Reading the blurb for Didi by Nirupama Devi may give readers the illusion that they have decoded the plot of the story. But as you dig deeper, it expands into a world of complex human emotions enveloped in regressive societal norms.
Translated from Bangla by Alo Shome, the story was first published in 1915. Surama, the protagonist, is the legally wedded wife of Amar, but their relationship, not surprisingly, is not quite like that of partners. Despite being a strong-willed woman, who is in charge of all kinds of duties around the household, for him, she is simply a ‘co-wife’. She is compelled to share her husband with a ‘child-woman’—Charu—who is brought into Surama’s life as Amar’s second wife after the girl loses her mother.
While Amar is attracted towards her, he tries to control his urges, but when Charu confesses her love, he lets his inhibitions recede.
Till this point, the plot moves as expected. It is in Surama’s reactions to these events that Devi’s deft storytelling shines. Instead of being the jealous first wife, she transforms into an elder sister or didi for Charu. Even as the relationship between them deepens, the distance between Surama and Amar widens. In an ultimate act of sacrifice, Surama moves back to her father’s home, yielding the household she had built over the years to Charu.
The thoughtfulness of the narrative lies in how it vilifies neither woman. In her parental home, another poignant twist of fate that requires Surama to assume a motherly role, yet again, awaits her—this time for Uma, her widowed niece. After the girl, who has just seen eight summers of her life, loses her mother, Surama steps in to fill the void. Even as she cares for the child unconditionally, she also prepares her for the impending long and arduous life of a widow.
Often in social and political discourses, women’s issues are categorised under a single umbrella, without taking into consideration the specificity of an individual’s predicaments. Didi looks at each of the characters in a more rounded way. By presenting contrasting stories of two child brides—Charu and Uma—it paints a tender picture of the unpredictability of the life of a woman. The pathos extends to Surama, who is the result of her social realities. She is in a constant battle with society, and refuses to give in; she breaks free in her own way and on her own terms. The book, therefore, offers readers a wide spectrum of experiences to deliberate on the idea of agency for women.
Kudos to Shome’s translation that retains the authenticity of the text as well as the social milieu. It allows the reader to look back at the past with a contemporary lens. Didi is a reminder of the tight hold of social norms on women’s lives, but it is also a reassurance that the grip is loosening.