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Touch Me Not

Bhabijan, a woman in a traditional Indian family in 1952, has suffered two miscarriages and faces abandonment by her husband if she does not provide an heir. As a woman in this society and time period, her sole purpose is childbearing. Her family, including her caretaker Bi Mughlani, are concerned only with ensuring her pregnancies come to term, with little regard for her health. Failing to produce a child would mean Bhabijan loses her place and identity within the family.

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AMAN KUMAR
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201 views

Touch Me Not

Bhabijan, a woman in a traditional Indian family in 1952, has suffered two miscarriages and faces abandonment by her husband if she does not provide an heir. As a woman in this society and time period, her sole purpose is childbearing. Her family, including her caretaker Bi Mughlani, are concerned only with ensuring her pregnancies come to term, with little regard for her health. Failing to produce a child would mean Bhabijan loses her place and identity within the family.

Uploaded by

AMAN KUMAR
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Analyse the treatment of Bhabijan from other family members with respect to the political

and social circumstances of that period. (From Touch-Me-Not by Ismat Chugtai, 1952)

Touch-Me-Not by Ismat Chugtai is a sad tale of how women were merely a tool of baby
producers in the traditional Indian society. The story moves around Bhabijan whose sole
purpose in life was to provide a progeny to the family. Despite the constant care and supervision
of Bi Mughlani, she has suffered two miscarriages and her husband, Bhaijan has lost hope of an
heir to continue his lineage. Failure to provide her husband with an heir will result in Bhaijan
deserting her for another wife which would mean that she would be ripped off all her bridal
comforts and resort to Prostitution for survival.

Year 1952 was a period of post independence and India was still recovering from the massacre
of Partition and implementing the rules of newly formed republic constitution. India was going
through several legislative changes from being a monarch to a fully fledged democratic state.
The country was in its social and political acertainty with rules and laws making and breaking
everyday. People were still trying to accept these changes. Untouchability was not yet abolished
completely and crimes against women were happening on alarming rate and fights for women
rights were then budding. Religious riots were still breathing. Minorities like Muslims in the
country were threatened to death despite the reforming efforts of Ambedkar, Congress leaders
and other politicians.

It is clear that Bhabijan's family was well to do so that they decided to stay in India and had the
capability of booking the whole train boogie to travel. Bhabijan is revealed to be a woman
almost on the verge of abandonment. Her family was a traditional orthodox Indian family where
women are voiceless against the patriarchal powers of the family. Bhabijan was married very
early in her childhood and since then her only duty was to bear children. Her husband, Bhaijan
has lost all the affection from her due to her constant illness. After her two miscarriages, Bhaijan
is having thoughts of remarrying and if not Bhabijan, someone would help him produce a child.

Ammijan, the head of the family is also eagerly waiting for the birth of her grandchild. Everytime
Bhabijan is expecting, she makes sure that her pregnancy goes on smoothly. The child in
Bhabijan's womb is the only thing that matters to her and not Bhabijan's health. After the first
pregnancy is lost, she is happy that the mother is saved as she can produce more child in
future. She is also the decisive centre of the family as her decision of going to Aligarh for the
third delivery is accepted by everyone even when Bhabijan was reluctant to go. Bi Mughlani, the
caretaker does everything possible to make sure the delivery is normal and even goes to the
extent of indulging in witchcraft to assure herself of the unborn child's safety. She too is
concerned about Bhabijan and her health. However, it is clear that the birth of the child is her
only motivation and she constantly strive towards that goal. The Lost of the Unborn child in the
third time is the personal loss of Bi Mughlani as well. Even after her constant chiding, she was
unable to protect Bhabijan's pregnancy.

The narrator, the small girl herself seems concerned about Bhabijan and her condition. It is
quite ironical to note that she is the only sensible one in the family. In the traditional Indian
society, a woman’s sole purpose is to bear children, motherhood is her only identity.
Womanhood is often equated equally with motherhood. Infertility is considered a woman’s worst
fate because her entire identity relies on bearing a child. If she cannot, she has no self at all,
and is often not seen as worthy of living. She is considered a failure by her culture, family and
for worst, her husband.

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