Mothers, Daughters, and the Diversity of Womanhood in India

Amita Basu's At Play and Other Stories (2025) is a quiet, empathetic and fearless portrayal of womanhood in India. A collection of 15 short stories spanning across religion, caste, region, and disparities of the rural and urban divide, the book dares to dream, choose, and question. It brings forward the narrative of diverse women whose personal and most intimate lives are highly political, and find refuge in the promise and warmth of several female bonds that continue to tie them together. 

Set mainly in Bengaluru, the book opens with a young woman witnessing Islamophobia and class disparities, who almost becomes a spectator, opening up a new world for the readers, presenting the grim realities of the lockdown of 2020. Through her, we get to see the many worlds that exist for people belonging to different religions and classes in one of the largest cities of South India. 

'At Play and Other Stories,' Amita Basu, Bridge House, 2025.

From hereon, the book dwells on several public and private struggles of women, and their confrontation with their privileges and positions regularly. 

As mothers and daughters who play several roles like lovers, confidantes, friends, roommates, etc., these women function in a divided heteronormative society, which most often does not reward them for their obedience. They make difficult choices throughout their personal and public lives, and are ready to take on whatever repercussions may come in their similar yet different, intersectional, and layered pathways. 

Thus, while Simran has to face the violent act of her love affair once she rejects his proposal, others like Pragya and Komal find a home away from home within a mutual acceptance of their extremely different selves. 

The last story, 'Better late than never', reminds one of Meena Kandasamy's When I Hit You: Or, A portrait of the writer as a young wife (2020) and one cannot help but wonder about the struggles even educated and independent women face in front of marriage as an institution. One can also not help but think about how the struggles of the women throughout the diverse groups are similar, yet are weighed down by the identities and, therefore, the privileges one is often born into. 

Basu's genius also lies in letting her readers dive deep into the multiple stories, all of different natures and tones, and then relate to them at our most private levels. As a reader, especially if you are a woman, you are invited into worlds which may seem distant but are also intimate and contemporary. None of them serves as a preachy commentary, but each story feels individualised, as if the audience is almost one of her characters, taking on distinctive views and positions throughout. 

At play, after which the book is named, becomes the crux of Basu's narrative, providing insights into the differences and yet the strength and togetherness of female bonds born and developed over a period of time. Maya and Pragya's universes are way different, and yet they find a companion within each other, where innocence and imagination intertwine. As Maya feels heard for the first time in her life, she goes on to say to her newfound best friend, “You are the only person who's ever believed in me”. Quite a simple statement, but it comes out as a warm hug, almost as if the readers have been waiting to hear it. 

Through stories like 'Night', 'Holiday' and 'Better late than never', one gets a grim insight into the many tensions woven around intercaste and late marriages in India. By allowing her characters to emerge from all age groups, castes, classes, religions, etc., Basu lets each character imagine and choose differently in each story. 

A story like 'Rebirth' dives deep into ideas of loss, longing, and memory. It continues to haunt the readers, much like the protagonist, dealing with a loss as private as a miscarriage, where the audience is equally invested in the raw and intimate world written by Basu. 

The book treats its characters with dignity and tenderness, irrespective of their backgrounds. It is almost as if Basu puts herself through the varied female experiences and then writes about her journey. 

If Vishrammi can desire and dream, so can women like Asha and Maya. In fact, several stereotypes that one holds for women belonging to lower classes are dismantled the moment Basu brings in power and span of technology and social media, which gives enough space for all kinds of women to aspire, and most importantly, hope for an alternative world for themselves.

The short stories are many worlds inhabited by women like you and me; they live and breathe the same air, and yet there is a difference in the struggles and challenges faced by each one of us. The book allows all of us to create our own little worlds for ourselves and never let anyone dictate what we, as women, can or cannot be. 

At Play and Other Stories is a feminist commentary which is powerful and empowering at many levels, dealing with the many complexities of human emotions. By bringing in many subjectivities and therefore, distinct stories forward, Basu creates a universe which stays with you long after it is gone. 

Zainab S. Qazi is a mass communications student and a former editorial intern at The Wire.

The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.