The Bandit Queens: Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2023

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Out on bail, Sher Singh Rana marries girl from MP". Hindustan Times. 21 February 2018. Archived from the original on 18 June 2023 . Retrieved 18 June 2023. Mala Sen, India's Bandit Queen: The True Story of Phoolan Devi, HarperCollins, 1993. ISBN 0-04-440888-9. But she soon discovers that being known as a "self-made" widow has some surprising perks. No one messes with her, no one threatens her, and no one tries to control (ahem, marry) her. It's even been good for her business; no one wants to risk getting on her bad side by not buying her jewelry. From the description, I expected The Bandit Queens to be a mostly humorous novel about an outcast Indian woman. Geeta’s abusive husband ran off five years ago. She didn’t kill him, but everyone thinks she did. The village mostly steers clear of her, given her reputation as an evil woman, a witch. This same reputation leads other women to come to her looking to get rid of their own no good husbands. With Geeta's dangerous reputation becoming a double-edged sword, she has to find a way to protect the life she's built—but even the best-laid plans of would-be widows tend to go awry. What happens next sets in motion a chain of events that will change everything, not just for Geeta, but for all the women in their village.

Wow, what an incredible debut novel! I am beyond impressed with the author's ability to explore serious subjects while maintaining a humorous tone throughout. That's not easy to pull off. Humor is a coping mechanism for many of us and that's just one reason why I think this book is going to strike a chord with readers. Phoolan Devi's fame throughout India continued to grow after her death, and the controversy surrounding the Bandit Queen film had already ensured that she was globally famous. She has become a legendary figure, alongside other outlaws such as Ned Kelly, Sándor Rózsa and Pancho Villa. [21] [53] Her life has inspired biographies by Roy Moxham, Mala Sen, and Richard Shears and Isobelle Gidley, and novels by Irène Frain and Dimitri Friedman. [1] [54] A graphic novel entitled Phoolan Devi, Rebel Queen by Claire Fauvel [ fr] was published in 2020. [55] The scholar Tatiana Szurlej notes that the facts presented in these biographies often contradict each other despite coming from interviews with Phoolan Devi herself, and questions whether Devi forgot elements or adapted her account to suit her changing circumstances. [1] In 1994, Arundhati Roy commented that Phoolan Devi "is suffering from a case of Legenditis. She's only a version of herself. There are other versions of her that are jostling for attention." [56] Media theorist Sandra Ponzanesi states Phoolan Devi is an example of a Third World postcolonial subject who is aware of the racist and patronising Orientalist attitudes that First World analysts have of her. [21] The caste system has existed in some form in India for at least 3,000 years. It is a complex social structure wherein social roles like one’s profession and status became “hereditary,” resulting in fixed hierarchies. Were you familiar with India’s caste system before reading The Bandit Queens? In which ways did the pervasive societal structure appear within the novel? Are you familiar with any other caste systems across the globe? How are they like—and how do they differ from—India’s caste system? In August 1980, Shri Ram arranges to have Vikram assassinated, and abducts Phoolan, bringing her to the village of Behmai. Phoolan is repeatedly raped and beaten by Shri Ram and by the rest of the gang members, as punishment for her "disrespect" for his previous advances, and for her audacity at being equal. The final humiliation and punishment is that she is stripped naked, paraded around Behmai, beaten, and sent to fetch water from the well (in full view of the village).a b c d e f g h i j k l Weaver, Mary Anne (1 November 1996). "India's Bandit Queen". The Atlantic. Archived from the original on 17 December 2022 . Retrieved 20 December 2022. Speaking of children, there are some cute ones in this book that really stole the scenes they were in.

On the positive side, the novel is well-written, well-researched, and is an impressive debut for Parini Shroff. The storyline involving the sisterhood of the women was realistic and interesting. I certainly won’t forget this story for a long time. On July 25, 2001, Phoolan Devi was assassinated by three masked shooters outside of her Delhi home. She was rushed to a hospital where she was declared dead.

Reader Reviews

a b Harding, Luke (26 July 2001). "The queen is dead". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 1 May 2020 . Retrieved 18 December 2022. Battle of one-upmanship among two Nishad parties worries SP". The Pioneer. 26 July 2021. Archived from the original on 28 September 2021 . Retrieved 26 October 2023. I could tell myself to ignore this in the name of creative freedom. But this (read below) is ridiculous. A former leader of the gang, Sri Ram Singh, [ when?] was released from prison together with his brother Lalla Ram Singh; they were Thakur men (Thakurs being a subcaste of the higher Kshatriya caste) and thus a higher caste than the other members. After they rejoined the bandits, a power struggle ensued and Sri Ram murdered Vikram Mallah. Without the latter's protection, Phoolan Devi was a prisoner of Sri Ram; he took her to the remote village of Behmai where she was repeatedly raped by Thakurs. In a final indignity, she was forced to collect water for him from the well whilst naked, in front of the villagers. [10] [21] [2] :57,125–126 Behmai massacre [ edit ]

Discuss the title, "The Bandit Queens." How do you think it relates to the overall story? How does it apply to each of the characters in the book? Phoolan had embraced Buddhism". The Times of India. 27 July 2001. Archived from the original on 25 July 2021 . Retrieved 24 January 2021. It was not until years later that I had the thought: But what if they actually did it? Not only that, what if other women wanted in on the action?Geeta's husband just up and disappeared a few years ago. Though many times she felt like killing him, she didn't . . . but everyone seems to think she did. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa Sen, Mala (1995) [1991]. India's Bandit Queen: The true story of Phoolan Devi. London: Pandora. ISBN 978-0-04-440888-8.