3. Who was the lead actor in the film and why was he so
important to Sambu?
Answers
Answer:
In A Shadow by R.K. Narayan we have the theme of grief, letting go, struggle, connection, loss, acceptance, loneliness and memories. Taken from his Malgudi Days collection the story is narrated in the third person by an unnamed narrator and after reading the story the reader realises that Narayan may be exploring the theme of letting go. Both Sambu and his mother have difficulty letting Sambu’s father go. Though Narayan never tells the reader how long it is since Sambu’s father passed away Sambu and his mother still nonetheless have difficulty in moving on from the past. Which is understandable as the loss of a parent or husband can be a struggle for an individual. It also appears as though Sambu is trying to overcome the loss of his father and the struggle he feels about his father’s death by returning continually to the cinema to see his father’s last film. The reader aware that Sambu likes to see his father on the cinema screen. It provides Sambu with a link or connection to his father. Even though the reality is that all Sambu has is memories of his father. Regardless of this the images of his father on the cinema screen help Sambu to forget that his father has died. It is as though Sambu can forget about his loss for a small period of time when he is looking at his father acting on the screen.
It is also interesting that Sambu’s mother faints on sight of her husband on the screen as this suggests that she is unable to fully process what is happening. Though the film is fiction the reality of seeing her husband on the screen is too much for Sambu’s mother. She is likening events in reality and at home with Sambu’s father to events that are happening on the screen. Just as Sambu is making a connection each time he sees his father on the screen. So too is Sambu’s mother. However Sambu’s mother does not feel the joy that Sambu feels when he sees his father. If anything Sambu’s mother is distraught hence her fainting. It might also be important that Sambu wants to see the film twice a day as not only does this again suggest that Sambu wants to connect with his father but it also further highlights the fact that Sambu may be having difficulty or struggling with letting his father go. As to why Sambu’s mother avoids the cinema is also interesting as there is a sense that she is unable to accept that her husband is dead. When she does go to the cinema the reader feels that she is doing so more for Sambu’s sake than for her own