Book Title: 912 Batu Road
Author: Viji Krishnamoorthy
Publisher: Clarity Publishing
Year published: 2021
ISBN: 978-967-17657-4-6
Price: RM39
Each day is marked by the grating sound of razor-sharp bayonets in practice combat and the dull thud of bodies falling to the ground as we go through our routine.
The plots and time stamps that occurred during World War II were what drew me to Viji Krishnamoorthy’s book, “912 Batu Road”. Always intrigued by the Japanese occupation, I decided to pick up this book on one of my bookstore visits.
Set in two different time periods — the 1940s and the 2010s — the book chiefly tells the story of two different races, the Chinese and the Indian, Tan Chin Nam and Rangaswamy Iyer, and their incoming generation.
When told in the 1940s, the stories flowed about the struggles and challenges that the people of Malaya faced during the war. Interestingly, parts of the book were written as fiction based on true incidents from the war, such as Singa the Lion of Malaya and Chin Peng, an anti-fascist guerilla fighter in the Malayan Peoples’ Anti-Japanese Army (MPAJA).
Krishnamoorthy also included a vivid recollection of how Chin Nam’s son, a part of the MPAJA, was tortured by the kempeitai (military police). The details, which she was able to describe minutely, were horrifying and serve as a resounding reminder of what the war can do to people.
The fights and sacrifices made by the families during the war evoked feelings of patriotism. Krishnamoorthy had made history interesting by relaying facts in a heartfelt manner. The stories in the book were a mix of heart-warming and heart-wrenching events, and they were a definite lesson to learn from the past.
Meanwhile, the stories from the 2010s were of Geeta, Rangaswamy’s granddaughter, who struggles with her father, who is biased towards everyone but the Brahmin community — of where they belonged.
Geeta is in a relationship with Ken, the grandson of Chin Nam, and her father is against it. Hence, the whole book set in the 2010s is a journey of discovery, of who she genuinely is, how she truly felt, and what provided her the strength to search for answers.
During her soul-searching period, her uncle gave her stacks of letters written by her grandfather to his father. There, she discovered the value of living a life rather than just passing through it.
Rangaswamy, her grandfather, had arrived in Malaya before the war in search of greener pastures. During his time here, he had encountered another being who was not of his culture for the first time. He’d met Tan, a Chinese who was in Malaya for the same reason.
Through the letters and stories, it described the relationship between two worlds, familiarising themselves with a different culture. There are many life lessons that Krishnamoorthy wants her readers to know from the book. Among these is the harmonious assimilation of cultures that is possible in Malaysia.
Before racism, different races united together to battle a common enemy. Before there were insurgencies, there was a community of Malayans with the spirit of adopting the new land as their own, who were willing to fight for a peaceful melting pot of a country no matter what.
With the meaning behind these stories revealed at the end of the book, Geeta’s father had finally realised what it meant to be a Malaysian in the 21st century. Though he was first concerned about what the Brahmin community in India would think of his daughter’s marriage due to caste, he ultimately chose her happiness over his prejudices.
What kept me turning the pages was how well Krishnamoorthy had crafted the passages. She had managed to include every detail of the war while also creating a love story in between, all while returning to a full circle of how and why it happened.
She had mentioned in her acknowledgement that the book had been kept for 15 years because she didn’t have the courage to publish it despite the lengthy and thorough research. To me, this is an understatement because she deserves full recognition for this thoroughly well-written book.
For those who are too lazy to read about Malaya’s history but are curious about it can pick up this book to learn more about the land we walk on.
