Madhavikutty was also known as Kamala Das, and Kamala Surayya when she converted to Islam at the age of 65. She is arguably the most important feminist Malayalam writer in the last five decades. Kamala Das is better known outside of Kerala than most other Malayalam writers as she was a prolific writer in both Malayalam and English. She travelled to many countries to read her poems and in 2009 was named “the mother of modern English Indian Poetry” by The Times.
Madhavikutty came from a family of distinguished writers. She wrote chiefly of love, its betrayal and the resulting anguish. In her autobiography she discussed her search for love inside and outside marriage. “My Story” shocked the readers and set a new milestone for women to write candidly about sexuality. Even her conversion to Islam was part of that search. But again she was disappointed.
Madhavikutty’s story selected for this book “Sandalwood for the Funeral Pyre” is a unique one. It is about the cremation of the woman of a house, a wife and mother of three grown sons. From the conversation of her sons and their wives while the pyre is burning one can learn about her personal characteristics and how important a role she played in the lives of her husband and sons.
The discussion about the care of the father is enlightening—how everyone is too busy with their work and social outings to take care of him. Another interesting discussion is about who will inherit the diamond earrings the old lady had.
The oldest son who feels guilty that he didn’t give her anything while she was alive because she didn’t ask him, consoles himself saying: “When Amma was alive I did not do anything significant for her. But now I realized one wish. I was able to afford sandalwood for her funeral pyre. I am a lucky person. There is no doubt about it”.
Read the story and draw your own conclusion.
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