Badi Didi (Hindi)

About the Book

Badi Didi is the first novel written by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay--one of the most popular Bengali writers of all time, the creator of iconic works such as Devdas and Parineeta. Madhavi, affectionately called Badi Didi (elder sister), is a widow. The society she lives in dictates that it is downright wrong for a woman to even think of being with another man after her husband's death. She had no intention of marrying again . . . and then, Surendranath entered her life. The son of a zamindar, Surendranath has come to tutor Madhavi's younger sister. And it takes him no time to fall for the beautiful Madhavi. And despite not wanting to, Madhavi realizes that she is falling for him, too. Will Madhavi dare to flout social convention and be with another man, even though she is a widow? Or will she be forced to stifle her wishes and live a lonely life?

About the Author
Born on 15 September, 1876 in West Bengal, Saratchandra Chattopadhyay began writing in his early teens. The author of numerous Bengali novels, short stories, and even plays, his works have been translated in many languages across India. He achieved instant fame after his first novel Badi Didi was published in 1907 in Bharati. The quality and nuance of his writing made some readers conjecture that the author of this work was the celebrated Rabindranath Tagore writing under a pseudonym. This novel was then adapted into a TV series. Saratchandra Chattopadhyay has penned phenomenal works such as Charitraheen (1917), Srikant (1917), and Shesh Prashn (1931). His novels like Parineeta (1914) and Devdas (1917) have earned the status of classics in Bengali literature and found their way into popular culture when they were adapted into films. Some of his other notable works adapted into films, Manjhli Didi (1967) and Swami (1977), earned filmfare awards. Considered one of the most prolific writers of the early twentieth century, Saratchandra Chattopadhyay breathed his last on 16 January, 1938.