Title: River of Flesh and Other
Stories
Author: Various, Edited By Ruchira
Gupta
Publisher: Speaking Tiger
ISBN: 9789385755583
Genre: Fiction, Anthology
Pages: 272
Rating: 5/5
It needs guts to write anything that
makes sense, it needs even more courage to write about something which
is not accepted by society while it instilled in roots of it since eras.
Past week I read a column in TOI about
Ruchira Gupta and her latest anthology. At book launch of “River of
Flesh and Other Stories” she engulfed all the emotions, her years and years of
work experience in just one line “Prostitution is not about choice. It’s
lack of choice.”
Frankly speaking I have never read anything
like this before, even I was aware of this term Prostitute and human
trafficking. When so called developed people feel evil while pronouncing this
word only… It stirred my soul that few girls suffered that undying pain
on their body. Huge Respect for the lady, Our Editor… Ruchira gupta has
spent her whole life just working for these girls, who are as normal as us and
carry same emotions into their heart unless their surrounding starts to play its
brutal game.
When I was going to explore the book I
was little hesitated…then I took a glance of index…and smiled, literally I smiled
because there were few familiar names...closer than anything my favourite
Amrita Pritam, Ismat Chughtai, Premchand, Kamleshwar, Krishna Chander, Manto,
among others. Happiness started to rush in my veins and I read…And Read until I
finished it.
Basically it has all in all, 21 stories of the
finest writers of Asia. All about the Sex workers, women’s inequality
and commercial rape… Here Ruchira Gupta did a great job just to
accumulate all and present in a book for readers.
Amrita Pritam weaved the character of singing girl
Neelam in “THE SHAH’S HARLOT” a serene lady who accepted her fate as second
woman while performing all the duties as first.
Ismat Chugtai Writes about Lajo in “The Housewife”
A lady who only knows how to give love, the norms of society made her believe
that she is not good enough to be wife of someone. But she feels helpless when
it comes a little desire “A home of my own!
Kamleshwar creates a character Jugnu In “RIVER
OF FLESH” which makes you teary eyed, The way author writes.. I think it is
blessing to read him. He gives a hint of slavery for lifetime and disease take
hold. ” A Poignant tale!
Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay writes beautifuuly in “HEENG
KACHAURI” A single story which makes you smile a bit, It is about a boy who
growing up near the world of Prostitutes and address them as Didi. I am sure
you have watched “Amar Prem” that rajesh khanna and sharmila tagore’s movie.
But the story was same and must say beautifully portrayed.
Kamala Das explored a little girl’s life in “A
DOLL FOR THE CHILD PROSTITUTE” a girl who somehow trapped in brothel, and her
innocence changed a man’s heart, heartwarming tale.
Manto’s words roared in “THE HUNDRED
CANDLE POWER BULB” I can’t even think words to precise the emotion manto
instilled into this story. Best read.
Premchand writes about of begum in “THE MURDER
OF HONOUR” whose journey ends in the brothel with news that her husband killed
himself because he couldn’t handle the truth her lady stands in whorehouse while
he didn’t hesitate to throw from her own house.
Besides these Nubendu Ghosh’s
MARKET PRICE, Niranjana’s THE LAST CUSTOMER, Quratulain Hyder’s ANCESTRY, Siddique Alam's GOD FORSAKEN captures your mind.
This book makes you think, broaden
your mind about the suffocating environment we are creating. No these girls are
not obscene. Obscenity lies in our perception, the lack of choices, the
poverty, these are not just stories they are lives who dead but couldn’t buried
for years. There is a lot of going behind those beautiful posters of Life. Feel
It.
Highly Recommended. Worth your time
as well money.
About Editor
Ruchira Gupta is a writer, feminist
campaigner, professor at New York University and founder of the
anti-sex-trafficking organization, Apne Aap Women Worldwide. She won the
Clinton Global Citizen award in 2009, the Sera Bangali Award in 2012 and an
Emmy for outstanding investigative journalism in 1996. She has helped more than
twenty thousand girls and women in India exit prostitution systems. She has
also edited As If Women Matter, an
anthology of Gloria Steinem’s essays, and written manuals on human trafficking
for the UN Office for Drugs and Crime.
Connect with her : Twitter | Website
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P.s - Received Review Copy Under Flipkart Review Program. Can't Thank You Enough..Vivek Tejuja.