You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Urmila Pawar identifies as Dalit, Buddhist and feminist, and each of these identities is visible in this collection of short stories written over the course of several years. Each of the stunning stories features strong women protagonists who have to deal with issues at the intersection of misogyny and systemic oppression. These women are not victims, though society forces victimhood on them- even the most docile of them has an awakening, and they asset their rights when they need to. Almost all the stories have a twist at the end, and even though after the first few stories you start expecting it, the end is satisfying all the same.
Some of the stories have autobiographical elements, and feature Dalit women who moved from the village to the town in search of a better lifestyle. But that is not the norm. The protagonists include rural and urban women, educated and uneducated women, working women and non-working women, women in poverty and women from the middle class. In fact, in a few stories, the caste location of the protagonists is left ambiguous, and one is a retelling of an ancient Buddhist story.
What is common to the women in all the stories is that they deal with a patriarchal society which attempts to silence them and take away their agency. In some of the stories, a child who is being sent to school judges their older family members harshly, but eventually comes to realise that the women know how to take care of themselves.
Do read this book to get a snapshot of some of the invisible issues that women face. The translation retains some of the flavour of the original Marathi, and the meaning of the words that were left untouched could be understood from the context.
Some of the stories have autobiographical elements, and feature Dalit women who moved from the village to the town in search of a better lifestyle. But that is not the norm. The protagonists include rural and urban women, educated and uneducated women, working women and non-working women, women in poverty and women from the middle class. In fact, in a few stories, the caste location of the protagonists is left ambiguous, and one is a retelling of an ancient Buddhist story.
What is common to the women in all the stories is that they deal with a patriarchal society which attempts to silence them and take away their agency. In some of the stories, a child who is being sent to school judges their older family members harshly, but eventually comes to realise that the women know how to take care of themselves.
Do read this book to get a snapshot of some of the invisible issues that women face. The translation retains some of the flavour of the original Marathi, and the meaning of the words that were left untouched could be understood from the context.
I read this as a part of the #2025indiantranslationreadathon, where we will attempt to read a book translated from each of the official languages of India during the course of the year.