>GreenC bot at 19:33, 21 April 2021

2021-04-21T19:33:41Z

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{{Infobox short story
| name = ''An Astrologer's Day''
| title_orig =
| translator =
| author = [[R. K. Narayan]]
| country = [[India]]
| language = [[English language|English]]
| series =
| genre = [[thriller (genre)|Thriller]], [[short story]], [[suspense]]
| published_in = [[India]]
| publisher = [[Indian Thought Publications]]
| media_type = Print
| pub_date = 1947
| english_pub_date =
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
}}

'''An Astrologer's Day''' is a [[thriller (genre)|thriller]], [[suspense]] [[short story]] by author [[R. K. Narayan]]. While it had been published earlier, it was the titular story of Narayan's fourth collection of short stories<ref name=Fallon2013>{{cite book|last1=Fallon|first1=Erin|last2=Feddersen|first2=R.C.|last3=Kurtzleben|first3=James|last4=Lee|first4=Maurice A.|last5=Rochette-Crawley|first5=Susan|title=A Reader's Companion to the Short Story in English|date=31 October 2013|publisher=Routledge|location=New York, NY|isbn=1-57958-353-9|page=304|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6XXhAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA304&dq=%22an+astrologer%27s+day%22&hl=en&sa=X&ei=iUrtUqbHN8XzoAT88YDACA&ved=0CDAQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=%22an%20astrologer%27s%20day%22&f=false}}</ref> published in 1947 by [[Indian Thought Publications]].<ref>A Treasure Trove of Short Stories, by S.Chakravarthi, p-3</ref> It was the first chapter of the world famous collection of stories [[Malgudi Days (book)|Malgudi Days]] which was later telecasted on television in 2006.<ref name="Malgudi Days article from a major Indian newspaper">{{cite news|url=http://www.hindu.com/fr/2006/05/12/stories/2006051200560400.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100112140543/http://www.hindu.com/fr/2006/05/12/stories/2006051200560400.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 12, 2010|title=Malgudi Days on DD1|date=May 12, 2006|work=[[The Hindu]]|accessdate=2009-08-28}}</ref>

Fallon and et al. described the work as "a model of economy without leaving out the relevant detail."<ref name=Fallon2013 /> Themes found in ''An Astrologer's Day'' recur frequently throughout Narayan's work. The story was adapted into a 2019 [[Kannada]] movie ''Gara''.<ref>https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/kannada/movie-reviews/gara/movie-review/69155386.cms</ref><ref>https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/reviews/gara-movie-review-an-amateur-attempt/articleshow/69168811.cms</ref>

==Publications==
* [[Indian Thought Publications]] (1947)
* [[National Publishing House]] (2010)
* [[Frank Bros. & Co.]] (2009)

==Features of the story==
# The ironical fact about the protagonist is that a gambler and a murderer, who is ignorant of his own future has become an astrologer.
# The writer reveals how the only qualification needed to be an astrologer in India is [[saffron]] clothes, a few charts and [[tilak]] and a keen observation of human nature along with a presence of mind.
# The astrologer should have been greatly relieved that he is not a murderer after all and he has managed to put Guru Nayak off, and he should not have bothered about how much money he had received. Yet, when he realizes Nayak has cheated him of some money he is angry.<ref>Indispensable workbook, by Usha Nagpal, National Publication House, p-8</ref>

==Themes==
* Irony of fate
* Religion and blind faith
* Crime and Punishment
* Human Greed
*[[Karma]] (tit for tat)

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Astrologer's Day}}
[[Category:1947 short stories]]
[[Category:Indian Thought Publications books]]
[[Category:Short stories by R. K. Narayan]]
[[Category:Short stories adapted into films]]

An Astrologer's Day - Revision history

>GreenC bot at 19:33, 21 April 2021