Attack of the Clones

Fast forward to a bizarre time where sex is outdated and science rules

Generation 14
Priya Sarukkai Chabria,
Penguin, Rs 295

What will life be like in the 24th century? Will humans fall victim to aliens, will clones take over and creatures with artificial intelligence rule? Is mankind headed for certain disaster? Priya Sarukkai Chabria has bravely attempted to tackle all these complicated questions in her ambitious second novel, Generation 14. But, despite the writer8217;s vivid imagination and elegant prose, it mostly reads like mumbo jumbo psychobabble that8217;s tough for a non-sci-fi junkie to comprehend. Yet, if her scientific nuggets don8217;t completely confuse you, Chabria8217;s dazzling flashes of brilliance come by at regular intervals.

The story goes back and forth, as a 14th generation clone has the unique power of gazing into the past into several previous lives, before science discovered the vast powers of DNA. To Chabria8217;s credit, she has created a large canvas of the future and raised some uncomfortable questions about humanity, but she is unable to string them together tightly and the novel lapses into confusion every few pages. Characters mingle, sort themselves out and, then, somehow lose steam along the way.

Chabria8217;s interpretation of the world three centuries from now is grim, despite scientific progress. It is a virtual world, where people or rather clones mirror each other and individuality is scorned at. Earth has been taken over by clones and the few remaining Originals are used only to create more clones. Sex is outdated, and mating is a pre-historic ritual. Organ banks thrive instead to propagate the species.

In this bizarre time where grief does not exist, the 14th generation clone is faced with volatile emotions 8212; of love, lust and longing 8212; that he is ill equipped to deal with. He lurks more and more in his previous avatars, than in the now. But as his powers to see the past improve, he tries to make sense of his present. And there Chabria loses the plot; in one life, the clone is a parrot, madly in love with his owner, the mistress of a decadent nawab. In another, recurring memories of a fox haunt the clone. Chabria attempts to explore identity by quoting Buddhism somewhere in between and draws vague parallels between Ashoka and spiritual development.

Although there are no wars and weapons, the clones that develop feelings are plagued by unhappiness. It8217;s not clear if Chabria is trying to celebrate individuality or make a desperate plea for humans to resolve conflicts before we all become extinct.
The novel even makes brief references to key events in Indian history, but a crucial link is missing in Chabria8217;s account of human failing; what happens between the 21st and 24th centuries that changes earth so drastically? Did climate-change deform the Originals and lead to widespread cloning? Strangely, Chabria steers clear of environmental destruction, a key area for sci-fi writers when they talk about the end of mankind. Eventually, the clone claims her birthright to be human. Nothing to beat the originals, at the end of it all.