The Uprooted

The Uprooted is the English version of the well-known novel in Kannada entitled Vamshavriksha by the celebrated novelist Dr. S.L. Bhyrappa. This novel created a stir in the Kannada literary world, making its author a celebrity overnight. That is the magic, the hypnotic spell of this highly absorbing social novel depicting poignantly the human story of a young widow torn between her love and her child. The novel is the creative and artistic presentation of the psychological and philosophical dimensions of the genealogy as the preserver and the transmitter of cultural values and norms. In a family dominated by traditional values; the remarriage of the widowed daughter-in-law comes as a shocking external assault and the discovery of the real origins of the head of the household builds up the dramatic climax of this novel. Acclaimed by discerning critics as a modern Indian classic, this novel has been translated into several Indian languages – an eloquent testimony to its being truly a great Indian novel. This Kannada novel bagged the coveted literary award of the Karnataka State Akademy of Letters in 1967. The Kannada Film based on this novel won the prestigious Golden Lotus Award of the Government of India in 1972.