A HOUSE NAMED SHAHANA

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Dipa is fierce. She is quirky. She is truthful. She is a 'menace'. She is a woman who takes control of her own life, defying social stigma and the burden of family honour. Is Dipa a total misfit? Who decides?

Shahana's daughter Dipa asks her tailor to stitch deep pockets on her burkha. The young waiter at the tea stall worships the ground she walks on; the maid at home revels in her affection; the widowed college teacher's heart is in turmoil. Yet her family considers her a disgrace and a menace to society.

"This girl's surrounded by water"

An enigmatic remark made by a random older woman portends disaster, but though Dipa sinks, she never drowns.

This is the story of Dipa, a divorced woman who lives in a small town in 90's Bangladesh. Raised by a weak and ineffectual father and stepmother, Dipa is strictly controlled by her uncle. Having committed a teenage indiscretion, she is forced to marry a widower in England, over a trunk call niqah. Dipa subsequently suffers abuse, escapes, and persuades her parents to let her study. Seven years later, she is a qualified physician. A transformed and confident Dipa creates a future on her own terms.