A Slice of Calicut Halwa

Book excerpt: Fiction Book in English The year is 1985. A brilliant young girl, full of promise, has just begun classes at her local college. Rema is excited about this new phase in her life, when all hell breaks loose. She begins to be harassed by a young man from the law college, during the bus journeys from home to college and back. Her confidence is shattered, her sense of self destroyed. Although things take a turn for the better when she makes a new friend in college, her troubles are far from over. Eventually, she gets married to a young lawyer but her marriage is a trap from which there is no escape. To make matters worse, one day the man who abused her when she was in college re-enters her life. He leaves no chance to subject her to further abuse and violence. Rema is at a loss about how to deal with this impossible situation. What will Rema do? How will she turn the situation around? How will she face the demon who has taken it upon himself to take away everything she holds dear? This is the moving and uplifting story of a woman who refuses to let the hostile conditions of her life bring her down. She fights through everything to emerge stronger and better. Unfortunately, she has to take extreme measures to fight her abuser. This is an important commentary on women’s place in contemporary Indian society and the conditions of their existence. Rema’s story brings with it a slice of life in Calicut, a city located in north Kerala. To watch the book trailer video click