Chup - Deepa Narayan - Book Review
Recently finished reading Deepa Narayan's book on women in India and the way society is sculpting their identity. The book is an intriguing read and does live up to its slogan to hold a mirror to every Indian women.
So is this a feminist read meant for those all women book club list readings? Definitely not. Such books are meant to be read by the entire society irrespective of gender or age.
The book raises pertinent questions on what it means to be a woman in our Indian society.
Do you pride yourself on being a strong woman? Do you aspire to be one or support one? Do you consider yourself a feminist? Chances are that you behave in ways that are exactly the opposite, as this path-breaking book argues. This book goes beyond the whole women empowerment and feminism debate to ask some real questions.
In this rigorously and well researched book, based on 600 detailed interviews with women and men across India's metros and even cities abroad, social scientist Deepa Narayan has covered seven key habits that may influence women's everyday lives, despite their education, success, financial status and family background. These behaviors may seem harmless, but each one has enormous impact, and it means only one thing - that Indian women are trained to habitually delete themselves.
Indeed, as I read the book and the excerpts of the interviews, it feels that the reality is for all of us to see but we refuse to admit it. We stay silent or chup as the the book title states. In fact, as I have read about similar patterns in different parts of the World, both developing and developed, I can safely say that this book has a universal appeal to it. The psychology is similar everywhere.
Price - INR 699
Genre - Non - Fiction
Pages - 304
Edition - Hard cover
In this rigorously and well researched book, based on 600 detailed interviews with women and men across India's metros and even cities abroad, social scientist Deepa Narayan has covered seven key habits that may influence women's everyday lives, despite their education, success, financial status and family background. These behaviors may seem harmless, but each one has enormous impact, and it means only one thing - that Indian women are trained to habitually delete themselves.
Indeed, as I read the book and the excerpts of the interviews, it feels that the reality is for all of us to see but we refuse to admit it. We stay silent or chup as the the book title states. In fact, as I have read about similar patterns in different parts of the World, both developing and developed, I can safely say that this book has a universal appeal to it. The psychology is similar everywhere.
Price - INR 699
Genre - Non - Fiction
Pages - 304
Edition - Hard cover
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