Page 95 - DENG503_INDIAN_WRITINGS_IN_LITERATURE

Unit 10: Rupa Bajwa: Sari Shop—Detailed Study of the Text

opens with Ramchand happily going about his duties serving the shop’s mostly upper-class Notes
clients. Opportunity for advancement comes from an unlikely source when he attracts the
attention of the beautiful, literate Rina Kapoor, whose family hires the shop to provide saris
for her upcoming wedding. Inspired by his foray into a wider world (“there were cars and
flowerpots and frosted glass trays with peacocks on them”), Ramchand embarks on a half-
baked self-improvement effort that includes a reading program and some unintentionally
comic attempts to learn English. Shortly afterwards, though, Ramchand sees the other side of
Indian life when the wife of one of his co-workers, a woman named Kamla, descends into
public drunkenness. Ramchand is a tenderly drawn character, reminiscent of Naipaul’s
innocent strivers, and the rest of the cast is vividly sketched.
• There are, apparently, an endless supply of narratives portraying the class inequalities in
contemporary Indian life. Few of them have made it into the hands of western English
readers. It is a treat that this one has overcome the narrowness of western ethnocentricity to
give us an insight into the world of modern Indian culture. Rupa Bajwa opens the window
for us to see the world she was born and raised in. While not biographical, it is still first
hand. We see a world of rich, deep culture.

10.4 Key-Words

1. Trousseau : The clothes, household linen, and other belongings collected by a bride for her
marriage.
2. Prolific : Of an artist, author, or composer) Producing many works.

10.5 Review Questions

1. Give a brief introduction to the Novel Sari Shop.
2. Discuss the Rupa Bajwa's Sari Shop.
3. Explain the character sketch of Ramchand.
Answers: Self-Assessment

1. (i) Persuasion (ii) Kamla
(iii) Ravinder Kapoor (iv) Ramchand

10.6 Further Readings

1. Bajwa, Roopa. 2004. The Sari Shop. New Delhi: Penguin.
2. Johnson, Harry M. An Introduction to Sociology.
3. Khushwant Singh. 2004. This Above All. The Tribune.
4. Lodge & Wood. 2003. Modern Criticism & Theory. Pearson Education.
5. Rege, Sharmila. 2003. Sociology of Gender. New Delhi: Sage Publications.

LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY 89