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NARRATIVES
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connecting thread. In one, each pilgrim of the group of pilgrims tells a tale. In the second it is the princess condemned to die in the morning tells her tale, in the third, King Vikramaditya, taking the body of Vaital to the place of destination hears the tale of Vaital and is forced to answer his questions. In the last, Buddha tells the tales of his previous lives. In Miracles Do Still Happen, similarly, the loose frame is the frame of conversation between Asit and his American interlocutor. Barbara is curious about the possibilities of miracles in modern times and Asit narrates to her the miracles that he has himself witnessed.
Dilip Roy introduces his characters to his readers by describing their physical appearance. Introducing Bimla Devi and her beloved daughter, Mandira, he writes:
"Bimla Devi, though a beautiful woman, was not fair. She was what we call shyamli: that is, almost dark in complexion. In our country such beauties are not widely appreciated. So when she gave birth to Mandira-who, if anything, was a shade darker than herself-she could not repress a sigh. But as, with years, the little girl grew more and more lovely till she just dripped beauty and grace, her maternal disappointment gave place to thrilled delight, the more so as Mandira took to the Lord as birds take to the sky."18
Dilip Roy indicated gestures of his characters for their instant recognition. Asit's habit of smoking and going on thinking meditatively while smoking is frequently referred to with such sentences:
"Asit paused and blew a cloud of smoke meditatively."19 "Asit pulled at his cigar a little absently for a space."20 "Asit paused and pulled at his cigar meditatively for a few seconds"21
“Asit puffed meditatively at his cigar."22
Like Upward Spiral, one can find here both 'brunettes' and 'blondes' in the distinctive sense, suggested by Wellek and Warren. Kamala, Manju Devi, Sati's brother-in-low and sister-in-law and the Bengali actress can be classified as brunettes. While Sati, Mandira, and Annapurna can be called blondes. Roy's characters are simple and not complex, flat, not round. The characters are not clearly distinguishable from one another.
As this novel is allegedly subjective, the sketches of many characters can be considered autobiographical and biographical. Asit, the narrator, is Dilip Kumar Roy himself. Tapati, Asit's daughter-disciple, is Indira Devi. Their guru, Swayamananda, represents Sri Aurobindo. One can say Barbara stands for a real woman who met Dilip Roy in America and her name began with 'B' because
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