Summary

In “Bapu,” because Bapu’s “family was Brahmin, India’s highest social caste,” they worried Bapu’s limp would keep them from finding her a good husband (69). To attract a match, her father purchased a house “in an upscale neighborhood” despite his priest’s warnings (69). The priest believed the house, which Bapu’s father named Amrita, was unfit for a family because of its dark past (70).

Bapu and her new husband Rajamani moved into Amrita. Bapu had two children, Bhargavi and Karthik. Aware of the “few realms in which she held power,” Bapu frequently wrote about Rajamani’s perception of her as an enemy (71).

Because she hated Rajamani’s family, Bapu attached herself to religious concerns, taking her children to hear lectures on the scripture. These meetings fortified Bapu’s spiritual beliefs, inspiring her to cast off her body, mind, and life to achieve...