A Calendar Too Crowded is a collection of poignant stories and poems woven around the theme of womanhood. What makes this work of fiction different from other books that highlight the plight of women is its unique approach.

There are quite a few days in the calendar that are devoted to women. The aim of remembering and commemorating such days is simple enough; they serve the purpose of spreading awareness thereby attempting to protect the rights of women. Some of these marked days in the calendar have been imaginatively used as a starting point for the stories and poems in this book. So while the theme of a story under the month of January is inspired by National Day for the Girl Child in India (24 January), another story under the month of November takes up Elimination of Violence Against Women Day (25 November) as its focal point.

The intent, however, is to probe further and discover the ugly truth of women’s continuing subjugation. Some stories and poems explore the reality underlying popular misconceptions and misleading statistics that sometimes paint a rosy picture of women’s emancipation and liberation. Others use simple and undeniable facts to hold up
to scrutiny many of the fallacies that are often used against women in society.