by Thrity Umrigar
An enticing read that is a deep look into modern day Bombay and life of woman. The book is written as a series of flashbacks telling the story of Sera, a privileged Parsi living in an extravagant apartment and Bhima, her Hindu servant who resides in the slum. The story leads us into learning how deeply the lives of these two women are intertwined. Bhima has been treated very kindly by her mistress and Bhima is the only person who shares the secrets of her mistresses tormented and abusive home. I enjoyed the story and the raw emotion you feel as you read about the lives of these two woman. On a much broader canvas, it's a stark reminder of what ills can penetrate even a democratic society if corruption, greed, and the elements that contribute to a disappearing middle class go unchecked. It's a good reminder of how crafty human beings can be in convincing themselves of the justification for prejudice, so much so that it becomes a part of us that we can't even see our own contribution in prorogating a prejudice world. Personally, I was not fond of Serabai and found her generosity to be self aggrandizing and really pretentiousness in disguise. Bhima's character was so sad and the image of her will remain in my mind for a long time. The ending is left open for the reader to imagine if and how these two women will recover after learning a very dark secret that binds them forever.
1 comment:
This sounds really good. Have you read any Rohinton Mistry or Jhumpa Lahiri? In both "a Fine Balance" and "Interpreter of Maladies" they explore the caste system and those whose lives it affects. So interesting, depressing, and unimaginable all at once.
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