Portrayal of the male psyche in Godavari

Owing to the memorable conversation between between Ma and Usha in which Usha declares all men to be dogs and Ma’s apathetic response to (and a sort of acceptance of) Ba’s wandering gaze where she gives up on reforming Ba and is only concerned with minimizing the possibility of Ba having illicit sexual encounters, it is easy to fall into the trap of thinking that the author has a very one sided view of the nature of the male. If considered in isolation, these events leave no doubt as to the author’s intent; that of reducing man to his gaze. There are however, passages in the novel which suggest that the author’s view of men may not be as myopic as these two events suggest.

Ba’s relations with his children suggest that the author has a more nuanced view of the male psyche and thinks of Ba as having some sense of paternal responsibility. Two events, in specific, come to mind. When Cheeku suffers from an insect bite and has an adverse reaction to it, it is Ba who carries him a considerable distance to the hospital to seek treatment. Similarly, when Ba loses track of Birki in the bazaar, he is extremely worried and does not give up looking for her until he finds her. Consequently, the author makes it clear that Ba does not shirk his responsibilities as a father and is therefore, driven by something other than his insatiable lust.