Chitra Ganesh, Sultana’s Dream, 2018 

Narrator: In Sultana’s Dream, Chitra Ganesh reinterprets a 1903 short story by Rokeya Sakhawat. The story imagines an alternate future world called Ladyland, in which peace reigns and women rule. Although the story was written in the past and imagines the future, Ganesh uses it to reflect on the problems and inequities of the present. What follows is an excerpt of the original story. You can hear the story in its entirety in the Access portion of this guide.

Uma Sultana: One evening I was lounging in an easy chair in my bedroom and thinking lazily of the condition of Indian womanhood. I'm not sure whether I dozed off or not, but as far as I remember, I was wide awake. I saw the moonlit sky sparkling with thousands of diamond-like stars very distinctly. All of a sudden, a lady stood before me. How she came in I do not know. I took her for my friend, Sister Sarah. "Good morning," said Sister Sarah. I smiled inwardly as I knew it was not morning but starry night. However, I replied to her saying, "How do you do?" "I'm all right. Thank you. Will you please come out and have a look at our garden?" I looked again at the moon through the open window and thought there was no harm in going out at that time. The manservants outside were fast asleep just then and I could have a pleasant walk with Sister Sarah.

Uma Sultana: I used to have my walks with Sister Sarah when we were in Darjeeling. Many a time did we walk hand in hand and talk lightheartedly in the botanical gardens there. I fancied Sister Sarah had probably come to take me to some such garden and I readily accepted her offer and went out with her. When walking, I found to my surprise that it was a fine morning. The town was fully awake and the streets alive with bustling crowds. I was feeling very shy thinking I was not walking in the street in broad daylight, but there was not a single man visible. Some of the passersby made jokes at me. Though I could not understand their language, yet I felt sure they were joking. I asked my friend, "What do they say?"

Uma Sultana: "The women say that you look very mannish". "Mannish?" I said. "What do they mean by that?" "They mean that you are shy and timid like men." "Shy and timid like men?" It was really a joke. I became very nervous when I found that my companion was not Sister Sarah but a stranger. Oh, what a fool I had been to mistake this lady dear old friend, Sister Sarah. She felt my fingers tremble in her hand as we were walking hand in hand. "What is the matter dear?" she said affectionately. "I feel somewhat awkward," I said, in a rather apologizing tone. "As being a Pardanashin woman, I'm not accustomed to walking about unveiled." "You need not be afraid of coming across a man here. This is Ladyland, free from sin and harm. Virtue herself reigns here."