The Hungry Tide

Piya and Fokir travel slowly to Lusibari. They eventually make landfall, and Fokir escorts her to the hospital before leaving. Piya has “an icy feeling of abandonment” (153). Kanai’s aunt greets her at the door and takes her to see Kanai. Piya tells them of her days with Fokir and Tutul, and of finding the dolphins. Piya had hoped there would be a hotel nearby, but Nilima tells her the only place to stay is in the guesthouse with Kanai. Piya agrees, but is happy to see that her door locks.

Nirmal’s journal. Several weeks have passed since Nirmal and Horen travelled to Morichjhapi. Horen visits Nirmal and informs him that there is to be a feast in Morichjhapi, with “writers, intellectuals, journalists” from Kolkata (157). Nilima hears of this and asks Nirmal not to attend, out of fear for his safety. He goes regardless, marveling at the “show of plenty” (158) he sees from the very poor refugee settlers. Kusum tells him the bulk of the food came from the river. The city people are duly impressed and promise to support the settlers.

Piya sits in her guest room, thinking again of her terrifying encounter with the crocodile. She goes downstairs for dinner and meets Moyna. She “feels a twinge of envy” (163) for the woman and her relationship with Fokir. She and Kanai converse, and they get to know each other better. She learns he is 42 and single, a speaker of six languages, including Arabic. He reveals that he once wanted to translate poetry, but that his current position offers greater economic reward. She goes up to bed.

Nirmal’s journal. One day, Horen brings Kusum to Lusibari, surprising Nirmal. Horen explains that Kusum has come to enlist Nilima in the efforts to support the settlers. Nirmal stays with little Fokir as the two women speak. He tells Fokir to imagine what this island looked like when it was first inhabited, how the early settlers of Lusibari battled against constant storms in order to create their homes. He tells Fokir about the worst storm of all, in 1737. The water, he says, was higher than the roof is now. Thousands of animals were drowned. Then, shortly afterwards, an earthquake struck. Fokir asks if such a thing could happen again, and Nirmal replies that it could.

Piya goes in search of Fokir, to pay him. Moyna finds him and brings him to see Piya. Piya, using Moyna as a translator, tells Fokir she would like to “give a gift to the family” (173) and presents him with money, which Moyna takes from her. Fokir does not participate in the conversation, which irks Piya. She asks Kanai to take over translation. Through Kanai, she tells Fokir that she’d like to hire him—on salary—to take her out to study the dolphins. Fokir agrees. Moyna is overjoyed at the prospect of steady money, but is puzzled as to why an educated scientist would want help from an illiterate man. Piya explains that she needs someone who knows the river. They will start tomorrow.

Nirmal’s journal. Nilima is “none too pleased by Kusum’s visit” (177). The land does not belong to the refugees, she says, and she is worried about the legality of assisting them. She reminds Nirmal that they are only in Lusibari because he got into trouble with the government. She won’t let all she’s worked for—the hospital, the Trust—be destroyed. She orders him to stay away from Morichjhapi. Nirmal feels torn between “the quiet persistence of everyday change and the heady excitement of revolution—between prose and poetry” (179).

Piya goes to visit Kanai in his uncle’s study. They watch the sunset together, and Kanai expresses concern over Piya being alone with the “peculiar, sulky” Fokir for several days (181). Piya asks about Fokir’s past, and Kanai tells her what he knows. Both she and Fokir, Piya learns, had mothers who died when they were children. Piya notes that Kanai does not think highly of Fokir, and Kanai admits that he sympathizes far more with Moyna, saddled with an odd husband who can’t provide. Fokir appears, interrupting them. Through Kanai, he tells Piya that Horen Naskor will be on their research boat tomorrow.

Nirmal’s journal. Horen comes to tell Nirmal that Kusum and Fokir are making a pilgrimage to an island called Garjontola, deep in the jungle, where Kusum’s father built a shrine to Bon Bibi. Nirmal agrees to accompany them, but does not tell his wife. They arrive at Morichjhapi to pick up Kusum and Fokir, but the village is clearly “under strain” (184). Kusum explains that the government is trying to force the settlers out, and she is worried for their safety. At the jungle shrine (the same one Piya and Fokir will visit many years later), Kusum and Fokir make offerings and pray. When they return to Morichjhapi, they find “the rumors have been confirmed” (186). Government soldiers will attack the island the following day.

Kanai and Piya eat dinner together. They discuss her interest in dolphins, and she tells him that once, there had been dolphins and whales in Calcutta. In 1852, a sudden river surge sent all kinds of sea life into the wetlands around Calcutta. A visiting British scientist tried to capture some whales to kill and dissect, but the local people set them free. She tells him about the discovery of her particular species of dolphin, in the 1870s. Wanting to spend more time with her, Kanai offers to come along on her expedition as a translator, and she reluctantly agrees.

Nirmal’s journal. Kusum explains to Nirmal why the jungle island shrine is so important to her. Before she was born, her father was caught in a storm and washed up on Garjontola. He tied himself to a tree to prevent being swept into the river and heard the voice of Bon Bibi telling him he would be saved. While on the island, Nirmal recalls that he saw dolphins unlike any he had ever seen before.