ABSTRACT
The representation of modern Indian women in postcolonial literature has often oscillated between binary portrayals of silence and speech, victimhood and resistance. The study critically examines how selected Indian literary texts depict women's agency through nuanced portrayals that transcend these binaries. Grounded in feminist literary criticism and postcolonial theory, the research employs a qualitative interpretive methodology, focusing on close textual analysis of works by Mahasweta Devi, Kamala Das, Arundhati Roy, Bama, and others. Findings reveal that women in these narratives often express resistance through symbolic gestures, fragmented memories, autobiographical confessions, and internal monologues. These strategies allow female characters to inhabit liminal spaces—neither wholly submissive nor radically emancipated. Rather than privileging overt speech, the study highlights the political significance of silence, partial defiance, and embodied storytelling as critical forms of feminist expression. The research contributes to feminist and postcolonial scholarship by advocating for a more intersectional and decolonial approach to reading Indian literature. It calls for the inclusion of marginalized voices in the literary canon and recommends further exploration of regional and non-linear narratives. Future studies may extend this inquiry through interdisciplinary frameworks or comparative cultural contexts.
