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Tara is an embodiment of our search for the key to open the door — until we realise that the door was open all along.
Juggling my time between writing a novel and working a day job besides all, there comes moments when I ask myself why am I writing a novel? Unlike the shorter posts and articles such as these, doing a full book of about 80,000 words, set in another time and another place, spells the long game and takes a whole different level of commitment.
It’s not just a case of word count. For someone obsessed with writing, that would be too easy. But this is different. Different because it’s not just a case of telling life as I see it here and now. This one’s about creating believable characters and telling a story through their eyes. That’s the real hard part — going from being Vinita in one moment to being Tara in another. I’ll come to who she is but before that, the key question. Why does it even matter and if so, then to whom?
I’m certainly not counting on this book to pay my bills, so then what’s the greater purpose that keeps me going page after page to create several moments of hard-hitting entertainment?
What’s the book about?
First, we need to see what the book is about. My book is about a girl called Tara and her quest to finding her voice.
Raised in the traditional Indian set up and entrusted to uphold family values regardless of circumstances and making an amazing bride some day, Tara lives through her role until a point when she no longer recognises the person she is. It’s then that she sets out to find this voice.
This book is about Tara’s journey.
Covering tender moments such as familial pressures to the excitement of romance, lust, sex, betrayal, parenting, careers and much more, I promise to keep it raw, real and entertaining as I peel the layers of a seemingly perfect and well put together society.
Who’s story is it?
On the face of it, this book is Tara’s story. But who’s Tara? Many people ask, ‘is it your story, are you Tara?’
No. I’m not Tara. I can’t be Tara because Tara is not a person, but an embodiment.
She’s an embodiment of the subtle societal pressures inflicted upon many of us, an embodiment of the internal conflict that we often battle with and of the inner strength that each of us posses yet seldom use.
Why does it matter?
Going back to where we began. Why does it matter?
Her story matters because we matter — and our quest for truth matters.
On the face of it, Tara’s story is set in the Indian society and speaks to the life of being an Indian woman in today’s day and age.
Getting into the stats, there are about 1.3 billion people in India over 48% of whom are women. Yes, there’s about 50 million less women than men in the country so clearly the problem begins even before birth as many aren’t even given the chance to be born.
And for those who are, several of these women battle issues that form part of Tara’s day to day life. Yet, I’m mindful that there aren’t limited to Indians or women and are much more pervasive than we care to acknowledge or admit.
And even if we do, we shy from sharing lest we get shamed. And for those who share, we might often be told that it’s only just us which leaves us even more confused than where we first began.
Conclusion
So therefore, in my resolve to make a dent to what appear to me as subtle and sensitive issues of seemingly successful societies, I must bring Tara to as many people as I can. And to do so, I must write and do full justice to this embodiment of the society that we live in.
If my story can bring to life these tiny yet important matters in a truthful yet entertaining way, then I’ll consider this a success.
Image source: Darina Belonogova on pexels
Hi, I am Vinita Ramtri and I live in London. You can reach me via email on vinitaramtri.com or phone on 00447817256077. My purpose in life is to provoke thought about living without permission – read more...
This post has published with none or minimal editorial intervention. Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, individual posts do not necessarily represent the platform's views and opinions at all times.
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Neena was the sole caregiver of Amma and though one would think that Amma was dependent on her, Neena felt otherwise.
Neena inhaled the aroma that emanated from the pan and took a deep breath. The aroma of cumin interspersed with butter transported her back to the modest kitchen in her native village. She could picture her father standing in the kitchen wearing his white crisp kurta as he made delectable concoctions for his only daughter.
Neena grew up in a home where both her parents worked together in tandem to keep the house up and running. She had a blissful childhood in her modest two-room house. The house was small but every nook and cranny gave her memories of a lifetime. Neena’s young heart imagined that her life would follow the same cheerful course. But how wrong she was!
When she was sixteen, the catastrophic clutches of destiny snatched away her parents. They passed away in a road accident and Neena was devastated. Relatives thronged her now gloomy house and soon it was decided that she should be married off.
Women today don’t want to be in a partnership that complicates their lives further. They need an equal partner with whom they can figure out life as a team, playing by each other’s strengths.
We all are familiar with that one annoying aunty who is more interested in our marital status than in the dessert counter at a wedding. But these aunties have somehow become obsolete now. Now they are replaced by men we have in our lives. Friends, family, and even work colleagues. It’s the men who are worried about why we are not saying yes to one among their clans. What is wrong with us? Aren’t we scared of dying alone? Like them?
A recent interaction with a guy friend of mine turned sour when he lectured me about how I would regret not getting married at the right time. He lectured that every event in our lives needs to be completed within a certain timeframe set by society else we are doomed. I wasn’t angry. I was just disappointed to realize that annoying aunties are rapidly doubling in our society. And they don’t just appear at weddings or family functions anymore. They are everywhere. They are the real pandemic.
Let’s examine this a little closer.
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