Nina Miller
There are stories we are told when we are young that guide us and shape us in those youthful moments where curiosity is born, yet their true impact may take decades to comprehend. These tales stay deep within the recesses of our developing brains. We mull on them, savor them like treasured candy, always leaving us with more questions, long past the point we’ve been told to “Stop asking and go to bed already.”
Where I grew up, you were raised on the stories of Christian Anderson or the Brothers Grimm, but for many a second-generation child born away from the Indian subcontinent, we had the Ramayana, written by Valmiki in the 7th to 5th century BCE. Mother Karma by Sumitra Singam is a novella-in-flash that deftly weaves the story of a migrant family with moments from the Ramayana, mirroring the unfolding narrative.
The novella opens with Grandmother Radha telling a story. She came to Australia to care for her grandson, Rishi, while his mother, Mythili, is hospitalized. Through Radha’s retelling of Ramayana stories to Rishi, we gradually understand her emotional struggles, both from her past and in the present. We see her difficulties with motherhood and her strained relationship with her daughter. As Radha says in the opening, “This is the beginning of the only story in the universe, kanna. It is the story of love.” The hope throughout reading this novella is that this love will be enough to keep the family together.
The story begins with OM, the Primordial Sound, and we are brought back to our own childhood moment – when a story is about to begin. We are looking up at a parent or loved one and our attention is rapt. In Singam’s skilled hands, we do not lose focus until the story ends. Part of that skill in our TikTok generation is that each chapter is an entire flash piece in and of itself. There are micros and hermit-crab pieces that subtly yet powerfully explore and expand the novellas’ deeper meanings. Singam knows that the story she tells with mounting anxiety is difficult, so she provides space to breathe between each offering.
The power of this book lies not only in its beautiful exploration of the complexities of motherhood but also in its reminder of our transition from childhood to adulthood. By weaving stories from the Ramayana into her prose, Singam has answered questions I had as a child. She provides an adult perspective on misogyny present in stories such as “Victim Shaming” and “The Many Paths to Fatherhood.” Through “Son of the Wind,” she offers a message of hope, showing how we can discover our true selves by believing in our own abilities.
Mother Karma is a wonderful new addition to anyone’s library. Whether you are reading tales from the Ramayana for the first or the five hundredth time, Singam’s creative prose will make you want “Just one more story, please, Amma!”
Mother Karma (Jake, December 2025) can be purchased here.
Nina Miller is an Indian-American physician, epee fencer, and creative. She loves writing competitions and nursing endless cups of chai. She’s made the Wigleaf Top 50 in 2024. Her recent publications are in Sci-Fi Shorts, Micromance Magazine, Raw Lit, Trash Cat Lit and Silly Goose Press. She is a contributor for The Pride Roars. Find her @NinaMD1 or ninamiller.bsky.social. Read more at ninamillerwrites.com
