Sometimes, privately, I wondered how Mrinal felt about not being married. Surely she experienced some regret at family gatherings when sisters and cousins paraded their offspring and boasted about their husbands? But when I reexamined the photos where she posed against a fresco in the Ajanta caves or waved elegantly from the deck of a cruise ship with her direct, open smile, my doubts faded. She has the perfect existence-money, freedom, admiration, I would say to myself enviously, suddenly wanting it for myself, and she doesn't have to worry about pleasing anyone. Underneath my envy, though, I was happy for her. Whenever my own life depressed me with its clutter and its ordinariness, I took a strange solace in thinking of Mrinal's, which seemed to me to be fashioned with the same clean, confident strokes with which she had once designed her clothes.

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None of the stories in the book are titled 'Arranged Marriage', though it seems the author's intention was to explore how many women find husbands through arranged marriages. Most stories are set in the USA, depicting the immigrant experience and focusing on women who must balance their roles as demure housewives and daughters-in-law. Interestingly, none of the male characters are portrayed positively; some are depicted as immature, threatening, or outright abusive. While this portrayal isn't surprising, I believe it does represent majority of what Indian Women faced in daily lives – either while in marriage and just in general to be honest. Despite this, the book is well-crafted, marking my introduction to Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni's work, and I look forward to reading more from her. I've also noted down the themes of each story if you're considering buying the book.

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Theme for each story :