Echoes of Silence

Echoes of Silence is a collection of short stories by Bhanumati Mishra. It’s a sensitive portrayal of a woman’s socio-cultural positioning and her world changed by circumstance, fate and destiny. Caught up in life’s vicissitudes, the female protagonist often finds herself at a poignant moment in this journey. Inspired by Maupassant and O. Henry, each tale has a twist of epiphany at the end. With mostly a rural or small-town setting, each story comes with a different regional milieu, reflecting the cultural potpourri called India. The simple but moving narration covers a range of topics from female foeticide, militancy to gender discrimination and human desire. One can trace a common thread of psychological conflict through the carefully drawn characters –Zavia, a young Kashmiri girl, accidentally recognizes her brother who turned a terrorist ; middle-aged Manasi, a Bengali housewife, whose chance meeting with a stranger helps her rediscover her musical self. Echoes of Silence is a glimpse into the interior landscape of women and their unique responses to life’s challenges.