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Unit 11: Next Sunday by R K Narayan

11.4 Adaptations Notes

Narayan’s book The Guide was adapted to film as Guide, a Hindi movie directed by Vijay
Anand. An English-language version was also released. Narayan was not happy with the way
the film was made and its deviation from the book; he wrote a column in Life magazine,
“The Misguided Guide,” criticising the film. The book was also adapted to a Broadway play by
Harvey Breit and Patricia Rinehart, and was staged at Hudson Theatre in 1968 with Zia Mohyeddin
playing the lead role and a music score by Ravi Shankar.

His novel Mr. Sampath was made into a Tamil film, Miss Malini, tarring Pushpavalli and
Kothamangalam Subbu. Gemini Studios also produced a Hindi version with Padmini and Motilal.
Another novel, The Financial Expert, was made into the Kannada movie Banker Margayya.
Actor-director Shankar Nag into the television series Malgudi Days adapted swami and Friends,
The Vendor of Sweets and some of Narayan’s short stories. Narayan was happy with the
adaptations and complimented the producers for sticking to the storyline in the books.

11.5 Division of Essays

R K Narayan’s essays have been divided into three sections. The First group of short essays
(Earlier Essays) was written over the earlier stages of Narayan’s non-fiction carrier from
1930s to 1950s. The second group of short essays (Middle Period Essays) was written from
1950s to 1970s. The third stage of short essays (Later Period Essays) was written 1970s to 1990s.
All these essays have been brought together under the rubric ‘The World of the Writer’.

Task Make a list of all the awards and accolades that Narayan was bestowed with
during his entire lifetime.

Critique of R K Narayan’s Prose Essays

Let us study the prose essays of R K Narayan, section-wise/group wise.

11.5.1 Early Essays

Narayan wrote these essays during the late 1930s to 1950s for his weekly column in the Hindu.
They are all set in the South India of Narayan’s early years and showcase his ability to charm
etch the characteristics of the world around him. They provide insights into Narayan’s
protagonists- the middle class common man. They are written in a light-vein.

11.5.2 Next Sunday

Next Sunday is a collection of weekly essays by R K Narayan published in 1960. The book
provides insights into Narayan’s writings and perspectives and the protagonists of his works -
the middle class common man. The book also includes his reflections on the themes of and
actions in his novels and short stories.
Next Sunday is the first essay in “Writerly Life”. Here, R K Narayan says that everyone looks
forward to Sunday. It is a day on which there are many things to do. A man plans to do the work
of 48 hours that day. He wants to get up late. However, he is disturbed and gets up in a disappointed
mood. It is not a good way to start the day. The charm of the day is lost at the very start. By the
time he begins his work, the Sunday nearly has gone. He begins to notice the things in the house.

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