Thamima Anam’s Golden Age is a well-liked novel. It is similar to the novels such as Monika Ali’s Brick Lane and Sadi Smith’s white teeth. Nowadays Thamima Anam is living at London.
She mentioned in an interview with BBC how the incidents that happened in her family gave spirit to the novel. Golden Age says how a mother’s life who is Rohana got changed with the war. Anam told that she was planning to write it with the changes in political leader’s lives. But she changed her plan. Golden Age describes how people are affected by war.
“It was very interesting for me to write about this war and impacts.” she said. All her family members were attached to this war anyhow. Some joined in Gorilla organization. Some were freedom fighters and others joined with student organizations.
When there was war in Bangladesh that means before 36 years all were fighting against enemies without any religious and race differences. But the current reality says that there is a huge religious fanaticism.
The major character Rohana was Anam’s grandma in the real life. “Rohana’s husband was killed in 1950s. But she hadn’t married anyone after that. One day a few freedom fighters entered into the garden and hided some weapons. After a few months they came and brought the weapons with them. But it became as an unforgettable incident in her life because they forgot to fill the bunger that they used to hide the weapons. Some army members noticed it and asked “why did you put up a bunger?” So Rohana told that they wanted to make a well. But the army members went into the home and asked the same question with Rohana’s son. Fortunately he also replied the same lie. But anyone didn’t think that a day will come like this. Anyhow they all escaped from that situation.
There is lot of real incidents like this in Golden Age. Anam interviewed people who are affected by war. Golden Age represents not only Bangladesh also other countries which faced war.
