Creative Vision of Ruskin Bond

Abstract

Ruskin Bond s name immediately brings to mind the colourful images of the different newlineaspects of nature, the primordial and unsullied Himalayas in particular. In his stories newlinelooms the benevolent and brooding presence of the Himalayas described in an newlineinimitable lyrical prose. Reared in his Arcadian world of the Garhwal hills, newlinelandscaped with pine knolls, gurgling streams and wild flowers, he writes softly, with newlinehis gentle and lucid prose, the nostalgic stories of quaint bazaars, remote railway newlinestations and small towns. From the window of his bedroom-cum-study, he looks at the newlinestretch of mountains covered with silver oak and pine. He observes all the goings-on newlinein the street below, to later become inspiration for his writings. He writes with a quiet newlinecharm about everyday events, capturing the changing colours of the mountains and newlinethe Doon Valley with an astonishing ease. In a small cottage of Mussoorie, with no newlinemodern gadgetry, it is obvious that Bond leads a spartan life. newlineAmongst all the contemporary high-profile writers, Ruskin Bond is a newlinesomewhat old-fashioned low-profile writer who sells on merit and not on hype. In a newlinecareer spanning more than five decades, Bond has sketched a unique literary newlinelandscape of simple but dignified prose. The result is that he is among those writers in newlineEnglish whose works are enjoyed by the young and the old alike. He enjoys a newlinecommitted readership for being a writer with a difference. He is different for His newlineliterature looks untainted like a clear stream of nature flowing through the dark caves newlineof the modern world (Singh, 7). Ruskin Bond is considered the most successful newlinefreelancer in India because he remains stuck to his pen and paper against all odds. newlineBond has also got his share in giving a new dimension to children s literature, newlinebesides short fiction. In India the . . . paucity of good contemporary children s newlineliterature has driven generations of young minds into the exciting but alien world of newlinethe Famous Five, Billy Bunter, or Nancy Drew (Singh 228). Bond s reputation as a newlinechildr