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Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's book Oleander Girl is a story of a young woman's search for her parentage and consequently her identity.
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s book Oleander Girl is a story of a young woman’s search for her parentage and consequently her identity.
Review by Sandhya Renukamba
Oleander Girl starts on the morning of Korobi’s engagement to the man she loves, Rajat Bose. Korobi has been named by her mother after the oleander – beautiful but deadly. Having lost both her parents, she has been brought up by her grandparents – the gruff and strict Bimal Roy and the gentle, yet practical, Sarojini. Although Korobi is loved and cherished by her grandparents, she senses a secrecy in them, as though, an important truth is being hidden from her. The unexpected death of her grandfather and the silence of her grandmother, open up an unknown and uncertain past in Korobi’s life.
Korobi soon realizes that she cannot start a new life as Rajat’s wife, until she finds out who she really is. The answer, she discovers, lies across the oceans, in the United States, where her mother had spent a few years as a student.
We are hurtled along with Korobi in the quest for her identity. The search takes her far from her life as she knows it, across continents and beliefs, throwing her into intimate proximity with strangers, somehow getting her closer to her own self.
The book does not disappoint the reader as Korobi’s story unfolds, taking her to the United States in her quest. She skilfully peels off layer by layer, the thick swaddle of the years of lies and secrecy. We come to admire Korobi’s spirit as the book progresses, as she metamorphoses from the naive, protected and sensitive girl into a gutsy, passionate and independent woman to be reckoned with. A woman who embraces her inheritance, strengthened rather than diminished by who she really is. And yes, she does find out why she was named after the beautiful but deadly oleander.
Chitra Divakaruni Banerjee does it once again, giving us a strong female protagonist, and equally strong and well-etched characters. Their flaws only make them human and more believable. Notable, is the skilful juxtaposition of the marriage of the Roy elders, a patriarchal institution that stifles human needs and expression to the marriage of Rajat’s parents, which unabashedly projects a companionship that nurtures.
I was also struck by the portrait of Asif Ali, the Bose’s driver, who reminded me of the family driver of a dear friend. He knows them all as intimately as only a driver who is privy to personal conversations does. There are the communal problems in the background that he faces – the carnage at Godhra and the religious politics that follow, that are not just a backdrop but tie in significantly with Korobi’s quest.
An interesting book from one of India’s best known writers of fiction, Oleander Girl is worth a read.
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Readers outside India can purchase Oleander Girl through our affiliate link at Amazon.
In her role as the Senior Editor & Community Manager at Women's Web, Sandhya Renukamba is fortunate to associate every day with a whole lot of smart and fabulous writers and readers. A doctor read more...
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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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