Mahashweta
Dr Anand watches a beautiful girl called Anupama in a play and falls in love with her. He is from a rich family and she is a scholarship student from a very poor family. Yet he is able to convince everyone that she is the girl for him, and they get married. This is a Cinderella moment for Anupama. Anupama’s mother had died very early. Her stepmother hated her because Anupama was so beautiful that she believed her beauty would dazzle most young men and prevent her own two plain-looking daughters from getting married.
Newly married into a wealthy family, Anupama has a new life to live. But her husband leaves for England to study and she is suddenly inflicted by Vitiligo—white patches that appear on her feet. Aghast, her new family sees this as a sign of impurity and sends her back to her father’s house, where she is treated worse than before. She is depressed and considers suicide. Although her patches spread, she finds strength and leaves for Bombay to rebuild her life. Will she be able to?
The Magic Drum and Other Favourite Stories
Over 35 timeless folk tales, both old and new, that are centred around people from every walk of life and packed to the brim with wit and humour. Follow the simpleton who sent his donkey to school, the clever shepherd who filled three sacks with words, the farmer who accidentally predicted the future, the young man who encountered a mysterious fruit on his first voyage, and the king who spurred a lazy village into action. Find out why the miser paid a thousand rupees for a single coconut, how two thieves saved a minister's life, who stole the princess's favourite diamond necklace, and what a magic drum did to find the truth.
House of Cards
Mridula, a kind and intelligent village girl marries Sanjay, a hardworking but underpaid city doctor. Together, they move to Bangalore where Sanjay opens a successful nursing home after years of struggle. The story traces their relationship over twenty five years, from its idealistic and loving beginning to its potential end, marred by the pressures of high society and the influence of money. Mridula becomes trapped in a tangle of deceit fighting to stay true to her morals, in spite of losing respect in the eyes of her husband and son for doing the same. Can she continue to single-handedly hold her fragile family together?
The Old Man & His God
This is a collection of stories that are based on the author's experiences. In the preface to the book, Sudha Murthy mentions that she has often wondered what draws her readers to her stories. "I have come to the conclusion that it is because they are simply told and are all true. After all, there is something within all of us that attracts us to the truth." She adds that she has tried to hold up a mirror to the lives of the people of our country and "attempted to trace that spirit within us which makes us uniquely Indian." Horegallu is a wonderful example of one such story. It talks about the importance of resting during journeys, both physical and emotional, to lighten oneself of one’s burdens. Another story An Officegoer’s Dilemma talks about the shackles that the rich live with and the liberties that the poor enjoy in India.
