Book Review: To Hell With You Mitro

Mitro Marjani is one of the few books that I have read through in English as well as in Hindi. While the translation is good, I enjoyed the Hindi version a tad bit more. It is an interesting read and set in the time that it was, I guess it would have stirred a storm in the pot. The pot would consist of those who read but that’s something!


The story revolves around the lives of the daughters in law in a Punjabi household. Each character is unique and epitomises extremes of black and white, which merge into shades of grey as the story progresses. The feminist take is obvious and a lot has been packed in to the hundred odd pages. In doing so, Sobti has written a powerful narrative that questions existing structures of gender, family, and patriarchal society. I have thought about it but I have still not been able to arrive at which of the characters I liked the best. Despite all the reading in gender, Mitro’s character does not come across as likable. I wonder if that is the trap of socialisation in gender and feminist reading, that Sobti’s characters missed out on being subtle. Or maybe, there was too much to be written in too short a space. Overall, it is a recommended read.