The Forgotten Woman

The Forgotten Woman: The Untold Story of Kastur Gandhi, the Wife of Mahatma Gandhi 

by Arun & Sunanda Gandhi

Ozark Mountain Publishers, Huntsville, Arkansas      © 1998    314 pp.

Mahatma Gandhi - moral teacher, prophet, hero of the freedom movement of India - many of us are familiar with Gandhi’s public life. I was more curious about his personal life. Among Gandhi’s biographies, I was surprised by a book called The Forgotten Woman: The Untold Story of Kastur Gandhi. It is the story of Kasturba, familiar name of the wife of Mahatma Gandhi, written by their fifth grandson, Arun, and his wife Sunanda Gandhi, and it offers a close view of the relationships of Kasturba, Gandhi and their four children. It is through knowing Kasturba that I was able to meet Gandhi, not as a hero, but as a husband, friend, and father. 

Kasturba is described as a person with quiet dignity, wit, and intelligence -- content with being a woman of the village, married at 13, having no literacy skills and no experience with the larger world. Her story is a compelling one as she accepts the difficulties of being the partner of Gandhi and his strong expectations for her and their children. During this time of political unrest, it is said that Kasturba had no idea of her profound influence in bringing the women of India into the freedom movement.

I have questions I wish I could ask you, Kasturba. How did you feel living with the strong expectations Gandhi had for you and your children…with his insults for your being illiterate and his gratitude for your wise counsel? The Forgotten Woman was written through the filters of your grandchildren. If you were to tell your life story, how different would it be from this book?

-- reviewed by Barbara Goldberg

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