Seengawale Gadhe

Meeting and talking to Prem Janamejay, one never feels that he is a traveler well-versed in the art of satire. The same was true of Shrilal Shukla. He never used the weapon of satire in his conversations. He is a master of satire who always masks his slanted gaze with the lens of gentleness, amusement, and reticence.Some people believe that satirists are a kind of cartoonist, who see the world as crooked. This is a completely wrong notion. Just as poetry, short stories, novels, plays, and essays are literary genres, satire and humor are also genres of satire. In weak hands, these might have become grotesque and vulgar, but Prem Janamejay never ventures into those realms. He engages in satire in the tradition of Harishankar Parsai, Sharad Joshi, and Shrilal Shukla. For him, satire is a serious work and a reflection that allows him to shed light on the inconsistencies of society and the contradictions of the times. A time of change brings convenience as well as a period of transition.Prem Janamejay has chosen his literary genre with great wisdom and deep study. No matter how much the satire genre is attacked, everyone knows that no work can be readable without satire and humor. A narrative element runs parallel in Premjis work. Within this web of narrative, he subtly accomplishes his work.Mamta Kalia