Book: Love and Marriage in Mumbai
Author: Elizabeth Flock
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Price: Rs. 499; Pages: 317
Love and marriage in Mumbai by Elizabeth Flock is interesting, intimate accounts of the love and life of three couples of Mumbai. Interestingly, these three couples belonged to Marwari Hindus, Sunni Muslims and Tamil Brahmin. The author Flock is a US citizen and through this well researched book she makes her literary debut. She began writing in 2008 when she met these couples first time during her first India visit. But, bulk of the reporting was done in 2014 and 2015 when she returned to them again. She was in touch with these couple throughout. She won their confidence and they shared even intimate details with her.
She writes, “At home in Washington, DC, I had regularly questioned whether I was fit to write a book about Indian marriages. I wasn’t Indian, or married. But as the years passed, I saw that the book I wanted to read about India-that I wanted Americans to read about India- did not exist. Ultimately I decided to approach the subject the only way, as a reporter, I knew how: to go back to Mumbai armed with a dozen notebooks, a laptop and a recorder”.
It’s an amazing study of India’s progressive new generation living in a metropolitan city. One can see sweeping cultural shifts in dramatic ways. It also shows how the thinking of young couples differs from their parents. It indicates the struggle between conservative ideas and new modern ideas based on gender equality. The author also narrates how the socio-economic, cultural and political changes taking place. She analysed how demolition of Babri Masjid in 1992 impacted Muslims. The author has changed the names of the people, in book, to protect their identity.
The first couple is Maya and Veer. They are Marwari. Maya fell in love with Veer when she was only 16 years old. Maya was from Hyderabad and Veer from Mumbai. Maya saw Veer first time in Hyderabad when her friend got married to brother of Veer. Maya is a brave and courageous since young days. Maya aspires for more independence. Though they belonged to the same caste they eloped and got married. In Maya’s life Subal comes after marriage.
The second couple is Shahzad and Sabeena. They were living near crowded Crawford Market in South Mumbai. Theirs was an arranged marriage (nikah) in 1983. They met only once before their marriage. They and especially Shahzad is desperate for the child.
The third Ashok and Parvati are Tamil Brahmin. They are not from Mumbai. Ashok came to Mumbai for a job. He is a journalist, aspiring novelist. Both are from South India. Parvati was in love with Joseph, a Catholic classmate in IIT-Chennai. Joseph leaves for Germany. Parvati gets in touch with Ashok through a matrimonial site. Even then, it was an arranged marriage. They married in a traditional way. Ashok is a liberal person and believes in individual liberty.
The author finds it surprising that married couples prefers to stay together even when they have differences. Flock has selected those three couples who got married within the same community. She did not touch a couple who is married outside caste or religion. They face many issues including threats, killings. The book gives idea how India is changing for good.
