"Bhikharini" (English: The Beggar Woman) is a
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
short story written by
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
. The story was first published in 1877 in ''Bharati'' and was the first short story written in Bengali language.
This was also Tagore's own first short story, and he was 16 years old at the time of its publication.
Plot
The story is set in a village in
Kashmir
Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
. Amar Singh and Kamal Devi are the main protagonists of the story. They grew up together and were good friends. Kamal's father was a renowned person in the village and Amar's father Ajit Singh was a commander (
Senapati
Senapati (Sanskrit: सेनापति; ''sena-'' meaning "army", ''-pati'' meaning "lord") is a title in ancient India denoting the rank of military commander or general of the army.
It was a hereditary title of nobility used in the Maratha ...
) in the king's army. Their families arranged Amar and Kamal's marriage. After the death of Kamal's father, their family's financial condition became poor.
References
External links
Bhikhariniat NLTR
{{Rabindranath Tagore}
1877 short stories
Works by Rabindranath Tagore