The Henna Artist

The Henna Artist (2020) is a novel by Indian American author Alka Joshi and the first book in The Jaipur Trilogy. The story takes place in 1950s India and follows 17-year-old Lakshmi as she escapes an abusive marriage and moves to Jaipur to become a henna artist. The protagonist is based on the author’s mother, who was not able to choose her own path in life but was determined that her children would have that option. The Henna Artist was a New York Times bestseller, was featured as a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick, and as of 2021 was being developed as a Miramax television series. The novel explores the themes of Traditional Values Versus Western Influence, The Role of Women in Traditional Society, and Motherhood as a Personal Choice.

All page references in this study guide refer to the 2020 Kindle edition of the book.

Content warning: The guide references domestic abuse, abortion, and miscarriage, which appear in the source text.

Plot Summary

The Henna Artist is set in northern India in 1955, less than a decade after India’s independence from Great Britain. The action takes place in three locations: the rural village of Ajar, the sophisticated city of Jaipur, and the mountain paradise of Shimla.

The narrative begins from a third-person perspective as it tells the story of a rural orphan named Radha, who goes in search of her runaway older sister, Lakshmi. The book then shifts to first-person narration as Lakshmi tells the story of her life and her determination to choose a path for herself. She has abandoned her abusive husband and escaped to the city of Jaipur, where she becomes a henna artist whose skills are in demand with the rich and powerful.

At the beginning of the novel, 13-year-old Radha is being verbally abused by the gossipmongers of her village, who call her the Bad Luck Girl. Both Radha’s parents have recently died, and her sister, Lakshmi, ran away from her husband 13 years earlier. Resolving to find her only surviving kin, Radha enlists the help of Lakshmi’s husband, Hari, in locating her.

While Radha begins her search, Lakshmi is doing very well as a sought-after henna artist in the royal city of Jaipur. In addition to her henna art, Lakshmi is a skilled healer, who helps her clients with their aches and pains. She is equally adept at preparing contraceptive herbs, which she sells to her friend Samir so that his many mistresses can avoid pregnancy.

Lakshmi’s well-ordered life is interrupted by the arrival of her estranged husband and the little sister she never knew she had. Hari goes to live in the slums after Lakshmi gives him money, but Lakshmi takes in Radha, who is impulsive and stubborn. Eventually, Radha enters into a disastrous affair with Samir’s son. Lakshmi’s friendship with Samir and her sister’s affair with Samir’s son draw the wrath of Samir’s wife, who starts a gossip campaign to drive Lakshmi out of her henna business. To further complicate matters, Radha is pregnant and wants to keep her baby.

At the mountain retreat of Shimla, where Radha goes to deliver her child, both sisters find a fresh start. Radha allows Lakshmi’s childless friend Kanta to adopt her baby while Lakshmi finds a new use for her skills as a healer at the Western hospital in town.