There are stories that live within us. They lie deep in our vast nothingness where exist memories of those who have left us, those we have loved, those we have met in passing, and those who have left a part of themselves behind. These stories have lain dormant in the many twists and turns of our being, waiting to strike, rattling at our cages, each story begging for a chance to be told. They are a product of experience, dreams and nightmares, memories; life. It is these stories that form Doris Pushpam’s The Story of She.

Stripped down to a singular She, each story is a culmination of the many identities engrained in the notion of ‘she’ and the stories that live within them, thrusting forward their uniqueness, hopes, fears, dreams, struggles, tempests and rebellion. These stories explore the tales of women who are confined to strict social expectations and traditions from various frames of reference that are introspective, retrospective and prospective. They outline aspects of women’s existence in conservative societies and beyond, illustrate the antagonistic role of society in dictating how they live their lives, and the resistance or lack thereof to these demands. It is a call to listen so that the future generation of women will be free to live as they please. It is also a call to action to engineer change for those who face these problems and are unable to tell their story. Mostly, it is a grenade of hope for a better future for all who identify as she.