Sangeeta Das
Eulogizing Women in the Fictional Works of Sharat Chandra Chattopadyay
Sharat Chandra Chattopadyay was a scintillating figure in Bengali Literature and has done exemplary effort in reaching literature to the pinnacle of renown. He was awarded D. Lit. by the Dhaka University for his life-time achievements. His novels depict the true picture of rural Bengal and they also show his compassion for the downtrodden and the oppressed.
During his time, casteism ruled the roost and had the whole Indian society in its clutches. Many innocent and harmless creatures were crushed under its excruciating burden. The worse effected were the women, the most vulnerable part of the society.
One of the outstanding collections, ‘The Daughter of a Brahmin’depicts the actual condition of the rural society with so much clarity that I felt my blood boiling on certain occasions and often it filled me with distress at the helplessness of the women in the society in those days.
At that time, besides the four major classifications of caste, our Bengal society had dichotomy in the class of Brahmins. The Upper class Brahmins, (The kulin Brahmin) and the Lower class Brahmins. The upper class looked down upon the lower and forbade any marital relation between the two sections. The kulin Brahmins were revered as gods and marriage to a kulin Brahmin was a boon for anyone.
This clause was used to play havoc with the lives of women in the society. The minor - girls were given into marriage with middle-aged kulin Brahmins happily and it was thought to be a prestigious act. The poor girls before realizing what had happened to their lives and what actually marriage meant, were left widowed by their husbands who were well advanced in age. Then the poor girl is shuttled from one household to the other as and when required. As in ‘The Daughter of a Brahmin’ Jnanada was a young widow who looked after her parents-in-law, came to take care of her sick sister and her young brother but was retained by her brother-in-law Golok Chatterji on the pretext of looking after his son and quelling his sexual appetite whenever it arose. Poor girl couldn’t protest due to her inability to stop him and her love for the orphan child of her sister. Whenever she conceived, she was forcefully given a medicine to kill the life in her womb. Suddenly the old man nearing his fifty, develops a desire to marry and for that purpose he picks up a poor Brahmin’s daughter with excuse of restoring him from distress. He longed to marry this girl who was barely thirteen to fourteen years old. The news of her beauty and ripe age brought saliva in his mouth and being a man fit to be her grandfather’s age, he prepared himself to be her bridegroom. He could do such heinous acts because he was a kulin Brahmin and in those days, kulin Brahmins could marry more than once and do anything which was crime for others and get-away with it.
His cold-blooded rejection of Jnanada after using her like a rubber doll devoid of any feeling and desires and looking on for fresh hunt gives a very bizarre picture of our society. It seemed that the people were badly shackled by the chains of ignorance and superstitions, which must have been fought sturdily to get rid off this evil.
The central character Sandhya was a whiff of fresh air and a stark contrast to the character of Jnanada. She fought relentlessly against the vicious society and did not deter to put forth her opinions. This bold female character was a source of great relief to the hurt ego of the women. Her mother Jagadhatri had tried her best to contain the revolting spirit of her daughter but could not stop her from retorting against an unjust remark. Rashmani, the evil woman-character, who is a wart on the face of society, was best handled by Sandhya by always putting her in her place.
Sandhya was the strong prop for her simple and humble father who was a ‘ghar-jamai’ to this house. She was the powerful shield of her father against the strong invectives of her mother against him. She was an honest, straight- forward and a just girl who supported everything that was right and just. Initially Golok Chatterji had a desire to marry Sandhya, when she came to know about this, she courageously insulted him in the presence of all the people saying “I shall put a garland of torn shoes round the neck of the person having one foot in the grave.”
Men in those days, couldn’t bear the insult of rejection because of their inflated ego, may it be a wicked person like Golok Chatterji or a good person like Arun. Golok responded to his insult by exposing the skeleton in the cupboard i.e. the hidden past of Priya Mukherji’s mother’s life and broke Sandhya’s marriage and their house as well.
Sandhya’s grandmother has been shown to be a victim of the atrocious society and equally nefarious casteism. Poor lady had taken shelter as an ascetic and turned away from the worldly responsibilities. On Jagadhatri’s repeated request, she came across for Sandhya’s marriage but was followed by the hydra-headed evil of the society, traced down and vanquished even after so many years of seclusion.
Jagadhatri, on the other side, represented that class of women who are their own best enemy. Being in a strong position, she could have ignored and turned a deaf ear to the outrageous pouring of the society and support her mother-in-law and daughter but she preferred to flow with the current. Her direct defiance to her daughter’s desires and wishes and indirect defiance to the tolerable approach of her mother-in-law fill us with distress and make us place the blame of hopelessness of our women on ourselves.
Sarat Chandra has wisely revealed the varied position of women which though same in all classes and castes did have some variance in themselves which if they desired could have been used for their own benefit.
The other most popular and appreciated novel is ‘The Married Women’ which has another woman very strong though not outwardly but inwardly who has the ability to rock the world. The striking difference in this novel from the previous is its denouement which ends with the ringing of wedding bells. In this novel, the women character of Lalita and Bhubaneswari are worth reckoning. Lalita an orphan who comes to stay with her maternal uncle and aunt, helps them not only with household chores but also becomes an indispensable person in Bhubaneswari’s household too. She becomes friendly with Shekhar, Bhubaneswari’s son and gradually takes over his responsibility and becomes the most important part of his life, without both of them knowing it. Lalita would never do a thing without asking Shekhar and likewise Shekhar could not bear the idea of Lalita replacing him and diverting herself elsewhere. When the feelings of belongingness changed into a formidable bond of love, it was not known to either of them. The soft exterior had a tough interior in Lalita which has raised this character in our estimation. It is evident when her submissiveness to Shekhar and the realization of his importance in her life did not bend her before the situation when Shekhar was preparing to see a bride for himself or even give an outlet to her feeling when his marriage was almost fixed, even after their being married with mutual consent.
Lalita never lost her self-pride and has done honour to the women-folk in general. The patience and forbearance in that character is beyond one’s comprehension and has earned accolades for the author from the erudite class of the society. So much of calmness, beauty and intelligence could be found in unison in an Indian woman alone and Sarat Chandra has shown due respect by saluting the Indian Woman through this novel.
Bhubaneswari cannot be praised less for her benevolent nature. Besides being an affectionate mother to Shekhar who could read the facial-expression of her son, she was a marvelous person at heart. Though she was the mistress of a rich and flourishing household she kept her feet firmly grounded on the earth and did not let the wealth and prosperity to reach her head. Herself being a simple and straight woman, she loved and cared for Lalita just like her daughter and could not dream of a life without that girl. She always desired a daughter-in-law like Lalita and her happiness knew no bounds when she came to know that Shekhar and Lalita were mutually wedded to each other by exchanging garlands. The house which was already humming with the preparation of Shekhar’s prospective marriage with a different girl could not deter Bhubaneswari from rejecting the bride for Lalita who was not only from simple family but was also poor. Bhubaneswari’s character towers over the character of Jagadhatri who was dwarfed by Bhubaneswari by her magnanimity.
Another female character which gives us a peek into another facet of the enormity of an Indian woman could be read in the novel ‘Husband’. In this Saudamini was the daughter of a widow, Giri who stayed with her brother. Education was rarity for women in those days. Therefore she was always dependent on the male of the family. Another evil prevalent in the society in those days very prominently outlined by Sarat Chandra in this novel was the child-marriage. Girls were married off at a very tender age when they had
no idea what marriage was and what responsibilities were attached to this institution. Sandhya’s grandmother was married at the age of eight. Girls whose age crossed twelve were a source of constant worry for their parents. In this novel ‘Husband’ Giri was also worried for her daughter’s marriage and was in tears whenever, her brother postponed the idea. The wide difference between the ages of the bride and the bridegroom brought about an irregularity in feelings of the girl towards her husband. The elderly and matured husband was looked upon by his young wife with awe and respect than with a feeling of love which is a vital factor in a successful marriage. This love on the part of Saudamini was lacking for her husband who was an unwanted guest in her life and a source of forceful relationship into which she was forcefully reconciled. Saudamini loved Naren but he turned out to be the wrong person in her life who did not appear when she needed him but preferred to disturb her married life by insinuating her to abandon her husband. Sadu though did not like her husband because she thought she loved someone and her life was somebody else’s but could not resist herself from wondering over the patience of her husband and without knowing, subconsciously started appreciating and liking him. Her sense of justice which could not be subdued by her ignorance of his presence in her life could be seen when she defied her step-mother-in-law on neglecting her husband. Sarat Chandra has taken up this difficult character and adeptly moulded her into exposing the real self which lay hidden under the recalcitrant exterior.
Repeated temptation by Naren finally weakened her and she eloped with him but could not accept him because she could not fight the pricks of her conscience and therefore remained incarcerated without food and drink hoping against hope that her husband would come and forgive her for the wrong she had done by leaving without his knowledge. Even Naren had to bow down before her obstinate negation of his presence.
Her knowledge about her husband’s greatness by getting her burnt parental house repaired and hiding the news from her for she might be pained further filled her heart with guilt and shame and prepared herself mentally for the penance to clear herself of the injustice done to her husband.
Her husband comes and accepts her with the belief that she was still his own. Saudamini was overwhelmed and desired from God to remain faithful and dutiful towards him forever.
The waylaying of Saudamini was not due to any false trait in her character but for no proper guidance given to her by her mother who was obsessed with her marriage. Early marriage and no proper teaching is likely to push a young mind into the recesses of ignorance which was what happened with Saudamini but thanks to our great writer Sarat Chandra that he could successfully pull out Saudamini from the pit of ignorance without smudging her mind and body with the mire of dishonour.
The three novels not only fill our mind with the immense capacities of our Indian women but also show the craftsmanship of the author in beautifully depicting it before us. We are filled with pride to have such women in our country who are examples for all the women who know them through his novels. I am particularly overwhelmed with a feeling of indebtedness towards the great author who could understand the feelings and desires of a woman despite of him being a man himself. We will remain true admirers of the great author and man, Sarat Chandra Chattopadyay, forever.