The Golden Son is based on the lives of two individuals, Leela and Anil, two childhood friends hailing from a small village in the state of Gurjat, India. Belonging to the most respected and wealthy family in the village, Anil has the opportunity to break away from his family’s multigenerational farming and choose his own career path. While Anil embarks on his journey to America to pursue his career, Leela embarks on her own journey in Gurjat, as she leaves her maternal home to fulfill her role as a wife and daughter-in-law.
I have read two other amazing books by Shilpi Somaya Gowda: The Shape of Family and The Secret Daughter. Gowda does an amazing job intertwining social issues into her stories, issues that are usually swept under the rug in South Asian cultures.
In this particular read, Gowda touches on the struggles such as the struggle of self-identify for immigrants, the pressures on women to protect their families’ honor, and the societal pressures to live up to certain standards in life.
Many immigrants face obstacles when moving away from their home countries to North America. By moving away from a country where caste and socioeconomic status play a role in determining the future of individuals regardless of their qualifications, many immigrants are excited to start a new life away from stigma, societal pressures and overbearing relatives. However, we tend to forget the new set of obstacles one may face. Seen as an outsider in their new country, immigrants go back to visit their home countries only to feel a disconnect where they once felt as if they belonged, leaving them to struggle with their self-identity. Some try to keep a connection with their roots while others try to assimilate into their new environments only to be seen as an outsider.
Another social issue Gowda focuses on is the expected role of a woman in a marriage and how in South Asian cultures, a family’s honour is held in the hands of their women. Should a woman’s marriage fail, the blame is appointed to the woman as it is seen as her duty to keep the marriage together, regardless of the circumstances. If a woman leaves her husband it is seen as bringing shame to their family. Unfortunately, this leads to women enduring domestic violence in order to spare their family of shame. A classic “What will people say” scenario, women in certain cultures are ostracized for failed marriages.
Many of us find it difficult to not be so hard on ourselves for not being where we thought we would have been today. Whether that’s not having obtained the career you want, settling down to start a family, being married by a certain age, and the list can go on. Due to societal, and in quite a few cases, family pressures, we feel we need to live up to certain standards. Anil in The Golden Son sums this up quite perfectly, “…not a lot of tolerance for imperfection in our culture.” This can lead pressure to become something we don’t want to become or can leave us having such a fear of not fulfilling these expectations which can further leave us with anxiety and a whole host of other issues.
All in all, Shilpi Somaya Gowda once again blew my mind with an amazing novel. Another book I simply could not put down, highly recommend this book! The story leads you through Anil and Leela’s life, and quite frankly leaves you quite invested in their story.
Nish Jots Her Thoughts 