TITLE: A FINE BALANCE

A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry is perplexing towards the reader to interprete the title. Is it “fine” as
in “exquisite” or “fine” as in “delicate”? What exactly is being balanced? As the reader works through the
novel, however, the title assumes more and more significance. It is not a simple title, but rather one that
encompasses many of the events that occur in this unnamed Indian city. It is a place of great volatility. The
government is oppressive and can quickly change one’s life. This is reflected in the title, “A Fine Balance,”
suggesting that it takes only a small occurrence to upset the order of things. Like the picture on the cover, life
in this city is like standing on a slim pole: it can collapse due to the slightest happening. The title is developed
throughout the book through Mistry’s use of contrast between the city and country, the back and forth
relationship of Dina and Nusswan, and through the portrayal of characters whose lives change drastically due to
the smallest events.
One of the ways that Mistry illustrates the meaning of the title is through his use of comparison. He
compares the city to the country, and ultimately portrays both negatively, leaving the reader craving a sort of
geographical “balance” between the two regions. In the beginning of the novel, Omprakash and Ishvar wish to
escape from the caste violence of their village. The reader, who already has developed a soft spot for these two,
is hopeful for Om and Ishvar’s future. It seems as though the city will present new hope for these two tailors.
Unfortunately, this is not the case. Just as there were problems in their rural village, there are problems in their
new urban landscape. While there were many tribulations in the city, one that symbolizes the struggles of
Ishvar and Om perfectly was the destruction of their residence. Just as their hopes and dreams can easily be
destroyed, so can their home. After the Controller of Slums bulldozes their house, Ishvar asks, “But how can
they destroy our homes, just like that?” Ishvar, still optimistic and somewhat naive, expects a certain amount of
stability in his life. He expects that his house can remain standing, along with his dreams. Unfortunately, as
the reader will come to understand, their dreams will end up as rubble. They too will be destroyed by the
government, just as their homes were. The reader is starting to get the feeling that a “balance” between the city
and the country may be impossible.
To further develop this idea that the duo cannot strike a balance between city and country, Mistry uses
irony. Foolishly, the reader gains some hope back when Ishvar and Om plan to return to their native village to
find a suitable wife for Om. Despite the evidence that no locality will yield success for these two, the reader is
optimistic at the opportunity for Om’s marriage. The reader finally fully grasps the impossibility of escape
when Om bumps into his old rival, Thakur Dharamsi who orders his castration. Ironically, their trip to their
rural village to find a wife for Om ends in Om’s ineligibility for marriage. The reader has now fully grasped the
necessity for a “fine balance” between the city and the country as Ishvar and Om can’t seem to find escape in
either.
The relationship between Dina and Nusswan is the second way that Mistry helps to develop his title, “A
Fine Balance.” Nusswan is a character that is very difficult to pinpoint. While many readers may cite that he is
evil due to his greed, it cannot be denied that he takes care of Dina when she needs it. In the beginning of the
book, the reader may suspect that Nusswan is evil, especially after their strangely sexual interaction when “he
was eyeing her strangely, and she grew afraid.” However, Nusswan also tries to find a suitable husband for his
sister, and financially supports her throughout the novel. It is difficult to consider Nusswan evil as he “had been
faithfully putting money aside for Dina’s wedding” and thinks that his sister “had grown into a beautiful young
woman” and “deserved nothing less than the best.” The idea of balance continues to be developed through
Nusswan and Dina: Nusswan does many bad things, but also many good things to Dina. It appears as if there is
some type of balance to this relationship and the reader is yet again hopeful that this relationship will balance
out even more and the two of them can be happy. Unfortunately, as Mistry is intent on pointing out, no balance
can exist in this world, and by the end of the book it is evident that neither sibling is happy. Dina has
disappointed Nusswan by not being married and Dina has become completely reliant on Nusswan for housing.
It is clear that the balanced relationship that the reader craved so much at the beginning of the novel is an
impossibility, and Nusswan and Dina will forever live in a crushed relationship.
The final way that Mistry develops the meaning of the title is through his portrayal of the fragile state of
life in the novel. The one central example of this is the year of happiness living in Dina’s house. In this house,
the four central characters, Maneck, Dina, Ishvar and Om, lived together happily. They created fond memories,
and the reader was filled with a sense of hope for the future. It appeared that, finally, these characters had
struck the “fine balance” that they were all searching for so desperately. Everything seemed like it might be all
right. Of course, in this society nothing can balance like this forever, and as suddenly as it started, the happy
foursome fell apart in a seemingly brief period of time. While the reader was hopeful that the four characters
could return to Dina’s flat after their respective vacations, this did not even come close to reality.
Ishvar and Om were vasectomized, losing all hope for Om’s marriage, Maneck goes to Dubai, and Dina
and the very flat itself are disbanded because of Dina’s eviction. The balance was very fragile for that one
happy year, but it had to end, and end it did. Mistry also portrays the volatility of life through Avinash and his
family. Avinash, a young and healthy boy, is killed by the government for speaking out. While this is of course
unjust, it is not the greatest example of the imbalance in this society. Avinash’s three sisters, after learning of
Avinash’s death killed themselves in order to, “spare their mother and father the shame of three unmarried
daughters.” (584) This illustrates the fundamental imbalance in Indian society: the sharp discrepancy between
the values of boys and girls. This imbalance has been present in India for centuries due to the societal norm of a
dowry. The final way in which Mistry portrays the imbalances in this world is the suicide of Maneck. To the
reader, Maneck appears to be the most well off, at least financially. By the end of the book he is neither
crippled nor dependent on someone else for security. It seems to the reader that Maneck might be able to
escape the horrible fates of the other characters. Unfortunately, Maneck’s sanity is like the child on the cover.
It is such a “fine balance” and upon learning about Avinash’s sisters and seeing Ishvar and Om in their lowly
condition, it proves too much for Maneck and he jumps in front of a train. The nature of life in the novel is a
truly fine balance, nearly impossible to sustain.
India in the 1970’s was a terribly difficult place to live, particularly as illustrated in the novel.
Everything is subject to change for the worse at just a moment’s notice. It takes tremendous effort, soul, and
some luck to achieve the sort of balance that the four main characters had at Dina’s flat. However, this was
temporary, as are all forms of balance in the novel, and every character met a tragic fate.