Sujata in a Feminist Perspective

Not so positive-- Sujata's affair with Pranab. This is a pretty obvious one, I would think. By persisting in her affair with Pranab, Sujata seems to be evaluating her own self worth based off how close she is or how well she attracts a man. And that if Pranab must think she is worthy than she is, but if he doesn't find her worthy then she isn't. She only starts to take care of herself better and gain confidence because of her affair with Aloka's fiancée, which I should add also seems pretty shallow:

"Only in the last few weeks had she been drawn to makeup and fine clothing, for whenever she exchanged a glance with Pranab, she saw herself radiantly reflected in his eyes. And nothing about seemed to escape his attention. Just the other day, seeing her dressed in a black sari embellished with silver embroidery, he had composed a melodious Sanskrit verse, then translated it as, "Your beauty craves a thousand eyes. Alas, I have but two." (43)

After her exile, Sujata rebuilds herself a small tea business that sustains her and keeps her well respected in her new domain-- without the help of Pranab, who meanwhile literally crashes and burns in New York because of the lack of privilege and respected he receives there and his inability to secure a highly important job: As she later tells Pranab:

"Yes, all those years I threw my life into my work. A small business is a constant struggle, but it also gives you a lot of satisfaction. This morning when I called my assistant, she asked me when I was coming back. She made me feel very good deep down inside." (233)

And then it could be said that in Darjeeling her relationship with Mreenal Bose ends up to be a sort of weakness- not only because Mreenal was picked out for her so that she couldn't go back to Pranab if she had wanted to, but in the sense that she eventually accepts. Which isn't saying she accepts the idea of arranged marriages, but the fact that she accepts Mreenal almost implies that she can't really make her decisions for herself. When she rejects Mreenal, however, she is also saying that she doesn't need the "perfect man" to be happy, and chooses her family's tea business over him-- not only is she showing her willingness to be independent and play an executive role, but she additionally shows her loyalty to her family, which then goes to tie back into the Cult of True Womanhood's idea of domesticity. Essentially, Sujata has returned back home and decided that that is where she is belongs, and the fact that she is taking care of it for her family also ties back into domesticity. So whether she is promoting female independence or a veiled regress into traditional roles is a bit puzzling.