Book Review: Sonia Faleiro's Beautiful Thing

Sonia Faleiro's Beautiful Thing is a work of non-fiction based on the lives and experiences of Bombay's bar dancers. Probably owing to the fact that Sonia Faleiro is a reporter, her voice as a narrator renders the Bombay dance bar world as is, without really letting her judgements color it. At the same time she is not just a detached observer. One can see the real friendships she forms, as well her thoughts and feelings regarding different people and scenarios but in a subtle way. Sonia is not over opinionated, nor condescending, nor does she over-sentimentalize the the Bombay dance bar world.

The book is really disturbing, more so because it is a work of non-fiction. What really struck me is the sense of false optimism that the bar girls adopt. They choose to keep themselves detached from the horror of their own plight in order to cope with it. Priya, a bar dancer, and her friend Poonam are raped my five men and she calls that night "Bhagwaan ki dua" (God's blessing) because another girl faced much worse. They accept the fickleness of the men who pretend to care for them, their lovers and "husbands," who exploit them, take their earnings and beat them. Priya says, "everyone drinks! everyone beats!" They are strong women, often smart and clever but they almost refuse to believe what they know to be true, with almost a warped sense of optimism.

The life of the bar dancers has its own set of rules which the girls are all familiar with and it gives them some  financial security even though it is rooted in their exploitation. But the girls feel that they are the ones who have the power over their "kustomers." Leela, the protagonist of the book, who is hedonistic and determined and easy to fall in love with says, "I don't dance for them, they dance for me."

Once the dance bars in Bombay are banned in September 2005, one sees the decline in the lives and fortunes of these girls and life becomes a struggle for survival, even far more grim.

The book is really sensitively written and is a riveting read but really disturbing. It is scary that numerous girls have been through this, and continue to go through it. It also offered a look into the lives of hijras (eunuchs) and the close connection between the hijras, bar dancers and the Bombay underworld.

I am really glad Sonia wrote this book. There are some stories that really need to be told. This was one of them.