In 20th-century India, the perfect Hindu wife was… a man

Bal Gandharva as the character 'Sindhu' in the production of Ekach Pyala. Bharat Natya Sanshodhan Mandir/Maharashtra Times centenary issue magazine, Balgandharva Janmashatabdi Visheshank, 1988 For much of the 20th century, the most admired wife in Marathi-speaking India was not a woman at all. Bal Gandharva (1888–1967), a celebrated impersonator of Marathi sangeet natak (musical theatre), played devoted heroines with such conviction that film actresses well into the 1970s were trained to…