The Widows of Malabar Hill Summary
Sujata Massey

The Widows of Malabar Hill Overview

A murder mystery coupled with historical fiction, Sujata Massey’s The Widows of Malabar Hill is a narrative of women’s lives in Bombay in the early twentieth century as told through the eyes of the main character, Perveen Mistry, the country’s first female lawyer. The novel is set in India, both Bombay and Calcutta, and illustrates the inequalities between genders in law and culture. Inspired by the actual first female attorney in India, the book investigates the author’s own heritage through a fictional account. The novel explores themes of women’s rights, ownership, and greed.