Locating Women in Inside the Haveli by Rama Mehta

Abstract

Inside the Haveli, the prestigious Sahitya Academy Award winner English novel written by Rama Mehta, a notable novelist of India of the 20th century, presents the tale of an urban young woman, Geeta, and her struggle to preserve her identity and individuality in the traditional surroundings of the haveli of the Rajputs, a martial race of India. It gives  to the reader  a lot to contemplate about the lives  of  the women  of  the haveli,  their customs and rituals, their rigidity  to adapt  modern  ways and  culture, their ignorance  towards female  education  and  their  willing  discrimination towards  themselves  and  other  women  of  the  society and household. Through this novel, Rama Mehta  tries  to convey  that  every  woman  is blessed  with an inner  strength  and  it  is  not  necessary  to rebel  to  preserve  one’s  identity. Geeta does not rebel against adverse circumstances and does not insult any relationship, but on the other hand, in a very dignified way, maintaining her individuality, discovers the path of her emancipation.