THE AFFLICTION OF KAMALA DAS IN MY STORY: A CRITICAL APPRAISAL FROM MY PERSPECTIVE

Abstract

My Story was written by Kamala Das (Kamala Surayya) in 1973, and it was first published as Ente Katha in Malayalam. Soon after its publication, it fell under controversies due to its boldness, outspokenness and unconventional writing style. It remains the most popular autobiography by a woman and about women in India. The prominent themes in her autobiographies are unhappy marriage, discrimination, finding love outside marriage to fulfil her desire, betrayal, suffering, rebellious attitude, struggle for self-identity, etc. My Story depicts the different phases of the author’s life, from her childhood and adulthood to her last breath. She admits her unconditional love for Lord Krishna or Ghanashyam. Her outspokenness regarding feminist ethos is remarkable. She shares her strong bond with her grandmother, who is always affectionate towards her. Her grandmother’s love is contrary to the love she receives from her husband. She never accepts her husband wholeheartedly, as he treats her as a puppet. Her family arranged her marriage when she was only 16 years old to a man who was more than double in age to her.  Since then, she has been suffering. Finally, one day she decides to go against the patriarchal society, norms and rules formed by the conventional society. She boldly writes about her private life without hesitation, later showing her evil side as she plays with and goes against the orthodox society. In this paper, the focus is on analysing the affliction, misery and suffering of Kamala Das in My Story and how she reacts to it unconventionally.

Keywords: Kamala Das, a failed marriage, postcolonial, feminism, love, nostalgia, betrayal