Journalist-writer Naresh Kaushik’s latest Hindi novel explores themes of female infanticide, gender oppression, and the fight against honour killings. ”Zinda Rehne Ki Zidd”, published by Rajpal and Sons, follows the character of Durga, a determined young woman, from her birth to adulthood, as she fights an orthodox social structure that is built to subjugate women and deprive them of education and dignity. Moments after her birth, Durga is buried alive by her father, Ramdhari. Yet, beneath the mound of earth, she survives for hours in an early testament to her resilience and a haunting foreshadowing of the battles she will wage against a deeply patriarchal society to claim her place in the world. Kaushik said she was compelled to write this story after witnessing a similar incident in her family. ”The reaction of my family members to this incident, which happened to a close relative of mine, left me deeply shaken… The question that troubled me was: how could my own people be so insensitive? It was from this turmoil that the urge arose in me to give words to Durga’s struggle,” she said. ”Zinda Rehne Ki Zidd” shows Durga to be a sensitive child who questions the bias between male and female children of the family, as the latter are discouraged from studying. The prejudice keeps getting stronger with age as the larger family objects to Durga’s higher education, where she falls in love with Pradeep, a young man of a different caste. Even as the family stands against her, she strives to live her way of life with the man of her choice. As the world becomes increasingly evil around her, Durga witnesses murders, goes through an onslaught of sexual violence, and survives her family’s collective decision to kill her. In her previous work, ”Rabbi”, Kaushik explored the themes of communal tension, sexual violence, migration, and social relationships in 11 short stories. Her latest book is available on online and offline bookstores at Rs 275.
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