#BookReview
If you are looking for a simple and a sweet short story to read, then Gently Falls the Bakula is a great pick for a slow Sunday afternoon. Like a breeze, this story will take you into the beautiful small town of South Karnataka called Hubli, where the childhood love of the two protagonists, Shrimati and Shrikant, blossoms under the evergreen Bakula tree.
Shrimati and Shrikant are competitive, intellectual classmates and neighbors who soon turn into friends, they eventually fall in love with each other and then get married. However, this book is not just a sweet love story. It’s also about how Shrikant being an over-ambitious husband gets caught up in climbing the ladder of success in the corporate world and ends up ignoring the aspirations and dreams of his wife. Shrimati being an equally smart and intelligent woman, gives up her career and her love for history only to support her husband, Shrikant. She silently and submissively lives her life fulfilling the demands of her husband, while pushing aside her own desires and needs. After years of dominance and neglect, Shrimati finally decides to give importance to her own life and pursues her dreams.
This book deals with the old stereotypes of male dominance, submissiveness of women, women empowerment, gender equality, and small town mentality. Gently Falls the Bakula is beautifully written by the famous Indian author, Sudha Murthy. The book highlights how one needs to give equal importance to work and family. While pursuing ambitions and fulfilling individualist dreams, one must not go so far ahead that they end up leaving behind their family and loved ones. This book is an interesting read and I recommend that you give yourself the time to indulge in this easy to read and extremely well-written, sweet short story.
Into Words 