Gender and Exclusion: Female Voices in Anita Nair's Ladies Coupe

This paper attempts to underline the different ways in which women face exclusion and which gets manifested in different forms. It is a detailed analysis of Anita Nair's Ladies Coupe where Akhila, the narrator is on a journey to Kanyakumari with five other women. All these women are from varied age groups and socio-economic backgrounds. The only thing that binds them is their quest for identity. This work is an attempt to study the exclusion in the lives of these characters including that of Akhila. On a surface level, these characters look happy with their lives and positions in their families but the reality is different. This train journey becomes a life-changing experience for Akhila as she decides to break free from all the obligations that had been shackling her so far.