By Sarah Berry
Why doesn’t she take up Science? Why doesn’t she become a doctor? Why doesn’t she get married? Why doesn’t she have a child to call her own? Why? I remember my mom’s composed answer, steady over decades — “To each her own.” Half-a-lifetime later, I read To Each Her Own, a book written by Vijaydan Detha, and published by Katha.
Katha’s books are known for their simple yet impactful storyline, and for their awe-inspiring illustrations. To Each Her Own is no different. Illustrated by Anita Hashemi Moghaddam, it has been translated from the Rajasthani by Christi A Merrill along with Kailash Kabir.
“… The air was thick with the smell of fish. But the fisherman and his wife loved the smell …” Being a white-collar worker, the smell of fish may be unimaginable for me, perhaps, but for working-class fisherfolk, this is their lifeline. As the book progresses, simple sentences are pregnant with anticipation … what next? I quickly flip the pages, one after the other, but it is tough, as my eyes are captivated by the colours and hues of the beautiful art.
The big fisherwoman, so simple, yet so beautiful in her complexion, features, and attire. Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. No? How true.. how very true I fall, slowly and steadily, in love with this robust character. Anyway, back to reality, and my eyes struggle to capture the words yet again amidst all the colours.
Drenched with rain, the fisherwoman is asked by another helpful human being,“ … you must be very cold … ”, to which she laughs and replies, “We are like fish ourselves; no matter how wet, we are never cold!” Doesn’t life make us like those whom we love the most? Be it fish or flowers, it is but the same, it is all about unconditional love.
Unconditional love is blind to barriers of all kinds. Everything is forgotten and forgiven; accepted and adjusted with; welcomed and overcome, though all may be the same for love, but is love the same for all? How does one define this four-letter word? Are there different types of love? The questions are endless. To Each Her Own throws these beautiful questions up in the air for the reader, leaving them juggling with the numerous answers, the permutations, and combinations possible. The crux remains: “Live and let live.”
The book also draws one to an important aspect of living in a diverse world, and the gift needed to survive— acceptance. The book may introduce the reader to a world that may be different from theirs, and help them draw comparisons between different systemic and historical structures that are based on aspects like class, income, caste, race, religion, etc. This introduction may help us understand our differences and similarities.
In diversity lies similarity, and in similarity lies diversity, but if the horizon of the mind is narrow, how can we ever explore this idea? This intriguing book ends with ‘greetings of the world’ — the most impactful and simple ice breakers in the field of communication known to humans. So, the next time before we build barriers, pass judgments, or whatever else similar, we must remember: To each, her own.
About the author: Sarah Berry heads External Affairs at Katha and hails from a multicultural background — her father being Indian and mother being German. She brings with her 24 years of diverse professional experiences covering public diplomacy/advocacy, training, outreach, content generation/management and communications, amongst others.
This article is a part of Katha’s segment titled “Write To Equality”, a medium to use Katha books for questioning various spectrums of inequality in India.