UNIT 18 THE BINDING VINE - PLOT

Structure
Objectives
Introduction
Observations about the Novel
The Story in Brief
18.3.1 The Story
18.3.2 Let Us Revise
Detailed Summary
18.4.1 Part One
18.4.2 Part Two
I 8.4.3 Part Three
18.4.4 Part Four
Plot
Glossary
What the Critics Say
Let Us Sum Up
Answers to Exercises

18.0 OBJECTIVES

In this unit we shall introduce you to Shashi Deshpande's novel The Binding
Vine. After you have read the unit carefully you will be able to:
understand the story and sequence of the novel and
outline the plot of the novel.

18.1 INTRODUCTION

In the previous unit we discussed the genre of the novel, the rise of the novel
in India and the various aspects of the novel. This was to acquaint you with
the genre in its totality. We have seen that the novel has some important
elements that we require to know if we wish to analyze it. One of these
elements is plot. In this unit our aim is to concentrate on Shashi Deshpande's
The Binding Vine and to get to know the novel in its minute details.
Let us remember that this novel is generally grouped under women's fiction.
We shall see later how Deshpande reacts to being so slotted.

Let us now take up our discussion.

18.2 OBSERVATIONS ABOUT THE NOVEL

The Binding Vine was published in 1993. It is Shashi Deshpande's sixth novel
if we take into consideration the two short novels-lfZ Die Today and Come
up and Be Dead-that are generally categqrized as crimeldetective fiction.
The Binding Vine has a broad base in that it merges three stories into one to
achieve an integrated pattern; but the setting is restricted to the limited space
of women's experience. The author seems to ask a significant question,
The Novel: The "Should women break their silence?'If yes, then "how?"'Who will take the
Binding Vine lead?' Some courageous person must come forward to articulate. This
responsibility is given to the writer. The writer transcends the personal to
achieve the general. In the process of writing, the individual brings forth a
''new creation" separate from the creator. The creator and the created are two
distinct entities. That is what the epigraph to the novel says, "What was the
use of my creation, if I were entirely contained here?' This line from Emily
Bmntet's Wuthering Heights signifies that creativity is beyond time and place.
The writing process involves exclusion of certain experiences and elevation of
others according to the author's subjectivity. The writer's word has the power
to suppress some experiences, communicate others and reveal the hidden
selves.
This novel is a multi-dimensional narrative about family bonds, human
relationships, women's right to their body and the need to speak out to set
right the wrong. Despite its grim environ of pain and loss you will find in the
story an undercurrent of love, understanding and hope.
Shall we now give some thought to the beginning and ending of the novel?
The first sentence is, "We all of us grow up with an idea of ourselves, an
image rather, and spend the rest of our lives trying to live up to it." This
sentence has psychological relevance. Psychologists say that when we try to
live as our image, not as our real self, we face an identity crisis and alienation.
Who, in this novel, is living as an image? The narrator, Urmi. In the next line
she asserts that she is trying to get over that image and be herself. The middle
shows how she passes through turbulence. By the end of the novel, she gets
over her grief. "Is this it, 'the spring of life' Mira was looking for?When we
read the paragraph preceding this, we realize that Urmi is talking about the
small acts of love, understanding and human relationships that make survival
possible. We all look for some sustaining force to keep us going because life
may have its futility and living may be absurd, yet we all want to cling to life.
This brings us to the title of the novel-The Binding Vine. The vine of love,
affection and fellow feelings binds us all to each other. A vine is delicate but it
has the tendency to spread its tendril and hold fast to its support. Likewise, the
nameless delicate moments of intimacy and understanding bind us fast.
Despite pain and anguish that make existence a struggle, there is the "spring of
life" emerging at intervals to help us overcome our sense of loss. We can look
on life anew, with hope.
The full impact of the title will be clear to you when we discuss the theme in
our next unit. Before that, let us read the story.
Check Your Progress 1
1. Discuss in brief the title of the novel.

2. , Broadly, how many stories are merged in the plot of The Binding
Vine?
3. What is an epigraph? From where has the author taken the epigraph to The Binding Vine by
this novel? Shashi Deshpande:
Plot
......................................................................................

4. Fill in the blank: The Binding Vine was published in ---------------- It

is the .................... novel of Shashi Deshpande

18.3 THE STORY IN BRIEF

The Binding Vine, as we remarked in the previous unit, is a stream-of-

consciousness novel with the action moving back and forth. It does not follow
a sequence of events. The story takes shape slowly and sometimes the reader
fails to link who's who. The novel is difficult to understand in one reading
precisely because our mind takes time to assimilate the various facts, events
and their relation to characters. This brief summary given below will help you
to understand the story.

18.3.1 The Story

The protagonist of The Binding Vine is Urmila, called Urrni in the novel. She
is grieving over the death of her one-year-old daughter Anu and it is from here
that the story picks up momentum. Urmi's husband Kishore is in the Merchant
Navy. He remains on the ship for many months and is, therefore, absent from
the novel. Urmi is a lecturer and she lives with her little son Kartik and her
mother, in Bombay. When the novel opens, Urmi is in conversation with
Vanaa. Vanaa is her childhood friend and also her sister-in-law (Kishore's
sister). Urmi is in a bad mood. She feels irritated when Vanaa talks of a small
incident of their girlhood days when Urmi was learning cycling in Ranidurg.
One day she had fallen off the bicycle and hurt her knees. At this Urmi asks
her angrily, "what are you trying to say Vanaa? .... Why don't you say it
straight off'? (p. 8). Actually, Vanna is trying to shift her mind from her grief
but Urmi is in no mood to be soothed by such remarks. Urmi refuses to let go
of her pain. She tells Vanaa that when she fell off the cycle, it was a small hurt
compared to the agony of losing her daughter. She has lost her child and she
cannot forget it. "This pain is all that's left to me of Anu. Without it, there will
be nothing left to me of her; I will lose her entirely" (p. 9).

At the mention of her girlhood days in Ranidurg, Urmi is reminded of her

grandmother Baiajji. Urmi was fond of her grandmother. Her childhood with
Baiajji and Aju (grandfather) was a happy one but she was always puzzled as
to why her parents had sent her away while Arnrut her brother stayed with
them. She bore a kind of grudge against her mother, Inni. It is only towards
the end of the novel that Inni recounts the incident. Long back, when Urmi
was a child, Inni had gone out leaving her in the care of Divakar, a trusted
servant. Urmi's father had come home early that day and seeing that the girl
was left with a male servant, had got angry. After that he decided to send
Urmi to his mother. He made his decision without even consulting his wife-
Inni, Urmi's mother. At this point Urmi understands the sinister power of male
dominance that rendered her mother a helpless victim. Urmi now realizes how
her mother must have suffered the pain of separation and how bravely she
bore it over the years without complaining. She feels sorry for her mother. But
The Novel: The this realization comes only towards the end and before that we have to go
Binding Vine through many more incidents and get to know many characters.
We are now introduced to Akka, Urmi's mother-in-law. One day Akka brings
out an old trunk. It contains some yellowing papers, diaries and notes. Akka
tells her that these papers belong to Mira and Urmi gets interested in reading
them to see what they contain. Actually, Mira is Kishore's real mother, i.e.,
Urmi's mother-in-law. She had died when Kishore was just one day old and
Kishore's father was married to Akka so that the infant Kishore could get a
mother. Thus, Akka is Urmi's step-mother-in-law. Urmi realizes that Akka
was brought as a bride only to be a mother to Kishore. Urmi can now re-cast
Akka's loveless married life, and feels sorry for her.
From the letters and diaries, Urmi understands the pain of yet one more
woman-Mira. Urmi reads the papers assiduously and re-creates Mira's life,
her aspirations, failures, fears and desires. Mira's problem is the obsessive
love of her husband. He loves her for himself, not for her sake. For him
gratification of his desire is of prime significance. He never pauses to think of
her wish or will. Mira frankly records her intimate feelings in her diaries. Her
poems are also confessional. She wants love, not lust. Love means
understanding the other and caring for his or her needs; lust is selfish and it
looks for personal satisfaction. Mira is afraid of her husband's lustful love.
Looking at the situation from a social angle, Mira's fear and anger has no
relevance, as her husband's demand is perfectly legitimate within the canons
of marriage. Despite her despair, Mira feels happy when she is with child. As
an expectant mother, she starts loving life. Unfortunately, she dies in
childbirth.
Urmi joins duty after her leave expires and gets busy in her daily routine. One
day, she learns of a rape-case when she goes to the hospital to meet Vanaa
who is a medical social worker. The rape victim is Kalpana. Here Deshpande
gives us one more story. Kalpana is a young vivacious girl from a lower class
background. She is Shakutai's daughter. Shakutai has one more daughter
Sandhya and a son. Her husband does not stay with them so it is Shakutai who
is the breadwinner. She has a sister, Sulochana (Sulu). Sulu is childless and is
afraid that her husband, Prabhakar, may marry another woman and shunt her
out of his house. Her husband is enamoured of Kalpana and is keen to marry
her. Both Shakutai and Sulu approve of this proposal. Sulu likes it because if
Kalpana comes as the co-wife, Sulu will not be driven out. After all, Sulu is
Kalpana's aunt (Mavshi). Shakutai likes the idea because she thinks Prabhakar
is a good man and since he loves Kalpana, he will keep her happy. Kalpana,
however, has her own aspirations. She likes a young man whom she wants to
marry, and rejects Prabhakar's offer.
While Kalpana lies in the hospital, the outside world moves around her.
Shakutai does not want the case to be reported to the police. She is afraid that
it will spoil their name and nobody would marry Sandhya her second
daughter; the police officer wants to project it as an accident case because rape
cases are complicated. From the various discussions it is clear that nobody
wants to accept it as a rape case. Priti, Inni, Vanaa all offer only lip-sympathy.
They tell Urmi to keep away from this mess. Shakutai blames her for crossing
the limits of a woman's life and attracting attention by her modern ways of
dressing up.
Despite all odds, Urmi gives out Kalpana's story to a journalist friend, and it is
published. Shakutai gets social attention. Questions are raised in the Assembly
 and the hospital authorities are instructed to let Kalpana remain in the hospital. The Binding Vine b y
Thus, Urrni breaks the silence and manages to get justice for the suffering Shashi Deshpande:
family. The police has to investigate the case, and when Sulu realizes that her .Plot
husband Prabhakar is the culprit, she comments suicide. In the course of the
events she understands how the tender vine of human understanding, empathy
and sympathy binds us all. Life goes on despite its ups and douns. The novel
ends on a note of optimism as Urmi broods over 'the spring of life' we all look
for.
I Check Your Progress 2
I
i 1. What is the relationship between Urmi, Mira and Akka?

2. Why was Urmi sent to Ranidurg and who took the decision to send
her? Who stayed at Ranidurg?

3. Here are two sections A and B. Find out the correct answer by
matching A with B:
A B
1) Vanaa (a) Baiajji
2) Urmi's grandmother (b) Kalpana' s mother
3) YarninXnni (c) Urrni's friend and sister-in-law
4) Shakuntala/Shakutai (d) Urrni's mother

18.3.2 Let Us Revise

After reading the summary given above, we now know that:
o The Binding Vine is the story of Urmi and her grief over the death of
her infant daughter
o The story has two other linked stories: of Mira and her fears, and
Kalpana and her rape.
o Within this canvas there are small inset stories of human pain, fears
failures and agony. These are of Inni, Akka, Shakutai and Sulu.
o The ending shows Urmi's coming to terms with life, her vindication
that the urge to survive is the basic urge in all beings and that life is to
be lived as it comes.

18.4 DETAILED SUMMARY

Now that we know the brief outline of the story, let us understand the chapter-
wise movement of the novel so that we are able to discuss the plot in our next
section.

]'he Binding Vine is divided into four parts of almost equal length. The past
The Novel: The story is told in a particular section. Roughly, part one focuses on Urmi's grief,
Binding Vine part two is partly about Kalpana and partly about Mira, part three reverts again
to Urmi, and part four offers some sort of respite as slowly the knots are
unraveled. In each part, paragraph spacing indicates the change of time and
characters.

18.4.1 Part One

Part One of The Binding Vine starts with a four-line verse from Mira's poetry
and focuses primarily on Urmi's grief and her discovery of Mira's writings.
Urmi has lost her one-year-old daughter Anusha and is inconsolable. Nothing
can cheer her or divert her attention from her daughter. She is flippant, angry,
irritated and even hysterical. This state of mind is revealed not only through
Urmi's assessment of her situation but also through her words, actions and
reactions.

The novel opens with Vanaa trying to soothe Urmi's ruffled nerves. She
reminds Urmi of the time when she (Urmi) was learning cycling in Ranidurg
and fell off her bike and got hurt. To this Urmi's rejoinder is "Once? I must
have fallen at least a dozen times." Vanaa feels hurt at Urmi's deliberate
attempts to belittle her but she continues the conversation. Urmi is sharp
enough to know that Vanaa is trying to evoke Urmi's childhood memory of
her heroic attempts to get over pain and suffering and to tell her indirectly that
after all, she has been a brave girl and now she should live up to that "image".
As Urmi tells us in the first few lines, she wants to break this "image" of being
a heroic woman, she would rather be an ordinary woman and be able to
express her feelings, than a superhuman figure forced to repress her grief.

Vanaa's remarks not only imtate Urmi, they make her petulant. She digs up
old things, blames Vanaa for what she must have said during their girlhood
days and indulges in self-pity. This is, indeed, unlike Urmi who has always
been self-willed, strong and different from other girls. At this point we learn
that during her childhood Urmi had deliberately rejected the expensive and
beautiful dresses her mother got for her and preferred to wear the ill-fitted
ones stitched for her by her Baiajji. (We wonder at Urmi's obstinacy and wish
to know why she was staying with her grandparents and why not with her
parents).

Reference to Baiajji takes Urmi back in time. She remembers her days at
Ranidurg in the palatial house of her grandparents; the happy days of girlhood
abandon when life was smooth and Baiajji and Aju's love gave meaning to
living. There were small pleasures like occasionally cleaning'and airing the
big house, sharing the joke about the "darbar hall", the everyday excitement
when the train passed by, eating raw tamarind despite Baiajji's warning and
rushing to Vanaa's house in the neighborhood to play. All these pleasures
vanished slowly with time. Baiajji died and then Aju and Urmi's world
changed.

But, the most painful is the change brought in by Anu's death. Death leaves
emptiness and a silence that is impenetrable. Urmi is so much under nervous
tension that she bangs her head against the wall and gets hurt. Arnrut (her
brother) and Inni (her mother) are worried over her state of mind but when
they show concern, Urmi reacts sharply, making it clear that she does not like
 to be fussed over. Harish (Vanaa's husband) examines her and finds her The Binding Vine by
asthmatic. He offers to intimate Kishore but Urmi stops him. She assures them Shashi Deshpande:

it that she would recover in a couple of days and when Amrut comes to ask her
if he could now leave for Delhi, Urmi tells him categorically, "I'm trying to
Plot

get back to normal ... I know I have to go on living" (p. 22). With this
I resolution coming from Unni, Amrut feels a little confident about his sister.
The brother and the sister slide back in time and remember Baiajji, her
decoctions as a "miracle" cure for all childhood ailments and the taste of those
decoctions. Amrut asks her why she was arguing with Inni in the morning and
from their exchanges it is clear, once again, that Urmi is often impatient with
their mother. Their conversation veers back to Papa's death and how Inni was
shattered. They tell each other that time is a great healer and Urmi will get
over the pain.
I The monsoons set in and Bombay has torrential rains. Vanaa, her two
*d r:
daughters (Mandira and Pallavi), Urmi and Kartik and Inni watch a movie
when Priti, their relative and friend comes. They all discuss the movie,
remember how Urmi's Papa was often impatient with the children when they
watched the "rubbish", as he used to call films. Vanaa reveals how, as a child, ,

she was fascinated by the Urmi-Amrut duo (sister and brother), and their
sophisticated parents.

In a flashback, Urmi recollects how Akka had once brought Mira's trunk
containing her diaries, poems, papers and old photographs. They all had got
inquisitive about this far-off figure-Mira. Mira was Kishore's mother. As
Akka sings one of Mira's poems, the atmosphere is charged with enthusiasm.
That night after the children go to bed, Akka narrates Mira's story and in the
course of her narration reveals her wounds as an unloved wife who was
brought only to "give" a mother to infant Kishore. Urmi gets involved in
reading Mira's verses and her diaries and she re-creates her long-dead mother-
in-law as a plain looking girl with aspirations to do something in life. Mira
had not been happy in her marriage because her husband's love was a "trap",
it did not give her individual freedom but suffocated her by over-riding
passion. Part One ends with Urmi reminiscencing about an incident of their
childhood and commenting on the nature of truth.

18.4.2 Part Two

This part takes up the story of Kalpana and opens with a hospital scene where
the girl is lying in an unconscious state. The epigraph to this Part, from Mira's
poem, focuses on women's innate fear of man-the male-and we surmise
that despite all the talks of equality and emancipation, a woman is vulnerable.
Kalpana's mother is hysterical as she pleads with the doctors not to report the
matter as a rape-case. Urmi's heart goes out to the wailing mother and sensing
that the woman is alone, she offers to escort her home in a taxi. This is how
Urmi comes to know more about Shakutai, a peon in a girls' school. She lives
in a chaw1 along with her children-Kalpana, Sandhya and Prakash (son); her
husband has deserted her for another woman and Shakutai has no male
support except Prabhakar, her younger sister's husband.

Despite her mother's displeasure and Vanaa's sane advice, Urmi get5
involved in Kalpana's case. She often visits Shakutai, talks to Dr. ~ h a s k a ;
Jain about Kalpana and elicits important facts from the police officer. She
realizes how each one reacts to the question of rape-Shakutai is afraid of
social stigma and wants to believe that it was not rape; the police officer is
The Novel: The unwilliny to register it as a rape case because such cases become complicated
Binding Vine and harrowing for them; Dr. Bhaskar admits on the basis of medical
examination that the girl was raped.

Urmi gets to know many things about Kalpana from Shakutai. Kalpana was a
good+lookmg child, and Sulu her aunt (Shakutai's sister) was attached to her.
When Kalpana was growing up, Sulu offered to take her to her house to look
after her and educate her. The offer was good from Shakutai's angle also. She
wanted her children to get an education and settle il-! life. But after a while,
Kalpana had came back and had refused to go to Sulu Mavshi. Shakutai had
cursed the obstinate girl, without even looking into the cause of her refusal.
Here we get an idea that there could have been something wrong at Sulu's
place.

Kalpana was smart and fond of dressing up well. She worked in a shop and
often decked herself with nail polish and lipstick. Shakutai felt that she invited
male glances and called for trouble. According to her, a girl must know fear,
must stay within the social limits and must not aspire to fly high, and
according to her Kalpana was punished because she broke all these rules.
Urmi refuses to agree with these views. 1
18.4.3 Part Three I

Part Three moves between Mira and Kalpana and has inset stories of Papa,
Amrut, Shakutai and Dr. Bhaskar. The epigraph is about the perennial aspect
of Nature. The weather changes but the pattern of rain and flowing waters and
billowing clouds remains unchanged year after year. Mira had seen changes.
She was now an expectant mother. We learn about Mira's relations with her
mother, whose self-effacing character Mira does not like. She does not want to
be like her, and does not approve of her mother's advice to her to "submit"
and follow the rules. Instead Mira rebels in her own ways, within her own
limits-she says 'no' to her husband, she rejects her new name Nirmala after
marriage, and she often reveals her discontent. For women of her time, Mira's
demands have no meaning. According to them, she is "mad". The only thing
that gave her joy was her approaching motherhood. Unfortunately, Mira died
in childbirth, leaving her son Kishore and her writings.

The writer shows us how women harbour dreams and how the realities of life
make them wither away. One day Shakutai comes to Urmi's house and as
'
Urrni gets busy in making tea, Shakutai tells her the story of her marriage, her
journey from the village to Bombay and her life with her husband, who was a
good-for-nothing fellow and never gave Shakutai a home. They shared a room
with his cousin where she gave birth to her children, cooked, worked at a shop
and in fact did everything to run the household. She was over-worked and it
was only when Sulu came to stay that she got some help. As a young bride,
Shakutai had two dreams-to have a gas connection for cooking and to get a
mangalsutra in gold. The dreams were never realized-since her husband left
her for another woman, she discarded the idea of having a gold mangalsutra,
and she could never afford to get a cooking gas connection on her salary.

In this part, we are told more about Baiajji, Papa and Arnrut. Amrut stays in
Delhi and loves a Tamilian girl named Radha. We learn from their
conversation that his mother (Inni) is likely to object to the marriage, as she
wants a Maharashtrian daughter-in-law (pp130- 131). Urmi remembers how The Binding Vine by
she fell in love with Vanaa's brother Kishore when he quietly helped her at Shashi Deshpande:
Aju's demise by suicide. Part Three ends with Urmi remembering Mira's Plot
verse about her approaching motherhood.

18.4.4 Part Four

Part Four has a verse with an optimistic tinge. Whatever the troubles of life
and assaults of existence, we are all attached to life. Mira had reconciled with
life but life was snatched away by death. Kalpana loved life, but she is
struggling between life and death. Despite all this, life must go on. The novel
ends with this optimistic view.
Urmi gives the facts about the rape case to Malcolm, a journalist and it is
published. The publicity given to the case comes both as a curse and a
blessing. Blessing, because it generates public opinion; and curse, because
Sulu commits suicide when she realizes that her husband Prabhakar has
committed the crime. Urmi feels deeply sony for Shakutai; she can empathise
with her but cannot do anything further.

While Urmi is passing through these problems, she talks freely to Dr. Bhaskar,
seeking in him a good listener. Somehow, Dr. Bhaskar imagines that Urmi is
unhappy in her marriage and he indirectly proposes to her. Urmi is shocked at
his boldness. Kishore is remote and reticent by nature but he is a loving
husband and a doting father. Urmi realizes that she loves Kishore, despite her
disillusionment with him and his long absences.
Another burden is lifted off Urmi's heart when Inni tells her that it was not
Inni but her father who sent Urmi to Ranidurg. Urmi understands the pain of
her mother and empathizes with her. Urmi realizes the paradoxes of life-
Baiajji was tender and loving but could wield power and be cruel; Inni was
sophisticated but submissive; Papa loved Inni but was harsh in his decisions;
Urmi liked Dr. Bhaskar's warm companionship, but she loved Kishore. Life
with all its vagaries and troubles has its tender moments that make it worth
living, worth clinging to. It is the "spring of life" we all search for, always.

Check Your Progress 3

..
1. Fill in the blanks:
(a) The novel is divided into --------- Parts
(b) The author uses ------- time in this novel.
(c) Kartik was --------- son..
(d) Inni's full name was ----------------.
(e) In the novel, the present is set in ----------- and the past in -------
(name the places)
2. Write a note on Urmi's strained relations with her mother.

3. Why does Shakutai blame Kalpana for bringing trouble on her? Do

you agree with Shakutai?
The Novel: The
Binding Vine 4. Write a brief note on Urmi-Amrut relationship.

18.5 PLOT

The plot of 7'he Binding Vine is intricate. It has three strands running parallel.
These are the stories of three women, different in age and time: Kalpana, who
is unconscious; Mira, who is dead and ,Urrni, who discovers life's meaning
through the stories of Kalpana and Mira. Shashi Deshpande has herself
observed that "the biggest problem was weaving them [the stories] together,
bringing out what is common to all the three" (R.S Pathak, p. 250).

When an author plans a plot, helshe plans the characters' journey. In the
present novel, the journey starts with Urmi and along her journey many people
join her, the two most important of them being Mira and Kalpana.

The main plot revolves round Urrni and her grief at Anu's death. The stories
of Mira and Kalpana are the two sub-plots that join the main plot. The total
effect is of a unified story-the story of women's lives, their fears, problems
and aspirations.

A reader asks several questions at different stages in the story. These are-
should a woman have aspirations? What happens if she has? Should women
remain silent or should they speak out? What happens if they speak out?
Shashi Deshpande does not provide us ready-made answers to the questions.
She)wants us to discover these. Her work as an author is to lead us into the
intricate, labyrinthine lives of the three main characters, and through their
interaction with other characters, she helps us to seek answers.

Both Mira and Kalpana have demands, dreams and aspirations. Society,
however, does not honour these. Mira has secret dreams to be a poet like
Venu; she aspires to write and she does write, but she cannot make them
public. The irony is that while Venu becomes a renowned poet, Mira's poems
are hidden in a trunk. By implication we can say, that Mira's aspirations are
not important and her protest is of no avail. Her voice is muted by the socia~l
norms. Her demand to assert her individuality is not recognized. Now let us
have a look at Kalpana's case. Kalpana aspires to her individual freedom-to
dress well, to earn, and to marry a person of her choice. This freedom 1s
crushed before it takes shape. If anyone aspires to cross the laid down
boundaries, she is supposed to be mad (like Mira) or bad (like Kalpana).
These two subplots have strong feminist ideas. Shashi Deshpande shows the
patriarchal hold but she also shows the changes in society. Mira tries to speak
through her poetry, Kalpana openly rebels. They have choices they could not
exercise. That is, however, not the end. Urmi, Vanaa and others have many
choices open to them. Here the plot shows social progress.
I

As we have already noted in Unit 17, the plot in a narrative work is the The B W m g Vine by
structure of its actions, as these are rendered toward achieving some particular Shashl Deshpande:
Plot
emotional and artistic effects. M.A. Abrarns points out in his A Glossary of
Literary Terms, that the above definition "is deceptively simple, because the
actions (including verbal as well as physical actions) are performed by
particular characters in a work, and are the means by which they exhibit their
moral and dispositional qualities" (p. 127).

Let us now discuss the actions performed by Urmi and others. By her verbal
attacks on Vanaa and Inni, Urmi reveals her state of mind. She is angry and
irritated. The reason is her inability to bear her grief. During this period she
engages herself in reading Mira's writings. She finds them interesting because
they reveal the innermost secrets of a woman's life. Urmi finds clues to re-
create her mother-in-law as a woman aspiring for self-identity and in the
process, Urmi comes across a co-traveller-Kalpana -- the young rape victim.
She discovers similarity in the two cases: Kalpana was raped by her relative,
Mira by her husband. During the period of her visits to the hospital and to
Shakutai's home, Urmi meets other sufferers whose pkin and grief is as real as
her own. Shakutai is a grieving mother like Urmi. She is the most unfortunate
woman in the novel. She has troubles piling over her-Kalpana's uncertain
condition, Sulu's suicide, social stigma, and anxiety about her other children,
Sandhya and Prakash.

Slowly, as actions, reactions and incidents get attached to the main plot of
Urrni's grief, the picture assumes many dimensions. Shashi Deshpande
provides us with a broad canvas to study the lives of various women. In the
* course of our reading, we realize that the lives of the characters, both men and
women, have acquired meaning. Mira rises up from the dead. She is not a far-
off figure but a human being who resented being possessed. She wanted her
freedom to grow as an individual. Kalpana is no longer the girl with dubious
behaviour; she is a young girl who has dreams. Urmi is not the grief-stricken
mother, or an angry woman; she is a sympathetic and helpful person.

The plot of The Binding Vine does not follow the traditional pattern of unity of
time and action. Since it is a stream of consciousness novel the action moves
back and forth with the past and thegresent overlapping. That does not mean,
however, that the novel is a hotch-potch in time. It is set in the India of the
1980's. Urmi, Vanaa, Harish, Kishore, Inni, Dr. Bhaskar are all denizens of
the Indian urban middleclass, while Shakutai and her family are from the
lower class. Mira, Baiajji and others belong to the time past. In order to bring
them close to us the author uses memory. The time-shift is managed through
the interweaving of the subplots. The two subplots--one of Mira and the other
of Kalpan-e intricately woven with the main plot of Urmi. Urmi and Mira
are related but they are separated by death. Urmi and Kalpana are strangers
but they are united by human concerns. In the Mira-Urmi case, Mira's
writings provide the bridge; in the Kalpana-Urmi relations, Shakutai becomes
the link. Although the .plot does not have a traditional beginning, middle and
an end, the overall effect is of a unified whole. The
. . grim, the to-
and-fro movement of the middle is sometimes happy, so s sad, but the
end is optimistic.

In the end, the protagonist (Urmi) learns the secret of life. She gets over her
grief and takes charge of her life. Life has small, happy moments of affection,
sympathy and understanding. These moments make it worth living. The
denouement, thus, leads to the recognition that there is the "spring of life" we
The Novel: The are constantly looking for. The meaning of the two lines from Mira's verse
Binding Vine becomes clear to Urmi, and as she develops as an individual, the novel
achieves its goal. It becomes a vindication novel, teaching us aboutlife.

The plot of The Binding Vine has progression; it is not a static plot. With
memory, flashbacks, pre-conscious and subconscious reflexes, it advances
convincingly and reaches its climax. The overall impact is of a satisfactory
journey of the main character. It lends satisfaction to the reader also. Here, we
note two points-first, despite her grim verses, Mira opts for life's "spring";
secofid, the author leaves Kalpana's subplot open to possibilities. Urrni's
acceptance of life and her reconciliation give strength to her as well as to the
plot.

Check Your Progress 4

1. What do you understand by the term 'subplot'? Write a note on the

two subplots in The Binding Vine.

2. How does the author manage the unity of time and action?
......................................................................................
......................................................................................
......................................................................................
......................................................................................
3. How would you rate the ending of the novel (i.e. pessimistic,
optimistic, sad, grim)? Justify your answer.

4. . Fill in the blanks:

(i) The main plot revolves round -------------

(ii) The poet who impressed Mira was --------------
(iii) Both ----- and ------ have aspirations.
(iv) At the end of the novel Urmi understands the real meaning of
the line 'the ------------ of------------- '
(v) The plot of The Binding Vine has ------ strands running side by
side.

18.6 GLOSSARY -

epigraph: this term comes from the Greek word epigraphe,

meaning to write on or upon. (epi = upon, graphein .=
to 'write). In literature an epigraph is a brief paragraplh
or a'verse at the beginning of a book or a chapter. In a
way, it becomes the motto of the work, and is an
indication of the theme.
denouement: this is a French word meaning 'to untie' or 'unknot'. In The Binding Vine by
a work of literature, it is the unravelling of the plot Shashi Deshpande:
Plot
when towards the end many issues or events become
clear; it is usually a final scene or chapter in which
mysteries, confusions, and doubts are clarified.
climax: the point when the plot reaches its peak. The
expectations of the readers increase, suspense mounts
and the story stops at the highest point; from here starts
the downward motion, or anti-climax.
:$
-subplot: a second story, complete and interesting in i& own
right, introduced into the main story. It is so skillfully
managed that it becomes an integral part of the plot; it
broadens our perspective on the main plot; it also
enhances the overall effect.
protagonist: the main character in a novel or drama. Helshe is the
heroheroine on whom our interest is centred.
Originally, in ancient'Greek theatre, the protagonist was
the principal actor in a drama.

18.7 WHAT THE CRITICS SAY?

(1) Despite imaginative flashes and the role played by memory in her
.
novels, Deshpande is, at her heart, a realist. She presents a plausible
story of authentic characters and not shadowy abstractions... Hers is
- the India of the eighties.... For her portrayal of the predicament of
middle-class educated Indian women, their inner conflict and quest for
identity, the author has been called a 'feminist'.
R.S. Pathak, p. 18

(2) Shashi Deshpande ... defines freedom for the Indian woman within the
Indian socio-cultural value system and institutions. She has steadfastly
resisted the temptation of creating strong glorified female heroes, and
has presented the Indian woman as facing the very real dilemma of
having to choose between modernity and convention.
Mukta Atrey, and Viney Kirpa . p. 14

(3) Words never come to her to express a radical break and declaration of
self and independence. Rather she uses her art to express the
subterranean life of silence lying under the skin, a life that is equally
eloquent and vibrant like the life lived on the surface.
-Kalidas Misra in Chanchala Naik ed.
Writing DifSerence, p. 73.

(4) The actual task of physical living takes place in the present, but our
actions and dreams are shaped by the human ability to work
sequentially, to have memories of the past and to dream about the
future.. ... Deshpande's novels begin at midpoint, the protagonists or
narrators are adults.. . They also mark a still point in time where .
individuals are trying to take stock of their lives and are involved in
some measures in an observer-status....
Jasbir Jaiq (pp. 123-124)
The Novel: The
Binding Vine 18.8 LET US SUM UP
This unit has given you:

An introduction to The Binding Vine, Deshpande's sixth novel. Its

epigraph focuses on the creator and creativity.
We also gave some thought to the beginning and the ending of the
novel to prepare you to see their significance for the plot.
After a brief and chronologically ordered summary, we gave you the
detailed story so that you would know the sequence, which is
otherwise not clear.
The part-wise summary tells the story as the novelist tells it, but the
sequence has been rearranged for clarity.
In the section dealing with the plot we have discussed the plot and
subplots, the time-sequence, the setting, actions of the characters and
the final optimistic ending.

18.9 ANSWERS TO EXERCISES

Chwk Your Progress 1

1. The Binding Vine focuses on human relationships and their strength to

bind us together. The title points out how in the novel, and by
implication in life, we are bound by the bonds of love, affection,
understanding and empathy. 'Vine' is a creeper, it is delicate but it has
two qualities: it spreads fast, and second, its tendrils bind themselves
together and then attach to the main support, may be another tree or
stick. In life, we are bound by blood relations (like mother-child,
father-child), family relations (husband-wife, mother-in-law-
daughter-in-law etc.), and human relations (as in the case of Urrni-
Shakutai). All these are ties and we iannot shrug them off.
2. Three stories are merged in the plot of The Binding Vine. These are:
Urrni's story of her grief, memory and the act of living; Mira's story
revealed through her verses; and Kalpana's story.
3. An epigraph is a short verse or some quotation given in the beginning
of a novel (or any literary work). It sets the tone of the work and acts
like its motto. The epigraph to this novel is taken from Emily Bronte's
Wutheiing Heights.
4. Fill in the Hanks

The Binding Vine was published in 1993. It is the sixth novel of Shashi
Deshpande.

Check your Progress 2

1. Both Mira and Akka are Urrni's mothers-in-law. Mira is Kishore's
mother who died when Kishore was born. Akka is his step-mother.
2. Urmi's father thought that Urrni's mother, his wife Yamini, was not fit
to look after the girl-child. He was angry with Yarnini for going out
leaving the child with Diwakar, a male servant. So, he decided to send
 Urmi to Ranidurg to his parents-Urrni's Baiajji and Aju. He took the The Binding Vine b y
decision without consulting his wife. Shashi Deshpande:
i Plot
1 3. 1=c, 2=a, 3=d, 4=b.

Check Your Progress 3

1 (a) .four parts; (b) psychological;(c) Urmi and Kishore's son;(d)

Yarnini; (e) Bombay, Ranidurg.
2. Urmi was unhappy because she was sent to Ranidurg while her brother
stayed with the parents. She imagined that her mother did not care for
her, that was why she sent her away. She bore a secret grudge against
her mother and always showed scant respect for her. She was often
flippant with Inni and even discourteous. She understood her mother's
helplessness after Inni told her why Urmi was sent away.
3. Kalpana was fond of dressing up stylishly, using lips-stick and
painting her nails. This was not done in their society. Shakutai thought
that because of her style she was unduly attracting attention. She
warned Kalpana but the girl did not pay any heed. After the rape,
Shakutai blames it on Kalpana's waywardness. We do not agree with
Shakutai. In fact, Prabhakar raped her to punish her for her rejection of
his offer. Shakutai failed to see Prabhakar's real character. Moreover,
we agree with Urmi that Kalpana had every right to be an individual,
and live life as she wanted to.
4. Amrut and Urmi are brother-sister. Unni is his elder sister. Amrut is
tender and understanding and stands by Urmi during her grief. Urmi is
often impatient with him but Amrut, waves it off by his sense of
humour. Amrut .and Urmi have tender feelings for each other. They
share pleasant childhood memories and exchange some interesting
incidents. These exchanges are important for the plot because they
reveal the past and provide us valuable insights into it.

Check Your Progress 4

1 & 2. These points are discussed elaborately in the section dealing with Plot.
You will find sufficient material to answer these questions
3. The ending is optimistic. Urmi gets over her grief. She appears much
more normal now as she takes charge of her daily life. She
understands how the small incidents in our day-to-day life keep us
bound to it. These are the affections, love, sympathy and
understanding that are the 'spring of life'. She exonerates Inni as she
understands Inni's helplessness; she values Vanaa's concern for her;
she becomes aware of Kartik's needs; she thinks positively of Gshore
and his quiet strength and Shakutai's affectionate touch. Life acquires
a meaning as Urmi accepts it on its own terms.
4. (i) Unni;(ii) Venu;(iii) Mira and Kalpana;(iv) 'Spring' of 'life';(v)
Three.