The other day I was watching the News and saw few people trying to attack ’ Taslima Nasrin’ during a press conference in India. This Bangladeshi writer was in news for various reasons and her name was known to me earlier. I was impressed by her quote, "When I compare the cruelty against the Iraqi people, love and sex are not vulgar to me’ and don’t needed to think twice to read Taslima’s Autobiography, part 1 (Girlhood)
Each tree has its own roots, where a river forms only by many small waterways. It is not easy to get the autobiography of a person who is yet to reach an age of 50 and with this book, we are invited to look into the life of Taslima through the window of her life she open for us. The book can be easily explained through the relation the author maintains with her parents, relatives and friends. The book leaves us in her mid teens.
Taslima & her Father
A very strict person in nature and a determined doctor by profession! His aim is to make his children doctors like him. He wants to live in status and modern day facilities. The white and beautiful doctor got married in haste to a black and not so beautiful girl. Their marriage life soon went into trouble with a complex wife. Taslima loves his father, but she cannot accept him completely thinking the injustice he has done to her mother. The father is a hard task master who wants the children disciplined and concentrates on their studies which the children including Taslima don’t like. A father who keep her brother in a locked room food for loving and marrying to a Hindu girl…but a father who keep a bed prepare every night, thinking the same son will be returned some day. After a point the girl dare to challenge the lion, but follows a dream the lion left to her. A caring father, but a failed lover- who go out searching for love.
Taslima & her Mother
Taslima’s mother was a more worried wife than a loving mother. This do not mean that she don’t love them. Her aim was to study and get a job, but she was blocked from pursuing her studies. She knows that her husband is sleeping with another woman and worried that one day he will finish the relation. To save herself from depression, she tried to find peace at cinema halls but the addiction could not save her. She tried the religion but the half cooked knowledge could not help. When her son comes back with a job the entire attitude is changed. With Taslima, the mother was there with her many a time, not always. The mother was not there to listen to the growing girl where she was been molested and the poor little girl had to contain it in her mind. When Taslima tells 100% about her father’s illicit relation, her mother too is under the shadow of suspicion of adultery that too with the brother of her father. Taslima believes that had her mother given a chance to study and work her life would have been different.
Taslima, her brothers and sister
Taslima had a very good relation with her brothers. It is on the insistence of her brother she got the name and the elder brother was very proud of her. The younger brother is presented as a strong willed determined warrior of love. She only gives small details about her younger sister.
Taslima & her relatives
There are a lot of stories comes with each relatives of Taslima and she makes sure that the reader is with her. However, two people Taslima name it specifically. An Uncle who forcefully stripped her and her father’s younger brother who raped her at an early age. She didn’t told those incidents to her parents where they kept the little girl at a distance.
Study & friends
At home, her brothers and aunties were her friends. She was not a bright girl at play. In studies too she had her problems like Taare Zameen Par, she cannot remember things, but can draw pictures easily. The ’dumb’ girl however was storing all her images in her mind. Her heterosexual attitude was out in her teens itself where she openly admitted in the book that she used to search the body of the playmate and servant in those curious nights. Also her friendship was barging to a lesbian boat than a normal girl to girl relation. A girl to whom she used to handover love letters from a friend of her brother, she fall in love with her. Then she stops giving those letters and start giving her own letters and she feel cozy when she touches her etc. gives sufficient clue to her sexual orientation. She was an avid reader and we can see her writing skills budding up in those early years.
Taslima and the society
Her childhood was in the background of independence struggle of Bangladesh. She reproduces those freedom fighting days, the social condition, poverty soon after independence, her approach towards the poor in the society and lot more. You can find a person who broke the lion’s hard rules when it comes to filling the stomach of hungry. The blood, rallies, Poverty …the book throws some light to the political condition of Bangladesh during those years of her girlhood.
Taslima and religion
She doesn’t believe the religious books or customs as such. She search for meaning and when she finds it wrong dare to question it. It is nice to go through those curious questions of childhood, but for a hardcore religious person those references can be hurting (so beware) Her thoughts were mainly influenced by her big uncle who always challenge the religious hard believes. Her father too was against the hard and fast rules of religion. Her mother tried to take her to the religious way, but the over addiction of the mother to religion ignoring family life and children did more damage than good. From a feminist view point, she challenges the double standard the religion follows with woman.
No further explanations, but believe me, there are many life situations which can make you cry. One will wonder how fate can have such a hard stand against a little girl who doesn’t have anybody to share. When the girl tells those stories with her exact thoughts at those times we are left with no other option but to sympathize to the character. She was a victim of circumstances but those made her to think and stand different. If a film maker reads the book, he can find at least 5 to 6 movie material. The book is filled with heartfelt moments of life, struggles of love, fight between religion and human souls, robbery of customs and slavery of rituals, a wandering mind’s determination…the book throw light to the inner thoughts of Taslima Nasrin. The description is perfect and we will feel as if the author is sitting next to us and tell her sob story in beautiful way. An excellent description of life by a grown up woman on her girlhood! Read it!!
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Check her web site : https://taslimanasrin.com/