JAC : A Journal Of Composition Theory ISSN : 0731-6755

A Study of Female Characters in Nalini Sharma’s The Strange Equations

Dr. S. Barathi Assistant Professor Department of English Srinivasa Ramanujan Centre SASTRA Deemed to be University Kumbakonam-612001. [email protected]

Abstract:

Women are portrayed from various perspectives in literature since time immemorial. Generally, in the past few centuries, the Indian writers have portrayed women as stereotypical characters. But this trend has slowly withered and there emerged modern and Post-modern writers who had created female characters as multifaceted women. There is a difference between a male writer‟s perspective and a female writer‟s perspective of a woman character in their work. Thus, it is quite interesting to note that the female characters created by female writers stand apart as mouth pieces of the society, as well as a model or ideal woman from the view of a female writer. The present paper is an attempt to bring out the significance of the portrayal of female characters by Nalini Sharma in her novel The Strange Equations. The novel deals with the lives of two main characters Anu and Priya, through which the writer tries to represent the trials and tribulations undergone by women at present.

Key Words: Female empowerment, Gender mainstreaming, Female-incompatibility, Female Psyche

Introduction:

From the past to the present, Indian Writing in English has varied themes ranging from romantic to confessional writing. Among these, women‟s writing is just a drop in the ocean as there were only fewer women writers. In a patriarchal society like India, women writers did not gain prominence in the past, and most of them were mere imitators of their male counterparts. But in the present situation, things have changed for better and women writers have began to discuss women‟s issues through their works, which were considered a taboo in the past. Thus, this study tries to highlight the portrayal of female characters from the perspective of a female writer. The research provides a deep insight into the female characters as presented by the writer. Further, it

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delves in gender inequality, gender sensitivity, Female-incompatibility and also analyses the psyche of the major female characters in the novel.

Literature Review:

Women have always suffered under the confinement of four walls, or in the society which is often overlooked or ignored. The major reason is, it occurs in the daily lives that it often goes unnoticed. It is worthwhile to note that the outlook of feminism at present is defined in the following passage: “The mere fact of expecting that the women would clean and cook irrespective of, if she is a professional or not, is in itself a point of concern of everyday feminism” (“feminisminindia”). Jasbir Jain in her Introduction to Women‟s writing Text and Context opines that “It is obvious that women‟s writing has mistakenly been confined to victimization narratives” (xvii) demonstrates that women‟s writing has been streamlined as essentially as marginalized and feminist literature. Jasbir Jain notes that critics like Jaidev (1992) and Dipankar Gupta (1995) consider women‟s writing as “Problematizing feminism” and “Feminification of theory” (xix). All these essentially prove that women‟s writings were not given their due importance and it was rather streamlined as feminist writings. There are many feminist organizations that voice for the upliftment of women. Majority of the activists, critics, researchers first theorize and later put it into action. But, there are a few feminists like Martha Farrell, who acted first and later theorized it. Martha Farrell Foundation is an organization, originally found after the death of Martha Farrell, a feminist worker and “it continues Farrell‟s pioneering work in gender mainstreaming and education, inching its way towards achieving her lifelong purpose of a gender-just society” and she was also adorned with a “Lifetime Achievement Award” a posthumous honour by the Indian Social Work Congress for her ground- breaking work in women empowerment and gender justice in India.

Farrell‟s work serves as a basis for analyzing the various issues faced by women at work place as well as gender mainstreaming in the present scenario. Thus, it is found that there is still a gap that needs to be bridged between theory and practice. This could be made possible by the application of Farrell‟s ideology to the selected novel which could bring out the issues faced by female characters.

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In the 21st Century, Indian feminism engaged a variety of issues ranging from domestic violence to rape and victimization of women. Indira Jaisingh‟s tireless work was instrumental in the framing of the Domestic Violence Act (2005) and Meenakshi Arora, a senior advocate in the Supreme court of India, is seminal in framing the Vishakha Guidelines, which later ended in the legislation of the of Women at Workplace Act (2013) (“thebetterindia”). Thus, feminism in the present-day India has been showing some encouraging trends.

It is interesting to observe the facts that in the first place, increasing economic liberty allows women to fight stereotyping. Second, what women want has been shifting – from economic rights to social and sexual rights. Moreover, women are not vacating their spaces – they are negotiating harder to expand them. Further, there is genuine partnership and collaboration among men and women, particularly youngsters, to embrace meaningful . Finally, the internet and information revolution is helping women form communities and networks, giving them a bigger voice and tools to organize themselves, forge partnerships and demand their rights (“thebetterindia”).

Analysis of the Novel:

Nalini Sharma‟s The Strange Equations is a 21st Century novel that challenges the stereotypical characters portrayed in Indian English fiction. The works of women writers were always underestimated due to patriarchal nature of the society and women writers were always in the background and the work of the women writers were not given its due significance in the past, due to male chauvinism. The subject matter of women writers were autobiographical, expressing their emotion, turmoil they faced, etc (Roshini Khazmi, 433). Also, a reviewer remarks: “When Nalini Sharma talks of human relations in The Strange Equations . . . she excites and captivates. Its massiveness startles and demands patience. One notices that she maintains the interest and the excitement integral without unwanted interruptions” (PCK Prem, 12). This is clearly an indication that women writers are slowly gaining momentum at present. The novel spins around two major characters Anu Kumar and Priya. The twists and turns faced by these two women in their professional and personal lives forms the crux of the novel.

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Anu is a middle aged working mother, who has lost her husband years ago in an accident. She single handedly brings up her daughter and son. On the other hand, her close friend Priya was married to a rich doctor on the insistence of her parents. But, to her shock she finds out that her husband was already a married man. So, she had to leave him to live her life as a single woman. Though Anu and Priya are financially independent, for moral support Anu clung to her children and Priya depended on her friend Anu. Thus, life went without much contradiction till Anu was cornered by her own daughter-in-law and her mother. Nalini Sharma has portrayed the female protagonists as strong feminists.

In the novel, both Anu and Priya have equal importance and their stories run parallel in the narrative. About the portrayal of the characters, a critic comments that: “In portrayal of characters and unfolding of incidents in relations to human nature particularly women, she takes us back to the writings of Meredith, George Eliot and Jane Austen, and nearer home to Anita Desai … delineation of women characters appeals as he unveils women‟s hearts sensitively” (PCK Prem, 19). The silence of women symbolizes helplessness. But men take it as a symbol of woman‟s contentment. The insensitivity of a son is also exhibited in this act that instead of condemning his father for his ruthless act towards his mother (Roshni Kazmi, 433), dominate the world of men, who they encounter and work hard to create identity in contemporary times of changing moral codes (PCK Prem, 19). Women in the novel thus have crucial roles either in changing their own life style or of their men.

Female Characters in the novel:

Anu and Priya are the two female protagonists of the novel. Apart from these two, there are many other female characters with their fine distinctive patterns of behavior, who appear in various parts of the novel. Ruchir, Anu‟s daughter is a highly gullible character. She married Dr. Sinha, who is almost the age of her father, much against the wish of her mother. When her torture becomes limitless, Dr. Sinha advices her: “ „Cure yourself first. Be unprejudiced, tolerant and develop an open minded, healthy approach‟ ” (13). This advice is suitable not only for Ruchir, but also for many quick reacting women without reasoning skill. Some of the other women in the novel are: Simi, “a seductive woman who often lured men with unhappy results” (23) and she is responsible for the disaster in Akshay‟s life. Though she understood that it is Anu‟s husband, Akshay, thought to be dead long back had returned, she deliberately hid the truth

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that she is his daughter-in-law and also, Anu is living in the college quarters. She pretended as if she does not know anything about her mother-in-law Anu. Further, she rang up to her mother Mrs. Arora immediately after Akshay left the place and briefed about the situation. Instead of helping her colleague Anu, Mrs. Arora had a plan to make Anu‟s life even more chaotic and miserable. When Akshay turned up to the college, she stopped him at the entrance and informed him that Anu has married another man. Thus, she created complication in Anu‟s life. Both Ranjan and Akshay were disappointed by Mrs. Arora‟s words. Not knowing what to do, Akshay accompanies Ranjan to his Lotus House at . There, he was consoled by Ranjan‟s mother a good and sensible woman.

In this novel, there are self-centered women like Gita, Ruchir, Mrs. Arora who try not only to dominate their partners but also force other women to their way of thinking. But, women like Anu and Priya endeavor not only to emancipate themselves but also their fellow beings. Further, they sympathize others and treat everyone as equals. In a way, these two characters are feminists with a different motto.

Female Psyche and Female-incompatibility:

Female Psyche refers to the inner psychological setup of women, which is quite different than men‟s psyche. Denmark and Paludi (2011) in their article address topics such as gender stereotyping, theoretical perspectives on women‟s personalities, their communications skills, intimate relationships, career psychology leadership, violence against women, and social change (“Psychology of women”). In the novel, there are various dimensions in which the characters appear such as an unsupportive and suspecting daughter as in the case of Ruchir, as she suspects that her mother has an illicit relation with her son-in-law. Anu‟s own children accuse her of illegal affair, which was intolerable as reflected in the lines below: “ „Is it the price for my lifelong suffering and sacrifice‟ ”(9) she questions herself and further, she is frustrated when her son-in-law Dr. Prashant Sinha offers to help her she bluntly refuses saying “ „No, no, please don‟t ever come here. I can‟t suffer humiliation anymore at the hands of my own children”‟ (9). Her words doubtlessly prove that she had undergone severe mental agony due to the suspicion of her own children. Anu‟s daughter Ruchir, also a doctor by profession is much immature and misunderstands the genuine friendship between Anu and Dr. Sinha. Here, it is quite interesting to find that the daughter, who is expected to be supportive to the ageing mother, drifts away from

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her. Besides Ruchir, there are other women like Gita, the “evil scheming wife” (15) of Rohit, Anu‟s son and Mrs. Arora, a gossip-monger mother-in-law of Rohit, all make Anu‟s life miserable. Anu faced much hardship in bringing up her two children, but amidst all this, her colleague Mrs. Aroa, instead of being supportive tries to aggravate the problems.

Another character that creates confusion in the novel is Anu‟s daughter-in-law Gita, who instead of taking care of Anu and reuniting Anu with her husband Akshay, pulls her down by her domineering and selfish nature. She lacked team spirit and has an antagonistic attitude. All these come as an acid test for Anu and she silently bears all that comes her way.

Though Anu works as a professor, she does not like her daughter in law to be a professional woman. Also Gita‟s husband discourages her from taking up a job. Thus they block her professional development, which aggravates the evil in Gita. Sohini Bhattacharya, in her article states that “Once a woman starts working and earns money, she doesn‟t have to depend on her husband and will take her own decisions in a small way. Gradually, the man will start losing control over her” (“idronline.org”). This is an obvious reason for not allowing the bride to work and another reason is, as both Anu and her son are working, they need someone trustworthy to take care of their home. This is where Anu fails, as she did not understand and also neither had a mind nor a heart to think from the angle of Gita.

Gender Mainstreaming:

Gender mainstreaming is a recent approach, which is used as a tool to draw on feminist theory. It refers to the tension between the „mainstream‟ and „gender equality‟. There are various types of gender mainstreaming and it talks about gender struggle, empowerment and equality (“Sodhganga”). Many modern women strive to be independent by working and they take up jobs ranging from salaried jobs to small scale business. Some women interested in the fashion world even make their livelihood by running beauty parlors, thereby also providing employment to other needy women. Fashion and beauty are the two areas which always lure women and Gita is no exception that when she meets Anu‟s friend Ms. Manipani, a beautician. Ms. Manipani runs her parlor in two shifts, a total of five hours work, which pays Rs. 200 per day. Gita immediately agrees as the writer comments, “How Gita wished to be self-sufficient! It was a good offer and she accepted it with alacrity” (206). As Gita had to depend either on her mother-in-law or her

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husband for money, she found this a great opportunity to become financially independent. The character of Gita undergoes a total transformation after she takes up the job. She becomes once again confident that she is on par with other women in the society, thus getting rid of her inferiority complex.

Farrell once remarked why women can‟t stay up late and gives an alternate suggestion to “keep all the men at home,” and allow women to walk freely at night, and questions whether there would any problem. She insisted that people should question everything (“feminisminindia”). To Martha Farrell, “gender was a reality that could not be divorced from the process enabling change in any domain.” According to her, removing all the barriers is the only way to empower women (“feminisminindia”). Priya is another career woman whose married life was short lived. But she succeeds in her profession as a boutique owner. Besides, there are weak female stereotypical characters like Tulip, and her mother Rose, who stand as a definition of tradition.

Female Empowerment:

In the novel, both Anu and Priya have established their own identities as working women. In the case of Anu, she works as a professor. Priya in her own style stands tall as a business woman. The other female characters such as Anu‟s daughter Ruchir, a doctor also her colleague Mrs Arora is a professor, her another friend Ms. Manipani is a beautician and another character Ms. Shiela, a business woman and aunt of Ranjan. Sudheer‟s wife Sneha, a housewife like Gita, due to her careless lifestyle and attitude, does not care to bring up her two children, Noopur and Naveen. Thus, she fails to adorn the role of a mother, which is most important for any woman. As a result, she loses her daughter who had succumbed to an untimely death. There are many female characters who take up prominent roles in the society as much as the male characters. An interesting character is Sheila, Ranjan‟s Aunt, a business woman. She has carved her own niche in the fashion world. The novel proves the fact that working women have a broader outlook of life than their female counterparts at home.

Struggle for recognition:

Anu‟s daughter-in-law suffers from inferiority complex as a house wife. She wants to be recognized and become as popular as her mother in law. Similarly, Anu‟s daughter Ruchir also is jealous on her mother‟s success and she suspects the relation between her husband and her

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mother. Only at the end she realizes her mistake. Gita, the daughter-in-law of Anu is another selfish character. The novelist observes: “There is something negative in female domination over male that ultimately kills him slowly from within, destroys him and his manhood. She was killing him slowly from within” (31). Gita wanted to establish her own identity as a woman of the household and went to the extent of torturing her husband to transfer the family property, “Dream House” constructed by Anu and her husband. Both Gita and Sneha struggle to establish themselves as superior to others. This major flaw in their characters brings their downfall, whereas, Anu and Priya after their resistance towards so many untoward things in life, were able to succeed. The real success lies not in becoming rich or financially independent, but in supporting the family by performing their role with perfection.

Conclusion:

Survival within a family structure generally motivates a woman to compromise instead of prioritizing her jobs. In this regard, Gita, finally gives up her ambition to become a professional. Despite the fact that this is the only way that she could finds her inner peace or self-satisfaction, the female characters had transgressed and ultimately finds peace within the family setup like any Indian women. The novel is indeed a deeper study of the inner struggle of women, their thirst for power and independence. At the same time, the writer cleverly delineates and voices her opinion through her characters about equality and empowerment.

REFERENCES:

Battacharya, Sohini. “Why we are not closing the gender gap at work?”

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“Gender mainstreaming approaches and Initiatives an Overview.” Chapter 3. Sodhganga.

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Jain, Jasbir. Ed. “Introduction.” Women’s Writing Text and Context. 3rd ed. Jaipur: Rawat

Publications, 2014.

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12-20. http://researchscholar.co.in/downloads/2-p-c-k-prem.pdf

Sharma, Nalini. The Strange Equations. : Authors Press, 2018.

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