Kanthapura

In Chapter 16, the protests increase in the name of the Mahatma, and the people make songs and chants as they march. Despite increased government oppression, Moorthy’s legend continues to grow and village after village speaks of him. He appears in the papers and Kanthapura is deeply proud of their native son. Each day, the village comes to Moorthy and asks him what they should do next, and acts of civil disobedience continue to grow. Word spreads of the brutalities that those in prison for their activism have to endure, but this only strengthens the village’s resolve. The village’s next big test arrives when the government comes to collect taxes. The village refuses to pay in protest, and many people are beaten, including old women. A new beadle announces that a penalty tax will fall on every man, woman, and child in Kanthapura if they’re not paid, and new policemen will be sent to Kanthapura to enforce the laws. Moorthy advises his followers that the real test is only beginning and soon they will face opposition like never before.

Chapter 17 opens the next morning as the village is shocked to see an army of workers marched through the village, surrounded by armed policemen in an attempt to intimidate the village. The people of the village search for Moorthy to see what he wants them to do, but before they can find him, the Pariah quarter announces that Moorthy has been taken in the night. With so many of their leaders taken, the village is consumed by unrest and there is another bloody confrontation with police before the villagers escape. The police break into women’s homes and beat them in retaliation for their husband’s actions. Bhatta’s house is burned and the rebels who escape hide in the forest, lifting their spirits by telling tales of Hindu heroes. Now alone, with the men of the village arrested, the women are left to figure out what comes next for their movement without their leader.

In Chapter 18, the women debate whether to continue fighting. Many blame Moorthy for the misery the village is encountering now. However, the women are soon joined by boys from the city, and more and more come and join the Volunteers. They hear word that government institutions in many major cities are being closed out of fear of the rebels, and countless people who have been arrested are naming the Mahatma as their king. They report that whole cities are now controlled by the movement. Even some soldiers are starting to resist, not willing to shoot their countrymen. The women prepare a procession to march, and they are prepared to be attacked once again. Although the police soon gather and attempt to intimidate the women, they see that it’s a religious procession and let them pass, albeit staying close to them. As they march, more and more people join them—Hindus and Muslims, men and women, rich and poor, crossing caste lines. As they march on, they encounter more aggressive police and are beaten once again, but they stay strong and continue forward on their march. They arrive at the estate, and the coolies are there to defend them. A policeman shoots at a villager, and any hope of keeping the march peaceful is lost. A full riot soon emerges, and many men are shot. The ringleaders of the protest including Rangamma are arrested. It turns out that the start of the riot was a tragic misunderstanding, caused by a protester being startled by a loud sound they thought was a gunshot, but this is now irrelevant. Once the violence started, there was no going back. Rachanna’s wife, grieving the violence, vows to burn the village, and many women flee the village and settle down in the nearby village of Kashipura.

The final chapter takes place a year and two months after the events of the last chapter. Many people have settled into new lives, focusing once again on marriage, work, or family. Rangamma is to be released from prison soon, and the village awaits her return. The news says that the Mahatma has arranged a truce with the Viceroy and the resistance seems to be over. Nonetheless Achakka knows that things can never go back to how they were before. Moorthy was released as part of the truce, although he has not returned and no one is sure what has become of him. Many people wonder what the next step is, whether it be independence or something else. In the end, it was only Range Gowda who returned to Kanthapura to pay tribute to the goddess, and he reports back that the village has been taken over by men from Bombay. Even the loyalists like Venkamma have left.