Afina Shamsudeen/ LEC052002/ "A Deconstructive reading of The Girl Who Haunted Death ".

 Afina Shamsudeen 

LEC052002 

Dr. Joseph Koyippally 

Academic Writing 

   A deconstructive reading of 'The Girl 

Who Haunted Death '.

Nikita Deshpande , is a creative nomad, was the author of the short fiction 'The Girl Who Haunted Death '. It is the rewriting of a popular myth through perspective of the protagonist, Savitri. The world only know the devoted, dutiful and dedicated wife who haunted Death to bring her husband's life back. When Savitri was given a focus, a voice to sound the silent murmuring, the myth gets into  a different line. She describes her explorations on the journey with Death. The fifteen year old girl portraits the mysterious connections of Love, Life and Death. 

Deshpande takes the old Savitri as the protagonist and voice her to narrate the mysterious journey with Death, the difficulties she had faced, and the toughest questions she had asked Death, and how she exactly made Death to bring her back her husband's life on an unexpected turn. She also describes how the prevailing myth had spread as rumours among the people when she was muted herself from the things happened between Death and herself. 

 Savitri was born an brought up on the palace as in the mythical story  and the things were going the same till the Death scene of her husband in the forest floor. Weeping there on the forest floor she realises that she cannot be the same without her husband. The rules and rituals are tough for the widows. She wished to live rather choosing sati.  She with all her heart tried to bring her husband's life back with her desire for living a decent life. She argued with Death and she started following Death until Death gives her husband's life back. Death took her with and travelled to a world where there is no time limit, particularl humanly things. On the journey with Death she  was allowed to ask the God Death who was appeared for her in the form of  a seducing female of eastern culture and style. Her doubts starts from there and it increases throughout the journey.  Death offers her husband's life back only if she annoys Death with a single question. 

Journey of Savitri and Death continues for centuries, and Death sheds its form from place to place, time to time.  Death chooses different sexes and also appears as  gender fluid , to lighten the concept of the sex of God. Death addresses her as a puppet whose duty is to obey the master and to follow him wherever he goes. Death says frequently her that 'dying is a wish fulfillment like no others '. It may implies to the chained souls who were confined in the four walls of the house. Its like a full freedom for them to die. They will be free from the responsibilities, bonds, duties etc.

Death brings her to the land of colours where she loved to live. The white colour which was the only colour allowed for the widows, is really colourless.  She prefers colour rather than colourless. When Death offers her a visit as she wished, the girl got seduced and she had a physical relationship with the female form of the Death. When Death hurts the colourful world which she loved she leaves Death there. And now she finds Death centuries later, on the campus of a university college where Savitri was teaching the students the gender studies. Death tries to address her with the old name but she refuses telling she is  not Savitri but somebody else, evolved through the pain, happiness, sweet-bitter experiences, feelings,dreams,  hope and pleasure. 

She made an attempt to stop Death from taking the soul of one of her students.  She tries to irritate Death asking several questions. Death teased her sayings loved attachments are mere mortal weaknesses. She then asks Death that why she, a mere mortal was allowed to see Death, to speak to Death..... to touch Death?. Death got irritated and leaves her back on that very forest plain from where Death took her and gave her back her husband's life instead of answering the question. Death was muted by her question, the question which evolved from the centuries of feelings, knowledge, thoughts etc.

With that unanswered question she returned near to her husband. She was numb, when her asked her, returning home , on seeing her reflection on the water of pond. She was trying to find an answer which would satisfy both her beliefs and her innocent soul. She then heard the rumour of her devoted act that pleased Death to give her back her husband's life. Nobody knew the price of  indicating a god. For the world she is the devoted wife, but for herself, she is the little girl who played under the summer sun, holding on to a basket of sickeningly sweet fruits.


Work cited.

1.Deshpande, Nikita. The girl who haunted Death, Hachette Book publishing  India.2019.

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