One Part Woman - Perumal Murugan

"One Part Woman" is the first novel of Indian writer Perumal Murugan to be translated into English. The novel is set in the state of Tamil Nadu, in Thiruchengode, the author’s home town, during the colonial era. It explores how the stigma of childlessness strains a married couple’s life. How far should they go to earn public approval? Can a husband accept that his wife sleeps with another man to conceive? Will this mean that he may discover it has all been his ‘fault’? As the protagonists grapple with these questions, the author explores the intricacies of family relationships and empathises with individuals pitted against the group. After the novel’s publication in India, the author faced a backlash from a right-wing Hindu group. They mounted protests, including book burnings, claiming that it denigrated a Hindu deity. Murugan received death threats and had to seek police protection; there was a petition to press criminal charges against him, but the court defended his freedom of expression. So this novel’s story is one with a somewhat happy ending.

A vibrant fable of marriage, caste and social convention from one of the most exciting voices in contemporary Indian fiction.

Kali and Ponna are perfectly content in their marriage, apart from one thing. They are unable to conceive. With local gossip and family disapproval mounting, the increasingly desperate couple consider a more drastic plan. They will attend the annual chariot festival, a celebration of the half-male, half-female god Maadhorubaagan.

For one night, the rules of marriage are relaxed, and consensual sex between unmarried men and women is overlooked, for all men are considered gods.Could this be the opportunity that they’ve been searching for?

National Book Award Nominee for Translated Literature (2018)

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