Book Review #76 : THE PRINCESS OF A WHORE HOUSE

This book is about Ramya and her daughter Aparajita. Ramya lost her husband in an accident. She was sold by her husband’s friend, Anjum, into flesh trade. She was too young to understand the world and gets carried away. She believed few who in turn exploited her for their own good.

Trapped in the merciless milieu of one of the largest red-light districts in India, Aparajita faces the repercussions of something she has least control of. A restrained society snubs Aparajita for her social class, under the influence of a centuries-old enigma that still persists in the fifth largest economy of the world. The fiasco rips her hope and crushes her childhood dream to study as she grows up in the street of ill repute.

As they say, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, Raj Kaul comes to the rescue of her and Aparajita. So when an opportunity to ditch being a sex worker is offered who would deny?That’s why Ramya marries Raj, an artist who works for an NGO. Ramya has only one goal that drove her to marry Raj which is to make her talented daughter study in a proper school. She will do anything to protect her daughter from the evil eyes of the pimps.

I loved the way how the characters were portrayed and the events which were used to spin a perfect story. Though it wasn't a bulky novel, (I love fat novels) within 98 pages, the author was successful enough in bringing out the best of the character Aparajita from being a small girl to a grown one, realising her dreams.

I accept the fact that the author has done a fantastic job in writing the intriguing story. While the first half is narrated by Ramya, Aparajita's mother, the second half was narrated by Aparajita. To be truthful, I loved everything in the second half. It is full of positivity. The letter Aparajita wrote to her step father was beautiful. It is very rare to find a person like her stepfather these days.

A short and crisp story that very well brings out the emotions of the central character. The author has superbly expressed the feelings of a woman. The plot is likely to touch the heart of every woman. I also felt that though the author has made a good attempt to highlight the issue of sex workers coming back to the society and trying to lead a normal life, but I felt that there are other element that could have been looked into.

In all, a good read and I am sure women are going to like it a lot. Author has done a great job in addressing these issues which women of the current Indian society are facing. This problem is not just in the rural areas but also in urban India.

Rating – 4/5

P.S: I won a review copy from The Tales Pensieve as part of Reviewers Programme. Register on #TTP for lots of #book fun and activities.