(Sita' Sister; Kavita Kane)
What would you do if your husband chooses his brother over you?
How will your bear the pain of being left out by your husband at a completely unfamiliar place?
Why should you wait for 14 long years for his return when he did not love you enough to leave you?
Half way through the novel Sita's Sister (by Kavita Kane), I was troubled by these questions. And towards the novel's climax, all my questions were answered. This is the third novel from Kavita Kane that I have come across and this has become my favorite.
Urmila, or Mila (as Lakshman fondly calls her) is that woman we can see among ourselves. She is no Goddess, no avenger but a women like us. She stands up for her rights but is urgently shushed for being a free thinker. She fiercely protects her sister but they are keen on getting what they wanted. She comforts her mother even when she knows that her mother's apprehensions are true. She wears a brave face for her husband even when he leaves for self imposed exile.
Urmila is the quintessential face of any Indian Wife. She is everywhere. And that is what makes Sita's Sister different.
Like all her previous novels, Kavita Kane has picked a significant yet side-lined character from our epics. But there is something unique about her Urmila. Kavita Kane has made Urmila come out as a character with immense maturity handling the entire 'Exile' saga of Ram, Sita and Lakshman profoundly, at the same time she vehemently criticizes the patriarchal norms and values.
Mila is a romantic and fierce lover to Lakshman but when he decides to go with Ram, she is quick to retaliate with cold deliberation in her words. Urmila could have been portrayed as a victim for she has always been sidelined over Sita's greatness and Lakhman's unconcerned deeds. But Kavita Kane's Urmila is never the tragedy queen.
There is one poignant thread that runs through out the novel. Urmila speaks out her thoughts and openly questions everyone "What is husband's duty towards his wife?". The question is unanswered, be it in the epic or in our lives. A man's duty towards his wife is nowhere spoken of. There are constant reminders of his duty towards his parents and family. But is there any specific norms when it comes to his wife? His duties are always confined to the materialistic satisfaction. Hence Urmila's concerns are as much relevant then as of now.
A few years into her husband's exile, Urmila becomes nonchalant towards everything. She shifts her focus onto her interests in seeking wisdom and knowledge. When she is eventually invited to the Philosophical Conference at her father's palace, she is ecstatic. She is elated for the fact that she had exceeded her father's expectation. Everyone could relate to her for we all wanted that one thing in our lives- to impress our parents and make them proud, even for once.
The only thing that can be improved would have been the love making scenes in the novel. The pattern has been repetitive as I have read Karna's Wife and Menaka's Choice few months back and the lingo and expressions are repeated. Its the same between Karna and Urvi, Menaka and Kaushik.
However, the novel leaves us with a bit of confusion. Though there is an Epilogue, it doesn't clearly convey what really happened with Urmila and Lakshman. Maybe author has left it there for our imagination. Because if we look around or look within, we can find Urmila.
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