Published by Vintage Books / Random House India
servants of the goddess
the modern-day devadasis
by Catherine Rubin Kermorgant
Devadasis are women dedicated to the service of a god. Trained from an early age to sing and dance, they are taught that it is their sacred duty to provide sexual services to men.
Servants of the Goddess weaves together the heartbreaking, yet paradoxically life-affirming stories of five devadasis-women, in the clutches of an ancient fertility cult, forced to serve the gods.
Kermorgant sets out to make a documentary film about the lives of present-day devadasis. Through her, we meet and get to know the devadasi women of Kalyana, a remote village in Karnataka. As they grow to trust Kermorgant and welcome her as an honorary sister, we hear their stories in their own words: stories of oppression and violence, but more importantly, of resistance and resilience. Kermorgant becomes a part of these stories and finds herself unwittingly enmeshed in a world of gender and caste bias which extends far beyond Kalyana-all the way to Paris, where the documentary is to be edited and produced.
Servants of the Goddess is a testament to women’s strength and spirit, and a remarkably astute analysis of gender and caste relations in today’s rural India.
Testimonials & Reviews
“Fascinating first book…. Servants of the Goddess is an astute and provocative book, taking us into the intimate lives of devadasis, while putting forward larger questions about caste hierarchy, gender bias, and the economic pressures that exist within patriarchy”
Tishani Doshi
The Sunday Standard, Indian Express
“A very powerful and important book which delves below the surface into the lives of the Devadasi women of India. Extremely well written raising awareness on a very important issue.”
David Skivington
Author of Blessed, Broken and Bound
“Kermorgant’s book throws light on the Devadasi system and its presence in modern-day India. It comes as an answer to the banning of Doniger’s ‘The Hindus’ and, in an indirect way, shows that sex and religion have co-existed in Hinduism from a long time.”
Ravi Jain
BookGeeks
“If I had to pick one work of non-fiction from among the many I’ve read over the years, ‘Servants of the Goddess: The Modern-day Devadasis’ would be an easy choice. Author Catherine Rubin Kermorgant has a gift of style that can trump many novelists…. It’s a beautiful, informative book, really. Read it.”
Urmi Chanda Vaz
Karma and Some
“Servants of the Goddess fascinates, and shocks, with stories of devadasis in India and the incredible journey the women embark upon.”
Sudipta Datta
Sunday edition of The Financial Express
“This book is a must-read for anyone who has faced prejudice or is working to uplift sections of society that suffer bias, injustice and disdain. What makes the narration striking is the way characters grow and develop.”
Vishal Manve
Sunday edition of Mumbai’s DNA
“A highly unusual and fascinating book, engrossing to the very end.”
Sonia Faleiro
Author of Beautiful Thing
“With her compassionate and friendly attitude, the author wins the confidence of five devadasis who reveal every aspect of their day-to-day life.”
Pran Nevile
The Asian Age
Gallery
About the Author
Catherine Rubin Kermorgant
Born in France and raised in New York, Catherine Rubin Kermorgant studied Classics at Brown University and Anthropology at the London School of Economics. After working on feature films and tv series for a number of years, she switched over to documentary films. One of her projects, funded by BBC and Canal Plus, led her to South India. She spent many months over a period of four years bearing witness to the lives of devadasi women. Catherine lives in Paris with her family.
Contact Catherine Rubin Kermorgant at cateker@alumni.brown.edu.
