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Ravi Singh
At 26 years old, Kanta Agarwal is Lakshmi’s youngest henna client—and her favorite. Unlike the older ladies of Jaipur, Kanta treats Lakshmi “almost as an equal”; as Lakshmi successfully helps Kanta conceive a baby with her husband Manu, the two women become friends and confidants. Even more importantly, Kanta develops a special bond with Radha, introducing Radha to Western books (like Jane Eyre) and Western movies (like Some Like it Hot). Though Radha often feels closer to Kanta than she does to her own sister, Kanta goes to great pains to defend Lakshmi, helping both sisters accept a more expansive definition of family. The two families’ closeness is cemented when Kanta miscarries late in her pregnancy and instead adopts Nikhil, Radha’s baby with Ravi Singh. In addition to her ties to the central sisters, Kanta is important because of her modern view of womanhood: she has married for love and, like the many famous writers in her family tree, prides herself on her critical and literary faculties.
Kanta Agarwal Quotes in The Henna Artist
The The Henna Artist quotes below are all either spoken by Kanta Agarwal or refer to Kanta Agarwal. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 12
Quotes
“You're just saying things to hurt me. You always do. Just like you never wanted me to find you. Never wanted me to live with you.” [Radha] turned her red rimmed eyes toward Kanta. “That's why I want a family, Auntie! She's not my family. Not really. Not in the way that counts! You and uncle are more of a family to me than she is!”
Her words felt like a hammer blow. Kanta looked at me sympathetically.
No one said anything for a while. Finally, Kanta released a long sigh and stood. She went to sit on the arm of Radha’s chair and lifted her chin with two fingers. “Listen to Lakshmi. She is your jiji. She has done everything she can to make sure you have a good future—the best. You cannot talk to her like that. Not in my house.”
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
“She never spends time with me. All she does is work!”
Each of Radha 's accusations felt like a slap on my cheek.
“She has to support herself.” Kanta took Radha’s hand in hers. “And you. And Malik. She's brave, and she's very fierce. You two are a lot alike, you know.”
Alike? I never thought Radha and I shared anything but the watercolors of our eyes.
“I'm lucky, Radha,” Kanta continued, “I've never had to support myself. Never had to worry about money. Even now my father helps us out when Manu’s civil salary falls short of our expenses. My situation is very different from yours.” She sighed. “As much as I would like it to be different for you, it's not. You must think about money—how to pay rent, how to afford a new pair of shoes, food. As your sister has always done. I accept responsibility for what I've done, Radha. Your sister's not to blame. And neither are you.”
Chapter 21
Quotes
“The gossip-eaters were right. I'll always be the Bad Luck Girl.”
I pulled my head back to look at her. I lifted her chin. “No, Radha, you won't. You never were. You never will be. I'm sorry I ever said that of you. You've brought so much good luck into my life, into our lives. If it hadn't been for you, do you think I'd be going to Shimla? Building my own healing garden? Working with Dr. Kumar? How would I have done any of that without you?”[…]
“And look how you've helped me create a family. Malik. Kanta and Manu. And Nikhil. And, of course, you. You, Radha, Krishna’s wise gopi.”
What a miracle that she had found me, and I, her.
“So, Rundo Rani, burri sayani…are you coming to Shimla with us?”
Get the entire The Henna Artist LitChart as a printable PDF.
Kanta Agarwal Quotes in The Henna Artist
The The Henna Artist quotes below are all either spoken by Kanta Agarwal or refer to Kanta Agarwal. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 12
Quotes
“You're just saying things to hurt me. You always do. Just like you never wanted me to find you. Never wanted me to live with you.” [Radha] turned her red rimmed eyes toward Kanta. “That's why I want a family, Auntie! She's not my family. Not really. Not in the way that counts! You and uncle are more of a family to me than she is!”
Her words felt like a hammer blow. Kanta looked at me sympathetically.
No one said anything for a while. Finally, Kanta released a long sigh and stood. She went to sit on the arm of Radha’s chair and lifted her chin with two fingers. “Listen to Lakshmi. She is your jiji. She has done everything she can to make sure you have a good future—the best. You cannot talk to her like that. Not in my house.”
Related Characters:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
“She never spends time with me. All she does is work!”
Each of Radha 's accusations felt like a slap on my cheek.
“She has to support herself.” Kanta took Radha’s hand in hers. “And you. And Malik. She's brave, and she's very fierce. You two are a lot alike, you know.”
Alike? I never thought Radha and I shared anything but the watercolors of our eyes.
“I'm lucky, Radha,” Kanta continued, “I've never had to support myself. Never had to worry about money. Even now my father helps us out when Manu’s civil salary falls short of our expenses. My situation is very different from yours.” She sighed. “As much as I would like it to be different for you, it's not. You must think about money—how to pay rent, how to afford a new pair of shoes, food. As your sister has always done. I accept responsibility for what I've done, Radha. Your sister's not to blame. And neither are you.”
Chapter 21
Quotes
“The gossip-eaters were right. I'll always be the Bad Luck Girl.”
I pulled my head back to look at her. I lifted her chin. “No, Radha, you won't. You never were. You never will be. I'm sorry I ever said that of you. You've brought so much good luck into my life, into our lives. If it hadn't been for you, do you think I'd be going to Shimla? Building my own healing garden? Working with Dr. Kumar? How would I have done any of that without you?”[…]
“And look how you've helped me create a family. Malik. Kanta and Manu. And Nikhil. And, of course, you. You, Radha, Krishna’s wise gopi.”
What a miracle that she had found me, and I, her.
“So, Rundo Rani, burri sayani…are you coming to Shimla with us?”
