Postcolonial Feminist Theory: An Overview - Igcollege.org

Proceedings of National Seminar on Postmodern Literary Theory and Literature , Jan. 27-28, 2012, NandedThe thing becomes quite clear when sheargues with Ajit that it was only because ofhim that she didn’t get anything from herfather-in-law. The very language, curt repliesand her behaviour with her mother-in-law andAjit after Hasmukh Mehta’s death andrevelation of ‘will’ is itself an indicative thatshe was after his money. She doesn’t have anyattachment with other members in the family.For the sake of money, she goes to the extentof replacing the blood pressure tablets ofHasmukh Mehta with her vitamin tablets andcauses his death. It is Kiran who finds it outbut instead of disclosing it in front of othermembers of family, she points it out to Preetiand makes her realize and regret her mistake.Kiran Jhaveri, Hasmukh Mehta’s mistressand one of the directors of Mehta Group ofIndustries and the trustee of the HasmukhMehta Trust is another victim of patriarchal setup but not at the hands of Hasmukh Mehta butfrom her husband. She keeps an affair withHasmukh Mehta out of her necessity becauseher husband is jobless and needs a bottle ofwhisky daily. She manages to get a companyflat in a posh locality and also is on thedirectorial board of the company. She is anintelligent woman having sound judgement ofher life, work and other problems which shefaces and resolves successfully.KIRAN. I managed. I managed my work,I managed my house, I managed myhusband.SONAL. And mine too.KIRAN. Yes. Your husband. And yourhouse too now. I suppose that is what heliked about me. I am an efficientmanager. I guess I was . . . useful to him(CP I 505)From the materialistic point of view she isa successful woman but she does it against herwish as her husband is a useless fellow. Therelation had grown not out of her love forHasmukh Mehta but out of pity anddependence on her:KIRAN. He depended on me foreverything. He thought he was decisionmaker. But I was. He wanted me to runhis life. Like his father had. Hasmukhdidn’t really want a mistress. He wanted afather. He saw in me a woman who wouldfather him! (CP I 510)Neither education nor economicindependence would help women in gainingtheir dues unless male ego undergoes completetransformation. The agony of being a womanin such a society is well expressed by Kiranwhen she recalls her past to Sonal, who thinksher lucky as she is educated.KIRAN. Wrong. I learnt my lessons frombeing so close to life. I learnt my lessonsfrom watching my mother tolerating myfather when he came home every daywith bottles of rum wrapped up innewspapers. As I watched him beatingher up and calling her names! I learntwhat life was when my mother pretendedshe was happy in front of me and mybrothers, so that we wouldn’t hate myfather...Yes, Mrs Mehta. My father, yourhusband—they were weak men with falsestrength. (CP I 508)At last Hasmukh realizes that his attemptsto control the family were in vain and also thatwhatever he has achieved in life was all hisfather’s aspirations and not his own but now itis too late as he is now only a ghost watchingthe whole thing:HASMUKH. Is it . . . true? Have I merelybeen to my father what Ajit has been tome? Have all my achievements been myfather’s aspirations for me? Have I beenmy father’s ghost? If that is true, thenwhere was I? What became of me, thereal me? (CP I 511)If Thirty Days in September is Dattani’smost serious play, Where There’s a Will canbe called as the most hilarious one. Hecriticizes patriarchy but he is never didacticand his tone is comic throughout the play. It isrightly observed by Sita Raina, a theatredirector, ‘Joy is the essence of life and I havealways believed that theatre should exudedelight. Where There’s a Will is such a play. Itis not only thought-provoking andintrospective but also provides an evening ofpure entertainment’. (CP I 451)Thus Where There’s a Will makes a boldstatement in favour of the individual’s right tolive his or her life according to his or her ownright. One may fail or come to grief but at leastone would be daring to face life on one’s own.335 PLTL-2012: ISBN 978-81-920120-0-1