The Expression Hub

Author: Sudha Murthy

Genre: Drama

“Greed keeps men forever poor, even the abundance of this world will not make them rich.”

Mongolian proverb

There are certain things which just give you a feeling of home . For me, they are drawing, writing blog posts and maybe getting things stricken off from your to do list. It just feels good when you are somewhat relieved. I being a serious workaholic(though I do feel a lot of guilt a lot of times for not taking time out for myself). But when a particular habit is ingrained in you and you are obsessed about getting the work done then you do push all your limits. Maybe that is what is called being passionate about something. There are a lot of times when you do feel like giving up or procrastinating a certain piece of work, yet something in you tells you not to and finish it even though you finish it in parts. Either I can work to finish a piece of work or I might be too slow to finish that particular piece of work at times. Is that my OCD at play I wonder a lot of times. Whatever be the case, I do wish I could give more time to myself and not feel guilty about having my work put on hold. Maybe one day, I will be at peace with respect to this regard as well. Till, then the struggle between being a perfectionist and being sometimes too lazy will continue. If you have any suggestions as regards to this, do let me know in the comments section. I will be happy to implement those if they are feasible and worth the effort. It will be a pain in butt initially but with time the habit will be ingrained. After all anything is achievable with determination and hard work I feel.

Well, enough of the chit chat and lets come straight to the point. After recharging myself after a short break(which was a family obligation to be frank which I did not want but then too forced myself to take it due to my family. And boy I did not regret it though it did made me have a pile of workload. But its okay as long as you can get yourself refreshed and enjoy the moment.)This post was supposed to be the last one in the month of celebrating motherhood . Nevertheless, it got posted in the next month thanks to the family obligation. So, presenting to you the latest pick and what was supposed to be the last blog post of the month celebrating motherhood. This one is supposed to be about a woman who is bright and is enthusiastic about life residing in a small village in Karnataka. But after marrying the man she had a brief encounter with and moving to city makes her realize some harsh realities. Read on to find out more.

About the book: House of Cards is a novel written by Sudha Murthy which narrates the story of Mridula. Mridula is a bright young woman who is enthusiastic about life and lives in a small village of Karnataka. She meets Sanjay, a talented but impoverished doctor by accident. Both fall into love with one another and marry and settle in Bangalore. However, the transition from being a village gal to living in a city teaches Mridula some harsh lessons as regards to living life. However, she tries not to let these things bog her down and instead take life in a positive manner. Yet it seems life wanted her to teach a bigger lesson. Sanjay frustrated with his meager earnings quits his government job and with the help of his close friend starts a practice. By working day in and day out, he is able to establish a successful medical practice. However trouble starts brewing when Sanjay has sold his soul to the devil in order to fuel his never ending ambitions. When Mridula gets to realise this, what is the action taken by her ? Or does she continue to support her husband despite the realization is a thing that needs to be found out .

Analysis: This is a book written by one of my favorite authors : Sudha Murthy. The reason why I love her work is because of two factors. The first one is because of the simple language she uses which makes the book a breeze to read. Secondly. because of the reality portrayed in the stories she weaves and the lessons they offer to the reader. This story too like the others provide a deep perspective into the functioning of human relationships. Mridula is a person who is supposed to be an idealist and so is Sanjay up to the point of establishing his practice. But when Sanjay gets blinded his greed he starts questioning the ideals he had till date. This actually makes him go in conflict with his wife. Yet his wife, tries to be his best support and does not question his methods. The story also tries to portray a picture of a relationship which a husband and wife must have when Satish and Mridula have a brief conversation. Satish is shown to be a supportive husband while on the other hand Sanjay despite having the best of what life has to offer treats his wife as his inferior. This makes her unhappy until one day she decides to take a stand for herself. Through this, the author tries to convey a very important message- a woman must learn to stand up for herself. She should not let herself be treated like a doormat in marriage. Instead she should be treated as an equal. This is a big lesson for all the women out there as well as men especially in a society which is supposed to be patriarchal by nature. It also teaches us a lesson to be a person with integrity even though you might be ambitious in nature. Money is supposed to be one of the important aspects in one’s life ; life is more than money. Its about having concern for one another. That is what gives a person more satisfaction and happiness.

Verdict: A beautiful read with plenty of life lessons offered with a dash of drama. However, the drama is not the one which you get to witness on television during prime time . Instead, it is a drama which might be unfolding in a majority of Indian households if not all. The simple language used by the author makes it a complete breeze to read while the life lessons offered by the medium of the characters involved adds to the wisdom. So, do give it a read once and let me know about your experiences in the comments section . Till then lots of love and have a great week ahead. Do try spreading the love by spreading the word of the same. Will be highly grateful for the same:)

Rating: *** stars

Cite Bite: “Every woman wants to change her life but no man understands how. He showers his wife with the gifts that he likes but not with what she wants.”

Que: What is the profession of Sanjay?

a. Doctor(Gynecologist)

b. Teacher

c. Lawyer

d. Chartered Accountant