox.ac.uk/tag/francophone/
LE THINNAI D’ARI GAUTIER
Véronique-Atasi, Overblog
Deux ans après “Carnet Secret de Lakshmi’ où la parole a été donnée à l’éléphante du temple de Sri Manakula Vinayagar dédié à Ganesh, Ari Gautier nous transporte une nouvelle fois à Pondichéry. Dans son nouveau roman – fruit d’un travail de quatre années -, il nous fait découvrir la ville de son enfance non pas à travers l’œil avisé d’un éléphant (ou d’un tout autre animal) mais à travers un lieu caractéristique des maisons tamoules, un thinnai dont vous trouverez son illustration sur la couverture. Pourtant, Ari Gautier n’a pas choisi n’importe quel thinnai pour son nouveau roman, il a choisi le thinnai de son enfance, celui qui l’a nourrit et qui l’a vu grandir pour devenir l’homme qu’il est devenu….
Continue reading: http://atasi.over-blog.com/2018/01/le-thinnai-d-ari-gautier.html
Les éléphants ça trompent énormément !
INterview
Nous vous présentons Ari Gautier, auteur d’un très beau roman qui met en scène des animaux comme personnages principaux. L’éléphante (Lakshmi, l’héroïne) nous fait part de ses pensées les plus profondes et nous dévoile l’Inde et plus particulièrement Pondichéry qui a abrité son enfance et verra son âge adulte.
Continue reading: http://www.lireetdecouvrir.com/2017/09/ari-gautier-auteur.html
Ari Gautier 