Devdas, the tragic hero who drank himself into legend, and Srikanta, the wandering romantic. These men have long stood at the centre of Bengali literature. But what about the women? The ones who loved, longed, rebelled?
Bengali literature is full of women whose stories are just as powerful. These books speak of women’s inner desire, their loneliness and their resistance. Their lives may have played out within the constraints of home and custom, but their hearts reached far beyond. Here are five Bengali books where women take the lead.
The Broken Nest (Nastanirh)
The Broken Nest by Rabindranath Tagore (source: amazon.in)
Charulata has everything a woman is supposed to need- comfort and a respectable marriage. Yet she feels unseen. Her husband Bhupati is too busy with his political newspaper to notice her. Into Charu’s loneliness walks Amal, Bhupati’s cousin, full of love for literature and poetry. As they share poetry and long conversations, a tender bond blooms between them. Rabindranath Tagore perfectly shows the emotional hunger of a woman whose world opens just as it begins to fall apart. It’s a story of intimacy without touch and love without name. Charu’s emotional longing and Bhupati’s obliviousness make this book a devastating and memorable read. Satyajit Ray’s iconic film Charulata is based on The Broken Nest.
The First Promise (Prothom Protishruti)
The First Promise by Ashapurna Devi (source: amazon.in)
A young girl, Satyabati, married at the tender age of eight. She is tormented by her mother-in-law, but refuses to accept the life forced upon her. In a deeply patriarchal society, she fights against her marital family’s norms and defines a new way for women. This feminist novel is one of the earliest pieces of Bengali literature and a truly powerful one. Satyabati fights for her daughter so that she doesn’t have to bear the same fate as her, and get married as a child. The First Promise is a book about women’s fight against social prejudices and family control in a patriarchal society.
Parineeta
Parineeta by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay (source: amazon.in)
This is the story of an orphaned girl, Lalita, who grows up in her uncle’s home. She is secretly in love with her neighbour Shekhar. Their fragile bond, tested constantly by class divides and wounded pride. Beneath its soft romantic surface, Parineeta is a protest against power and patriarchy. Lalita holds the novel together, making her one of Sarat Chandra’s most unforgettable characters. This book has been adapted to the screen many times. Most memorable is the 2005 film, Parineeta, starring Vidya Balan.
It Does Not Die (Na Hanyate)
It Does Not Die by Maitreyi Devi (source: amazon.in)
When Maitreyi Devi was a teenager, she had a secret romance with Romanian writer Mircea Eliade. Years later, she discovered that he had turned their relationship into a novel, La Nuit Bengali. It was without her knowledge and he had also added fictional elements. Decades later, she published her rebuttal, It Does Not Die. In this memoir, she tells her side of the story, the one she did not get to tell. It’s about love, heartbreak and the pain of being written about without consent. Eliade’s book was made into a film The Bengali Night, starring Hugh Grant and Supriya Pathak. It completely ignored Devi’s rebuttal. Her book remains a firm act of reclaiming the narrative proof that the story doesn’t end until she tells it. Her side of the story is also said to have loosely inspired Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.
A Plate of White Marble (Swet Patharer Thala)
A Plate of White Marble by Bani Basu (source: amazon.in)
After her husband’s early death, Bandana refuses to become the traditional image of a grieving widow. As society turns hostile and even her closest ties begin to break, she chooses a new path. She leaves behind everything familiar to find meaning in helping others. Graceful and rebellious, Bandana reclaims her life on her own terms. This is the story of a woman who loses everything, but finds herself. Adapted into a Bengali Film Shet Patharer Thala, starring Aparna Sen.
(The writer is an intern with indianexpress.com)
