Describe Lady Lal relating her appearance and characteristic features

Describe Lady Lal relating her appearance and characteristic features
Or, “I am only a native woman.”—Who is the woman ? What native traits do you find in her ? Class 11 | English (Karma) 6 Marks

Ans:

Here Lachmi, Sir Mohan Lal’s wife is the native woman.

Lachmi is a short, fat and down-to-earth person. She is uneducated and represents native Indian women who are subjugated by their husbands. Her food habit, dressing sense and way of talking display her native traits. Unlike her husband’s elitist attire, she wears a dirty white sari with a red border, several gold bangles and a diamond nose-ring and travels in the inter-class zenana compartment as she fails to match with her husband’s standard. She does not know how to behave in a sophisticated manner. So, her husband avoids and neglects her. The way she eats the cramped chapattis and mango pickle from the brass tiffin-carrier and then dries her mouth and hands with the loose end of her sari portrays that she does not care what other people think of her. Her loud belches and her thankfulness to God prove that she is contented with herself. Like most women, she likes to gossip but only interacts with the native people because her wavelength matches with them. She knows her husband is well-bred and superior to her in every aspect. So, like any other native woman, she shows her meek obedience to her husband and considers him as her master. Finally, her sending a red dribble like a flying dart, as soon as the train leaves the platform, shows her disregard for western etiquettes.