Any Indian works worth blogging?
Why not?I find some of the Indian books highly intellectual,(I admire them deeply because of their reforming nature)but here you will not find any stereotype books or novels written by Indians or about India.
Inner voice:Ah..we know that..you just love controversies..dont you?
well..yes..Truth is always bitter..better swallow it..lol:)Now..how about a Indian science fiction,written in 1905..?
Before I proceed,I suggest you to browse more on all these posts,once u read it here,rather than ducking it as such.
Because when you browse more you get many versions of the same story and chances of Enlightenment are high,on getting multiple versions.
Sultana's dream was a short story written by Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hussain,daughter of a highly educated Landlord(zamindar) and wife of a Deputy Magistrate Khan Bahadur Sakhawat Hussain(in British India).She was a writer,a feminist as well as a social reformer.
Her work was a science fiction as told earlier,actually it was a feminist science fiction.
duh..Science fiction in 1905?Before going any further i would like to make some points about this (one of the) treasure(s) of Bengali literature...
Even though Begum Rokeya was brought up in a orthodox and intensely conservative environment,her father permitted only religious education in Persian,Arabic and Urdu,She managed to learn English as well as Bengali along with her sister from her Elder brother(Her Sister turn out to be a poet in Bengali..kudos to her brother).
She got married to Sakhawat Hussain at the age of 16.Her husband was taken aback when she made him read her literary work Sultana's Dream.He couldnot resist it,read it in a full stretch and commented it as "a terrible revenge".
But he persuaded her to send it to a Madras based magazine.
What is so special about it..?Here you go..
1.She backed role reversing principle(Not the one you see in Hollywood movies like hero and heroine's soul interchanged).She argues that why women are meant for Household work and men for social work.
2.In this story,she imagines a country,where women are the bread winners and men do the kitchen work.The country will be ruled by a Queen and no men can be seen in the streets as they are kept locked inside.Women are highly educated,they have got two competing universities,mastering science and research,inventing hydrogen based Air craft for locomotion(to avoid accidents on roads) and Electricity from solar energy(even for their kitchen).
3.The country will have an amazing ambiance,full of gardens and perfectly planned infrastructure,designed by women of city council.
4.They will not have any police force or courts,since men are kept inside,crime rate is zero there.
5.She uses humor,irony and satire,through out the story,to explain how women got such status.It has also got a sound economy,since women are more productive then men(but how..?She says men wastes most of their work time by smoking,discussing etc).Women there,finishes their work by 2 to 3 hrs a day and dedicate time to their family..(Amazing;))
6.Finally,They also make a statement that,they dont make trade with a country,which enslaves women.
(Really a terrible revenge..)
I know what you will feel now..Women-longing for such country and men-making their blood boil..?
Now the consequences she faced..
1.She was excommunicated from her religion.
2.The bitterness went to an extent that,religious clerics denied to bury her corpse in their common burial ground.
3.What next,Her school was shut down by her step-daughter's husband claiming inheritance,later she re-opened it.(It is to be noted that,the school was started in 1911 with 5 students and recently they celebrated 100th year now with 1300 students and 60 faculty)
Feel like reading Sultana's Dream..?
http://www.horrormasters.com/Text/a1128.pdf
Begum Rokeya inspired and changed the lives of thousands of women in the Bengal presidency of the British Regime in India and even after ten decades her works are praised.
Bengali authors like Taslima Nasreen(Currently Bangladeshi),Radheshyam Brahmachari and so many claim to be inspired by her..
“Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a chance, leave no room for regrets.”
Long live Begum Rokeya in our hearts....
By the way..Next blog would be on travelling...
Im gearing up for a trip...
Why not?I find some of the Indian books highly intellectual,(I admire them deeply because of their reforming nature)but here you will not find any stereotype books or novels written by Indians or about India.
Inner voice:Ah..we know that..you just love controversies..dont you?
well..yes..Truth is always bitter..better swallow it..lol:)Now..how about a Indian science fiction,written in 1905..?
Before I proceed,I suggest you to browse more on all these posts,once u read it here,rather than ducking it as such.
Because when you browse more you get many versions of the same story and chances of Enlightenment are high,on getting multiple versions.
Sultana's dream was a short story written by Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hussain,daughter of a highly educated Landlord(zamindar) and wife of a Deputy Magistrate Khan Bahadur Sakhawat Hussain(in British India).She was a writer,a feminist as well as a social reformer.
Her work was a science fiction as told earlier,actually it was a feminist science fiction.
duh..Science fiction in 1905?Before going any further i would like to make some points about this (one of the) treasure(s) of Bengali literature...
Even though Begum Rokeya was brought up in a orthodox and intensely conservative environment,her father permitted only religious education in Persian,Arabic and Urdu,She managed to learn English as well as Bengali along with her sister from her Elder brother(Her Sister turn out to be a poet in Bengali..kudos to her brother).
She got married to Sakhawat Hussain at the age of 16.Her husband was taken aback when she made him read her literary work Sultana's Dream.He couldnot resist it,read it in a full stretch and commented it as "a terrible revenge".
But he persuaded her to send it to a Madras based magazine.
What is so special about it..?Here you go..
1.She backed role reversing principle(Not the one you see in Hollywood movies like hero and heroine's soul interchanged).She argues that why women are meant for Household work and men for social work.
2.In this story,she imagines a country,where women are the bread winners and men do the kitchen work.The country will be ruled by a Queen and no men can be seen in the streets as they are kept locked inside.Women are highly educated,they have got two competing universities,mastering science and research,inventing hydrogen based Air craft for locomotion(to avoid accidents on roads) and Electricity from solar energy(even for their kitchen).
3.The country will have an amazing ambiance,full of gardens and perfectly planned infrastructure,designed by women of city council.
4.They will not have any police force or courts,since men are kept inside,crime rate is zero there.
5.She uses humor,irony and satire,through out the story,to explain how women got such status.It has also got a sound economy,since women are more productive then men(but how..?She says men wastes most of their work time by smoking,discussing etc).Women there,finishes their work by 2 to 3 hrs a day and dedicate time to their family..(Amazing;))
6.Finally,They also make a statement that,they dont make trade with a country,which enslaves women.
(Really a terrible revenge..)
I know what you will feel now..Women-longing for such country and men-making their blood boil..?
Now the consequences she faced..
1.She was excommunicated from her religion.
2.The bitterness went to an extent that,religious clerics denied to bury her corpse in their common burial ground.
3.What next,Her school was shut down by her step-daughter's husband claiming inheritance,later she re-opened it.(It is to be noted that,the school was started in 1911 with 5 students and recently they celebrated 100th year now with 1300 students and 60 faculty)
Feel like reading Sultana's Dream..?
http://www.horrormasters.com/Text/a1128.pdf
Begum Rokeya inspired and changed the lives of thousands of women in the Bengal presidency of the British Regime in India and even after ten decades her works are praised.
Bengali authors like Taslima Nasreen(Currently Bangladeshi),Radheshyam Brahmachari and so many claim to be inspired by her..
“Sometimes, struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were to go through our life without any obstacles, we would be crippled. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. Give every opportunity a chance, leave no room for regrets.”
Long live Begum Rokeya in our hearts....
By the way..Next blog would be on travelling...
Im gearing up for a trip...
