Varied shades of motherhood
Reviewed by Aditi Garg


Of Mothers and Others
Ed Jaishree 
Misra. Foreword by Shabana Azmi. Zubaan. 
Pages 285 Rs 495. 

Motherhood is one of the most glorified experiences around the world. It is supposed to be the highest form of bliss for any woman. But in a country like India where more women die due to complications in childbirth than anything else, it is a surprising statement. Many lose their children early on after birth for lack of money to provide them adequate treatment. Just like every other experience, motherhood means different things to different people.

Between children and their mothers exists a bond that can be strained, loving, dependant or sad. Motherhood is not just the moment of childbirth and the cuddling that ensues but also deals with loss of a child, adoption, surrogacy, being childless out of choice or due to other reasons.

Jaishree Misra joined hands with Save the Children initiative and has helped edit Of Mothers and Others, a compilation of stories, essays and poems. Save the Children focuses on the plight of children who do not need to die but do because of the apathy of everyone, from the common man to the highest levels of political power. Being a part of the noble endeavour, she has been able to give shape to this book that displays the bare emotions of motherhood. A very informative foreword by Shabani Azmi is indeed an eye-opener. She puts it in a very stark and easy-to-understand manner when she says that the number of lives lost due to complications in childbirth in a year in India is equivalent to 400 plane crashes.

You have Smriti Lamech’s desperation for a girl child and Anita Roy’s attempts at providing nourishing food for her baby. Kishwar Desai portrays the aspirations and tribulations of a girl brought up in an orphanage and Bulbul Sharma attempts at improving upon it the second time around as a grandmother. Also evocative are, Jai Arjun Singh’s portrayal of the quintessential mother in Hindi cinema, Nisha Susan’s bewildering take on a mother-daughter relationship and Urvashi Butalia’s bold decision to remain childless. The poignant grief of the parents of Valley’s missing children is captured by Humra Quraishi. Each write-up provides a different take on the vagaries of motherhood. The writers in the book deal with difficulties encountered during adoption, surrogacy, the extent to which a mother can go to ensure a bright future for her child and the pain that can become the emotion of a lifetime in the instance of the death of a child. A collection of poems by Meera Alexander and Tishani Doshi adds the vibrancy of nifty words beaded together into a lovely garland. A wonderful effort where everyone, from writers to the publisher, come together for a common goal. The book is a must read.

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