The Dancing Girls of Lahore Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, and our BookBrowse Review of The Dancing Girls of Lahore.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

Introduction

In Heera Mandi, the red-light district of Lahore, Pakistan, sociologist Louise Brown examines the fate of the beautiful and tragic dancing girls. Once the courtesans of kings, graceful and erudite, contemporary dancing girls find themselves in dire straits, clinging to an ancient romantic identity while facing a destitute future.

Central to Brown's study is Maha, a middle-aged dancing girl of increasing girth who must auction her daughter's virginity to the highest bidder. Tasneem, a young khusra, navigates the demarcation between male and female at will, yet is doomed to be less than either. Tariq, of the untouchable sweeper caste, Maha's increasingly uninterested "husband" Adnan, Laila, the former dancing girl turned promoter/pimp, and high-paying sheiks in Dubai are but a few of the people introduced in Brown's unflinching portrayal of a world that, much like Maha herself, veers between "rage and joy, cruelty and gentle compassion."

Questions for Discussion

1. Consider the reversal of traditional Pakistani norms in Heera Mandi-"in the mohalla, female beauty and sexuality are openly celebrated . . . lauded and envied." Why does Brown refer to "luxury of purdah" enjoyed by affluent families?
   


2. How do shame, honor and social status intertwine in Heera Mandi? How does Maha manage her "shame" and why does Brown say, "paradoxically, a veil can heighten rather than lessen a woman's power"?
   


3. With "no education and few skills" Nisha and Niha are trapped in a vicious circle of prostitution. Given the complicated realities of cast and class in Pakistan, would these girls have a chance even if they were educated? How does prostitution become an economic inevitability when one must support parents and siblings in a patriarchal society?
   

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Harper Perennial. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.