Intimacy Undone
- BY MALVIKA RAJKOTIA
- RELEASE YEAR: 2017
- PUBLISHER: SPEAKING TIGER BOOKS
Malvika Rajkotia is considered to be one of the foremost divorce lawyers of India.
Her book Intimacy Undone, delves deep into several aspects of family law and brings forth an interdisciplinary approach towards the subject by analyzing topics such as marriage, divorce, adultery, maintenance, child-custody, property etc., through their historical, sociological, economic, cultural, psychological, constitutional and even political underpinnings.
The book has an empirical flavor for every assertion and is generally backed by case-laws and personal anecdotes which provide a fascinating picture of the multiple dynamics at play in any marital (or non-marital or even extra marital) and familial relationship!
The author asserts that the study of family law and its dynamics provides a glimpse of the changing dynamics of the society as a whole. The book dons a feminist lens towards family life and the law and provides an exciting discourse on the challenges being faced to the traditional patriarchal family structure especially with the change in conceptions of gender roles and new laws being created for the welfare of women. Topics such as divorce, cruelty, parenting, privacy, adultery, working women, honor killing, maintenance, live-in relationships and the Uniform Civil Code etc. are discussed in detail and raise many interesting points.
The author being a lawyer herself, the narrative is not only filled with court cases but also comments upon the working of the judicial systems, implementation of the laws, challenges faced by lawyers navigating family law issues, attitudes of the legal fraternity towards the changing dynamics society and family law.
Through this book, Ms. Rajkotia brings family law alive and presents a strong case for freeing family law of its prejudice as a “soft law.” Its multidimensional nature coupled with deep emotional issues involved truly make family law a uniquely complex branch of law, delving into which, may not be palatable for many. Written in a lucid and accessible language, this book is an essential read for everyone be it inside or outside the legal fraternity.
