A Burning

“And then, in the small, glowing screen, I wrote a foolish thing. I wrote a dangerous thing, a thing nobody like me should ever think, let alone write.” 

This crucial moment lights the match for the trials awaiting Jivan and indeed kickstarts the plot. Jivan acknowledges the risk inherent in posting her opinion, especially since it criticizes the Indian government. This foreshadows the dissolution of her life and underlines the social inequity that prohibits total free speech and thought.

“Nothing is simple for a person like me, not even one hour on the train. My chest is a man’s chest, and my breasts are made of rags. So what? Find me another woman in this whole city as truly woman as me.”

This quote captures Lovely’s characteristic self-confidence and optimism. Although she is seen as strange, and though she was born in the wrong body, she is proud of her identity. Lovely doesn’t see sex or gender in normative terms, which allows her to look past the judgment of her society and focus on her own self-exploration.

“You can be burning one train, but you cannot be stopping our will to go to work, to class, to family if we have them. Every local train is like a film. On the train, I am observing faces, body movements, voices, fights. This is how people like me are learning.” 

In referencing the terrorist attack on the train, Lovely takes on the much-needed voice of a spiritual warrior, one who continues believing in the value and beauty of life despite numerous and tragic challenges. For Lovely, every moment is an opportunity to observe and learn more.