Three Women is the English translation of some of Rabindranath Tagore’s finest prose works. The book is a compilation of three stories, Nastier (The Broken Nest), Malachi (The Arbor) and Dui Bon (The Two Sisters).

The author reads the women’s psyche and lays bare their souls to the reader. Charlatan, Sarala and Urmila are the portrayed characters in each of these three stories. They are depicted as rational women who have their own desires but are restrained and caught in the grip of domestic boundaries.

The central narrative in the three novels revolves around forbidden relationships. Nastier portrays the love between an older sister-in-law and a much younger brother-in-law. Being ignored by her husband, Charlatan is attracted to Amal. Malachi explores the affair between a married man and a distant cousin of his wife who comes to tend his wife and the garden.

Dui Bon depicts the relationship of a man with his wife’s sister. Despite these extra-marital affairs, the marriage of the characters remains intact. The common thread which binds the three women in sisterhood is their desire to express their voice outside of the four walls, a sense of mental void due to marital obligation and the longing for love outside marriage.

The book also brings forth the understated theme of the new woman: one with thoughts and personality of her own.

Three Women was published by Random House India in 2010 and is available in paperback.