What woman you have no Chadar on your head? How do you propose to survive? Do you think that you can spend a life without a Man? How do you think that you are going to live this long life which stretches in front of you like a barren desert? Who is going to take care of the needs of your children? Your daughter needs a father figure on her head, your younger boys need a man? Most of all Rano what are you going to do with desires of your being? Will you compress them all at such a young age, don’t you need somebody to meet your needs?
Rano apne upar chadar dalwa le….!!
The usual arguments given to a woman in case she loses her husband. Similar is the case with Rano when she loses her husband Tiloka in the hands of Death. Widowhood becomes a curse for her. With a young daughter Lajo and few more children to fend for, Rano finds herself completely bare. Bare for the financial needs and a need to have a sheath over herself. Channo, a close friend and all the villagers make a decision on her behalf “She has to marry Mangal”! Rano finds the idea pretty disgusting, Mangal?? He is her brother in law ( the younger brother of her husband), and she had regarded him always as a kid. He was barely out of his knickers when she had come home as a newly wed bride. She raises her voice against the marriage. But who’s listening? Mangal even finds the thought repulsive and then he is completely besotted to the Lovely Salamat. How can he exchange a young nubile lass in lieu of a woman who he always regarded as a mother? But Mangal is forced in fact beaten to death and made to put a Chadar on Rano…forcefully! With no option in front of them and submitting to the wishes of the community Rano and Mangal become Man and Wife. They settle in their daily lives and Mangal takes up the responsibility of being a husband and Dad. Now Lajo is in love and its time to put a Chadar on her head. Yet again Life brings on Rano amidst the same queries.
Is it so important for a woman to have a Man? Is the male species so vital to their being that she will have to overlook all the wrongs done by them or that to what class or quality they belong? The novel climaxes on the most powerful and harsh truth Ek aurat ke sar par chadar hone chahiye beshak maili he kyun na ho
The character of Rano alone depicts the face of an Indian woman, her misgivings and the way society makes decisions for her. Her part carries the stifle and the shackles of being born under a stringent community . As she accepts the fact that a woman needs a man in her life to complete her and make her whole, the concept is heartrending. At a point of time she also accepts the fact that she has desires of her body, which have not met a death with the death of her husband. She just caves in as expected. The novel is setup in the typical rural Punjabi backdrop, just adding more meaning to the story. As you flip the pages you see an authentic face of Rural India. Punjabi lingo also gives a sweet touch to the story. Words like “Aho”, “Oye Ni”, “Tappa”, “Tehmad” are used in abundance. In fact it can be completely called a touch of a writer who was born in Pakistan and post partition moved to India.
Written by Rajinder Singh Bedi , it was one of the most powerful novels ever written . Translated in English by Khushwant Singh, “I take this Woman”, it received a Sahitya Akadami award too. When I had picked up this book it was a complete no-no for me. For the reason I was still in my pre-teens and it hit me like a rock. I could not relate to the book and Rano’s misgivings. She came in as a weak character to me who submitted in front of the demands of the society and her libido. I could not understand the reasons of her remarrying and leading a normal life with Mangal. And that’s one reason I suggest that the book is not meant for all ages, genre and mindsets. Its only when I re read it again at this point of time I was able to appreciate it. The book has to be read with an open mindset and thinking considering that a Woman is a Human being too! Since I read an Original print in Hindi I still reminisce A quote said by an eminent author-Krishan Chander to Rajinder Singh Bedi is printed at the back of the novel , “Tum nahin jaante yeh tumne kya likh diya hai”.
Its rare to find an author of such caliber who can very well relate to the fact that what goes inside the heart of a Woman, and that she is living and breathing soul as any other. His narration travels from rural soils of punjab to the urban hearts , for the very reason that its simplicity with dealing with such a core issue.This book counts in for one of the rarest pearl in the Indian Literary word and needs to adorn the book shelf of every reader.