Pink elephants ‘n red roses

K S Sivakumaran

The fourth book by Lucky de Chickera is a collection of creative fiction and what is now called non-creative fiction containing 19 pieces of writing that may keep you reading and enjoy.

The book has 220 pages and is an author publication. The book is a compendium of both prose and verse.

Unlike some writers from this country who write for the foreign market, Lucky has truly Lankan locales and atmosphere in his writing.

I must confess that I could not finish reading all the stories and poems in this collection in time, but from what I read I would like to share one or two passages in such stories without critically commenting on the content and structure of each of the stories.

The purpose is to introduce the writer and his style of writing particularly to those young readers who want to acquaint themselves with the English language. In other words mine is only a selection of passages I like in appreciation so that the reader could be persuaded to love and understand the English language.

Before I do that let me give some background information about the writer and his previous published works. Lucky de Chickera has already published three books: A Tigress of Klinochchi, Poseidon’s Wrath, and Sarasu amidst slums of Terror.

You would notice that the writer is attempting to say something related to the people in the North.

That’s a good thing from my point of view, because most writers and critics in English do not bother much to write sincerely and honestly about their brethren who may not speak the language spoken by the majority of people in the island. If you have not read any of de Chickera’s books here is a brief note on them: taken from the blurbs: A Tigress of Kilinochchi---Ten short stories and one longer story concerning a young Tamil family caught up in the tragic travails of the Ethnic war. The mother is gang raped and murdered and the two daughters go different ways.

One seeking vengeance and the other extending forgiveness. Poseidon’s Wrath--- A story based in the December 2004 Tsunami where a fisher family in Hikkaduwa is devastated by the ire of the Sea God Poseidon and then fall into the clutches of international drug dealers and flesh traders. Sarasu--- amidst slums of Terror --- Sarasu an Indian girl child born in the horrendous slums of Dharavi to Indian parents who migrate to Wanathamulla, a Colombo slum is caught up in the July ’83 riots.

The story moves from Mafia murders to rituals and revenge and ends in a pulsating finale in the wilds of Mullaitivu jungles. This book was short listed for the Gratiaen Award and nominated for the State Literary Award for the year 2011.

Thus we see that the writer treats contemporary social issues in fictional form.
Let’s go back to the fourth book. What is it all about? The blurb says this:

'The Pink Elephant' is a Rugby Team comprising of some of the most colourful Sri Lankan rugby stalwarts of the ’60s, ‘70s and ‘ 80s who thereafter hung up their boots on the competitive game and banded themselves into a loosely knit team of coarse rugby players. The games narrated are anything but coarse, and relate to some of the fiercest incidents on field, and enjoyable, hilarious, and pleasurable off the field moments. The other stories are picked up from the author’s days at Royal to the exercising of his vivid imagination on the Super Natural”

Who is Lucky de Chickera? Does he belong to the well known Chickera family in Colombo? I really don’t know, but we learn that he has worked for over 43 years in Corporate Managerial Positions in the private sector in the country. In retirement he and his wife live in the suburbs of Colombo.

Samples of writing---

A conversation, I thought would be helpful to write dialogues and the uninitiated even to learn to speak. Here is a passage from the story “The Spectre of Nuwara Eliya” which the author describes as---

“A family holiday in the hills and a resultant experience with a selective super natural”. This is how the passage goes:

“… I as just about to close the book and give it back to Mannickam, when I froze, a I read a long entry that had been made in red ink, by a person who had signed off as ‘a scared guest’. I read the entry slowly and carefully, and re read it. Manickam who was standing by sensed that something had drawn my attention for I was reading and not flipping the pages.

“What is it Sir?” he asked me.

I looked up at him, “Manickam there is an entry here referring to some previous visitor’s experience which appears to be very similar to what we have gone through and I am going to read it to you”, and then again I went cold, as my eyes scanned the date on the top of the entry, it was exactly two years ago to the date. I was getting goose bumps all over my body and my mouth was dry, I gulped in air as my words were not coming out, try as I might to read the entry to Manickam. “Get me a glass of water,” I croaked, and Manickam hurried to the pantry and returned with a bottle and glass.

“What Sir, what is it, please tell me, I can’t read English,” Manickam said.
I am sure you will enjoy reading this book.

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