Bøger af Ruth Vanita

"On the edge is a first-of-its-kind collection of short stories and extracts from novels centred on the them of same-sex desire, translated from the original Hindi. The sixteen beautiful and provocative stories featured here (published between 1927 and 2022) include classic works by Asha Sahay, Premchand, Ugra, Rajkamal Chaudhari, Geetanjali Shree, Sara Rai and Rajendra Yadav, among others. An important anthology, On the edge shifts the focus to stories and characters who have for far too long, remained in the shadows and brings them (and us) into the light"--Front jacket flap.

Long before the debate on marriage equality began, young, non-English speaking, low-income female couples all over India got married by religious rites or committed joint suicide, which they considered being 'married in death.' These women had no contact with any movement and had never heard words like 'lesbian' or 'gay.' While many families, in collusion with police, violently separated the couples, several families also supported their daughters. Love's Rite, first published in 2005, is the first and still the only book-length study of these unions, starting with one reported in 1980. The book argues that the couples asserted--and today still assert--their right to be together, using an age-old language of love understood by Indians. Vanita explores Indian religious, legal, and literary traditions that provide spaces for same-sex and other socially disapproved unions. While many recent high-profile Indian weddings have been reported as the 'first' of their kind, Love's Rite celebrates the unsung pioneers and martyrs of the struggle for marriage equality.

Preparations for King George the Third's fiftieth birthday gala are in full swing in Lucknow. As poets and performers vie to be part of the show, Chapla Bai, a dazzling courtesan from Kashi, briefly enters this competitive world, and sweeps the poet Nafis Bai off her feet. An irresistible passion takes root, expanding and contracting like a wave of light. Over two summers, aided by Nafis's friends, the poets Insha and Rangin, and Sharad, himself in love with a man, they exchange letters and verses, feeding each other the heady fruit of desire. When Chapla leaves for home, they part with the dream of building a life together. Can their relationship survive the distances?Narrated in the voice of Nafis, Memory of Light weaves an exquisite web of conversations, songs, reminiscences around a life-changing love.