Title: Duo
Author: Surath de Mel
Genre: Novel
Publisher: Sarasavi Bookshop
Revolutionary author Surath de Mel brings DUO as his third novel. His controversial debut ‘Thi ha Tha’, which breaks all the barriers of explicit and perceived social norms, fascinated readers in all nooks and corners. Thus, it was shortlisted for the Swarna Pustaka award in 2020.
Continuing his writing journey bold and dauntless, Surath de Mel released the extraordinary ‘See+’ as his second novel. Striking the minds of the readers by unveiling the bitter reality behind popular reality shows, ‘See+’ was longlisted for the Swarna Pustaka Award for 2022. In this backdrop, Surath presents DUO, wrapped in an eye-catching cover. Captivating the hearts of the readers, author Surath de Mel leads the current list of best-selling authors in Sri Lanka.
Plot summary
DUO is woven around two main characters, Uma and Sara, who live in two different time periods in Sri Lanka and India. The story depicts the eternal struggle of women in finding liberation in the male-dominant world. Female oppression takes many forms such as gender-based violence, unequal pay, limited access to education and healthcare, restricted political representation, and limited economic opportunities. Almost one in three women across the globe have experienced gender-based or non-partner violence at least once in their lifetime, and the prevalence of sexual violence against women is much higher in South Asia.
Although these issues are a global phenomenon, they disproportionately affect women in marginalized and underprivileged communities. In India and Sri Lanka, especially underprivileged women are the victims of patriarchy. Through DUO, Surath converses on almost all aspects of female oppression using the two main characters, Uma and Sara, as well as the other supporting characters.
Through the story, the author narrates two women who respond differently to more or less similar abusive incidents. With Sara’s character, the author depicts the importance of female empowerment through education, which acts as a shield to protect women from this global and eternal issue.
Motherhood in question
The choice of motherhood for women has been forbidden by law and certain religious doctrines. Women oppressed with poverty have only a little say in determining their motherhood. Thus, when the choice is exercised for abortion, the only way-out leads to illegal septic abortions that can be life-threatening. DUO points out this issue as well as the deficiencies in the sex education in the Sri Lankan education system which leads to unwanted pregnancies, life-threatening illegal abortions, and transmission of sexual diseases.
“Shouldn’t these women have the right to decide on their motherhood?” Throughout his writing, Surath makes a voice and breaks the silence to ensure justice for women. He shouts against women oppression and stands for ensuring gender equity. Surath discourses on these issues in DUO explicitly through the leading character Uma, which plots the rural Sri Lankan village.
Through his novel, Surath looks at the lives of commercial sex workers from a sympathetic angle. Their expectations in life, life struggles, and sufferings are clearly pronounced in the story. As in his second novel See+, in DUO too, Surath elucidates the psychological profile of victimized women and the prevailing social response towards them.
Abuse can cause serious psychological impacts on the victims, which can be immediate as well as long-lasting. The author has well-researched this aspect, as he vividly describes and analyzes the feelings of abused women from “self-blaming” to “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.” The author’s interest in psychoanalysis is well-exhibited through his well-researched writing.
Catastrophic situations
Furthermore, Surath captures the characteristics of severe depression through the character of Uma’s mother. Continuous stressful episodes and catastrophic situations she has to undergo throughout her lifetime have led her into severe depression. Through this character, the author highlights the poor knowledge of mental health among the general public. Neglecting the symptoms of depression without seeking medical advice leads to the detrimental ending of the character.
Surath de Mel is gifted with an amazing writing style with poetic language finely blended with humor to captivate the reader’s mind. Through DUO, Surath takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride from rural Sri Lanka to Kerala to Singapore. The readers are forced to live in the story, experiencing the tour, which he narrates in a lively manner.
Being a maximalist storyteller, Surath converses on an intense range of subjects. Violence against women, psychology of the oppressed, deficiencies in sex education, life of commercial sex workers, and the social stigma towards abused women are the key focuses out of the many which have made DUO a thoughtful social analysis.
They say “you should never judge a book by its cover.” But isn’t that the purpose of the cover? Surath de Mel metaphorically nullifies this idiom through DUO by presenting us an enthralling story wrapped in an eye-candy cover. I recommend this novel as a must-read to all men and women who believe in gender equity.
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