Review: Erotic Stories For Punjabi Widows
Rating: 4 Stars
Well, that was crazy! Of course, I knew that Erotic Stories For Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal wasn’t all about erotic stories. At the same time, that is exactly what it was all about! An adult English literacy class for widows, in a community center, next to a Gurdwara (A Sikh Temple) gets derailed by the determined widows, and turns into a story telling session. This is how the book starts, and this is what the book is all about. Actually, not all.
Nikki, a college dropout, has spent her young life feeling pressured by her parents, and thinks that all brown people are like her family. Until she steps into Southall and realizes that maybe she didn’t have it as bad. Southall is like a mini Punjab; everyone knows everyone else’s business, and honour is held dear. Most of the older generation here doesn’t even speak English. Hence, the need for literacy classes for widows.
The Community Development Director of the Sikh Community Association, Kulwinder Kaur, is a formiddable woman. She herself doesn’t realize that what she wants and what she has advertised are two different things, unknowingly tricking Nikki into applying for the job. During the first class, Nikki realizes that she might not be up to the challenge, but her dismal financial situation stops her from resigning.
And then, these classes turn into something that Nikki could never have imagined! The widows defy Nikki’s expectations. Their ages ranging from relatively young to very old. They are not afraid to speak out. They let Nikki know their real interests. The more Nikki gets involved with them, the more she realizes the advantages of living in a community. Until she comes face to face with the dangers too. Now, it is only a matter of time before someone discovers what is going on, and all hell breaks lose.
Balli Kaur Jaswal has touched upon the gravest of issues with a light hand. At no point does it seem like she is condemning the whole Sikh community for the sins of a few. As with any South Asian community, there is a resisatnce to change and a reverence for norms and traditions. Things like respect for elders, segregation of sexes and contempt of adopting English “ways” is common in all communities, be they Sikh, Hindu or Muslim, from India, Pakistan or Bangladesh. The widows, while dressed in light colours, are the most colourful characters that you can encounter in fiction. Each with their own story and fantasy, they take over the narrative and it’s hard to let them go. I was having too much fun reading about these women who society thinks are demure and paragons of virtue and chastity.
For a book with less than 400 pages, Erotic Stories For Punjabi Widows packs in a lot of relevant issues and ties them in a nice little package. It is a story of hope, determination, breaking off shackles, learning to stand up for yourself and your cause and making a place for tradition; but above all, it is a story about friendship. Friendship that transcends age, status, ethnicity or values; that makes you believe in the other person; that makes you run into a burning house to save them; friendship that you find in the unlikeliest of places.
A surprisingly light read, that needs to be read at least once