Dedication

To all the Women

Contents

Foreword

Preface

Acknowledgements

1. The War (against the invisible)

2. The Flower Garden

3. Break the Shackles

4. Quagmire

5. The Path

6. The Burning Furnace

7. Fragrance

About the Author

Foreword

A sentence with intimacy

Stories that began in the vocal form of 'once upon a time' in the early days underwent many changes after being put into written form. It may not be related to the narrative mentioned in the Agnipurana, but to the narratives flowing in modern literature. Stories change from time to time in form and style.

However, whether it is the story of Chandamama or Chamballoyagatha, it should move the thoughts of the readers. Renowned literary critic, Mr Rachamallu Ramachandra Reddy said that stories should be born out of life... The truths of life should be shown in close-up and give the reader an understanding of life. We need to broaden the horizons of our readers. "

Filled with such excellent qualities and goals, Dr Aluri Vijayalakshmi's stories strike a balance between feeling and thought and knocking at the door of our hearts. Literature plays a major role in shaping ethnic culture.

Vijayalakshmi is invading social injustices by using storytelling as a weapon. The unrest and conflict that is raging internally and externally in a woman's life are literalized. The extraordinary personalities and absurdities that appear in the stories that some people write are nowhere to be seen in these stories.

Fragnance: Incidents such as frequent honour killings and gang rapes in recent times are scattering caltrops on the paths of women's lives. Though they didn't always make sensational news in the media, there was a realistic representation of different issues that are longitudinally splitting the lives of women. Moving away from the husband who became a slave of addictions and abusing his wife dreadfully and the parents and brothers, who were under self-deception with the burden of tradition, how a woman faces challenges and hurdles at every step in the migrated place in the process of constructing a new life, make the reader excited.

Break the Shackles: The author says that many husbands may have different mentalities, but their mentality and behaviour is almost the same with a minor difference in the case of the wife. The story brandishes the whip on the arrogant husbands who might appear modern physically, but mentally feel that the wife is a slave to the husband.

Some new generation feminists are bypassing the real issues of women and are indulging in unnecessary controversies. In such an environment, the 'Break the shackles' story appears as a lamp lit in the pitch darkness.

The story tells loudly that the oppressed woman needs justice; mere help is not enough – The story 'break the shackles inspires and provokes the women to assert and emancipate from the shackles of Patriarchal model of family and society

Burning Furnace: The story represents the anger of the affected people on the anti-people policies of the Government, that is acquiring thousands of acres of land in the name of the special economic zone. It blatantly criticizes the disgraceful attitude of the Governments, that are supposed to protect the common people, acting as middlemen and acquiring the land by threatening the people and forcing them to surrender and leave form their land, sometimes from their village and often from their lives.

The story questions the sanctity and need of the model of development that would destroy the lives of many people and frankly declares that this development is not for the benefit of common people, but, for the development of a handful of rich and powerful.

The story illustrates how many families and lives are affected, not only directly but also indirectly, by the new economic policies and gives a hope that the constant anger of the affected people against Governments and corporate powers would be successful.

Flower garden: George Bernard Shaw once said that 'money alone is greater than money'. But the story 'Flower garden' tells that there are many joys and values which wouldn't be bought or measured by the money. The story also reveals that there is a wide gap between one's social status and culture, she or he nurtures.

In the rest of the stories, the author's voice is very sharp with discretion and highly intense while analysing the different social issues. But this story filled with sentimentality in every word haunts us with the tragic tone of the famous singer Saigals' song

Quagmire: ‘Quagmire' is like X-ray, which shows how easily the drugs are available as chocolates to the youth in the colleges, universities and even in the schools, leading the youth into the dangerous paths and how their future is destroyed by the addictions.

The Path: This story rightly reflects the new addictions in modern society that are ruining the lives of youth and shows them a golden path to transform as socially productive citizens

The War: Many authors have forgotten that literature is heart-related. Huge bundle of Corona poetry without any humane touch had been published in the recent turbulent months testing the reader's patience. While such artificial works were floating abundantly, 'The war' had emerged as a powerful story to infuse human values ​​into the people who are struggling to cope up in the corona affected environment.

The author, who fondly cherishes and values ​​the best culture in life and literature, has translated her own experiences into the story 'The war'.

Last but not the least, Dr Aluri Vijayalakshmi is undoubtedly one of the few writers after Mrs Ranganayakamma who write with social responsibility and clear understanding!

Adrusta Deepak

Renowned Progressive poet, Lyric writer of movies

& critic

Preface

These real life stories reflect women’s grit to empower themselves challenging the discrimination, injustice, exploitation and different forms of violence oppressing them; the culture, social norms and Government policies that are devastating their lives and also how the lives of misguided youth are being destroyed in the present day socio-cultural and political environment.