I am not sure how I first discovered Rafia Zakaria, but I clearly remember the first time I read something by her. It was an article by her in ‘The New Republic’ called ‘Sex and the Muslim Feminist‘. It was a fascinating article and I loved it. I have wanted to read more by her since. I finally got around to reading her first book ‘The Upstairs Wife : An Intimate History of Pakistan‘.
‘The Upstairs Wife‘ starts with the story of Rafia Zakaria’s aunt, Aunt Amina. When Rafia was a child, one day Aunt Amina visits their home and stays there overnight and for the next few days. It is something unthinkable during that time, because married woman don’t stay overnight in their parents’ homes in Pakistan. Over the next few days, the story slowly emerges – that Aunt Amina’s husband Uncle Sohail had decided marry again and get a second wife (which was allowed according to the law, but almost never happened) and he had come to ask her permission, but she had refused, and inspite of that, he had decided to go ahead. Aunt Amina had got upset and had gone to her parents’ home. After the elders from both sides meet and discuss the situation, at some point Aunt Amina goes back to her husband’s home, to share her house and her husband with a second wife. At this point Rafia Zakaria goes back in time and tells us the story of her grandmother when she was living in India in Bombay, before the partition. Then she narrates a third story about Pakistan as a newly independent country. Zakaria weaves these three story strands together – her aunt’s story, her grandmother’s story and Pakistan’s story – and we get this beautiful book called ‘The Upstairs Wife‘.
‘The Upstairs Wife‘ weaves personal story and historical narrative together into a fascinating book. I loved reading the personal stories and experiences of Zakaria’s family members and the stories about Pakistan as a new country. I think the love story of her grandparents Said and Surrayya deserves a separate book. I knew about some of the events of Pakistan’s history, but it was insightful to read it in detail in the book and understand the way it impacted Zakaria’s family. Zakaria’s packs in so many historical details into this 250-page book, that it is hard to believe how she managed to do that. The story that Zakaria tells is sometimes beautiful, sometimes moving, sometimes heartbreaking. There is one place where she describes how her grandfather goes to the government office to get something called the domicile certificate for his grandson. This certificate proves that one belongs to a particular place. To prove that one belongs to a particular place, it seems one has to prove that one’s father belongs to that place too. And to prove that one’s father belongs to that place, it seems that one has to prove that one’s grandfather belongs to that place too. It was so absurd and almost Kafkaesque, that I laughed when I read that. And then it made me sad and angry. But this is not the situation just in Pakistan. Immigrants from time immemorial, in every country, have faced this question on where they are from and have been asked in increasingly absurd ways to prove that they belonged to a particular place. It is sad and heartbreaking. Zakaria’s grandfather doesn’t give up though and is unfazed by these bureaucratic mountainous obstacles. He pushes ahead with dogged determination, and we cheer for him, and he wins in the end, and we want to hug him and give him high-fives. I hated Uncle Sohail at the beginning of the book, but towards the end I felt that he was not as bad as it looked, and things were more complex than I imagined. I think that was one of the great things about Zakaria’s writing – it was unsentimental, non-judgemental, and she followed the golden rule, ‘Show, don’t tell.’
I enjoyed reading ‘The Upstairs Wife‘. It is a fascinating look into Pakistani history of the last 70 years seen through the eyes of a few individuals. I am glad I read it.
Have you read ‘The Upstairs Wife‘? What do you think about it?
Sounds great.
The last Indian book I read also mentioned the trauma of the Partition and its effects on a family.
It’s always more tangible when you read it in a novel and see the impact of something on people.
That’s the power of literature, I suppose.
I loved what you said about the power of literature, Emma. Very true. Partition was a tough, heartbreaking time for the families who were in the middle of it.
Sounds fascinating Vishy – an author new to me. I read a wonderful book by Attia Hosain which dealt with Partition and it sounded traumatic – I recommend it, and you can read what I said here: https://kaggsysbookishramblings.wordpress.com/2014/03/26/virago-volumes-sunlight-on-a-broken-column-by-attia-hosain/
Beautiful review, Kaggsy! Loved it! I found this question you have asked, very thought-provoking and beautiful – “does the quest for human equality have to mean the destruction of all that is beautiful?” Thanks for sharing your thoughts 😊
I haven’t read many books from Pakistani authors. The last I read was our friend, Faiqa Mansab. I loved this line, Vishy. “And to prove that one’s father belongs to that place, it seems that one has to prove that one’s grandfather belongs to that place too.”
So representative of the times we live in right now in India with bigoted laws and constitutional infringements. (I hope you don’t have any bhakts on your book-friend list who will rip me apart for that). I am going to ask my good friend, D, to drop in and read this review – he is amazing with South Asian history and politics, and he has interesting stories on the immigrant experience, war, and more.
Thank you for sharing this blog link SM. Vishy, I love how you end your about me section with this.
“I am not much different from anyone else. I am just a regular guy.”.
Reading your review does push me towards buying and reading the book, thanks for that. From what I infer, it is a multi generational narrative woven around the unfolding story of Pakistan. This reminds me of ‘When memories die’ by Ambalavaner Sivanandan. A story set in the days leading to Sri Lankan independence and until the ascendancy of Tamil militancy. A story arc of three generation Sri Lankan tamil men and their fate, intertwined with the country and its history. In my opinion, one of the finest books on the country, the conflict and reflecting the deep cleavages within the Sri Lankan society.
Thanks ! and look forward to reading your reviews !
Sounds very interesting. I don’t think I’ve read any Pakistani literature so far.
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