Description

One Day, One Morning is the story of two families — Ammachi’s and Molamma’s; of two pairs of school-going sisters, of similar age and socio-cultural affiliation, and through their stories, of many such girls and their families. It is the story of vulnerability and captivity within surroundings that are expected to be familiar and safe, yet are its very opposite.

Intense and intimate, One Day, One Morning is a work of power and poise, of magic and beauty. Anuradha has an uncommon ability to captivate the reader with her craft and characters. A truly compelling read. — Anees Salim

Anuradha Vijayakrishnan’s novella is strangely gripping, sensitive and suspenseful. She writes movingly and with empathy of the bonds — intricate and inviolable — that define sisterhood. — Anuradha Kumar

Here is a novel written from multiple perspectives about how what seems to be an escape may just be a change in the settings where the same thraldom thrives. While it is the tale of one Indian family, it carries a universal message of freedom and choice. A structurally innovative work, the novella forces the readers to look into their own lives. — K Satchidanandan

One Day, One Morning is a nuanced exercise in human psychology. The novella packs a punch as it moves deftly back and forth between the old world and a ‘new world’ inhabited by women and girls. It’s a one-of-a-kind story of individuals who pit their lives against losses and rather strange gains. A must-read! — Nabina Das

Often branded as the poor cousin of the novel and short story, the novella remains underexplored in the realm of Indian English Writing. However, in the deft hands of Anuradha Vijayakrishnan, this genre finds a new lease of life in One Day, One Morning; full of surprising twists, told in a compelling voice and populated by richly drawn characters. — Aruni Kashyap

Anuradha Vijayakrishnan is a business professional living in Dubai. Her first novel, Seeing the Girl, was longlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize and translated into Italian. Her collection of poetry, The Who-am-I-Bird, was published in 2018 and translated into Arabic. Her work has appeared in anthologies including the Yearbook of Indian Poetry in English series and journals like Magma, Acumen, Stand Magazine, Anthropocene, The Lake and Madras Courier. Her poetry was shortlisted for the Erbacce International Poetry Prize in 2023.

Edited by Sucharita Dutta-Asane, Red River Story Series is a series of limited edition fiction titles from Red River, a publishing outfit based in Delhi dedicated to publishing poetry in English and English translation. Established in 2017, Red River is known for its discerning selection of titles and experimental design. Red River is managed solely by poet, writer and translator Dibyajyoti Sarma, with the help of his friends and colleagues, because for everyone involved, Red River is not just a business, but a passion — an abiding love for poetry. This passion for poetry keeps Red River going, and thanks to the discerning readers of poetry in India and abroad, over the years, it has built a reputation as a niche publisher of poetry.

RED RIVER Story hopes to convey stories from the hinterland and the heartland, from metros and larger towns of the subcontinent — stories that are submerged in the rush of those that are more popular, more immediately acceptable, recognisable.

Sucharita Dutta-Asane is an award-winning writer and independent book editor based in Pune. Her short story collection, Cast Out and Other Stories, was published by Dhauli Books in 2018. It was among Amazon’s “Best of Summer from India, 2018” and was reviewed widely. It is part of the Bengaluru-based Indian Institute of Human Settlements’ (IIHS) library selection. The titular story of Sucharita’s collection is the subject of two international research papers around Gender Politics and Postcolonial Representations of Menstruation. Sucharita is the recipient of the international Dastaan Award and the Oxford Bookstores debuting writers’ (second place) award. Her fiction and reviews have appeared in various literary journals and anthologies. As independent editor she has worked with publishing houses, literary agencies as well as individual authors. From September 2017 to March 2019, she edited the online literary magazine Kitaab, published from Singapore. At present she edits fiction for the Bangalore Review, and teaches a postgraduate course in Writing and Editing at Symbiosis College of Arts and Commerce, Pune.

Reviews

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Mridula Vijayarangakumar in The Frontline

The novella thrives on and is an examination of the silence that each household maintains as an insulation between the domestic and the public. Sridharan, whom the villagers have interacted with the most among the household members, gets all the sympathy as the family’s public face. In comparison, the villagers find Molamma, her mother, and her two daughters odd because they are always quiet, keeping to themselves instead of participating in the village community. What does their silence conceal?

Ronnie Kuriakose in The New Indian Express

One Day, One Morning by Anuradha Vijayakrishnan follows two pairs of sisters, each isolated within their own family ‘islands’. One lives under the shadow of an untold ‘curse’, while the other seems untouched by such darkness. But as the narrative unfolds, perspectives shift, exposing the fragility of memory, the weight of inherited trauma, and the inescapable nature of fear. While not a traditional thriller, the intense, restrained storytelling (mirroring the discipline of poetry) keeps readers hooked while denying them the comfort of resolution.