• Rajbir Singh

Mother daughter relationship has aways been a matter of discussion as far Shashi Deshpande’s creative ventures are concerned. Mother is depicted as a figure of solace for a child but Deshpande has a different opinion. She has not idealized mother up to the level of a Goddess, Durga or Laxmi as narrated by most of the feminist writers. She is portrayed in different colours and shades- having different human qualities. Her mother is full of capricious whims , slips slopes and guided by their blood calls. The impact of patriarchal society is embedded in the psyche of her fer female characters. Our society is full of paradoxes and mismatches. Females are considered to be the marginals in the house of father and husband as well. A woman is unable to decide her roots throughout her life. Consequently, a sense of insecurity looms over her leaving her insecure in her life. She wants to belong and this quest for identity becomes her unsatiable thirst. She wants to belong at any cost but a sense of insecurity envelops her. She is not only a sufferer of insecurity but also a breeder of insecurity. A girl remains deeply in the contact of mother most of the time. Therefore, she acquires all the insecurities and anxieties already acquired by her mother. In the novels of Deshpande women are trying to find out their new identities and they want to belong at any cost. Some women are product of social conditions in which they are living. This paper explores the relationship of the main protagonist Sarita with her mother Kamla in Deshpande’s first novel The Dark Holds No Terrors (1980). The impact of patriarchy is amply visible even in the sacred relationship of mother and daughter. This affectionate bond takes the shape of heated controversy when the realities of life are faced. This interplay becomes the cause of changed relationships between beloved mother and caring daughter. The daughter seeks to explore this miraculous world with her own conditions but mother anxiety is innate as she has a lot of experience of the way of the world and she doesn’t want to get her suffer at any cost.

Daughter , Mother , Matriarchy , Freedom , compassion.

"Chemistry of Mother Daughter Relationship In The Novels Of Shashi Deshpande", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.13, Issue 1, page no.e284-e287, January-2026, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2601443.pdf

"Chemistry of Mother Daughter Relationship In The Novels Of Shashi Deshpande", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.13, Issue 1, page no. ppe284-e287, January-2026, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2601443.pdf