Being an avid Indian reader, and  constantly searching for new and interesting authors, I have periodically tried to read Indian language writers in translation. At the outset, I must confess, that although I can converse/understand a few of the Indian languages, my reading skills are limited and certainly inadequate for any serious reading. So, I have to resort to English translations and therein lies the problem…

I often pick up books while browsing a bookstore and Sivakami’s ‘Taming of women’ was one such. I had read great things about this Dalit Tamil writer and also seen a positive review of the English translation.

I have struggled through the first 100 pages  and gave up. The story, if at all there is one, revolves around the women around the life of Periyannan and the power equations between him and the many generations of women who live in his house – wife…