Split: A life—the saga of a woman in search of equanimity

Abstract

Recognized globally for her subversive writing, Taslima Nasrin epitomizes women fighters devoted to the betterment of their countries, while forced into exile abroad. The diverse collection of this Bangladeshi writer’s work, comprises varied types such as newspaper columns, poetry, and novels and has sparked major controversies regarding religion, women and free speech. She directs her blunt, explicit, and vituperative attacks against religion, blaming it almost entirely for the deplorable state of literary expression and the status of women. Nasrin’s 500-page autobiography, Split: A Life, is only one of her seven memoirs. “Dwikhanditho” (Split into Two), the original Bengali version of this book, was banned by the West Bengal government in India in 2003 for allegedly “hurting the sentiments of the Muslim community,” until 2005 when a high court order overturned the ruling (“Taslima Nasreen Book,” Citation2018). This voluminous book is a raw but insightful account of Nasrin’s life, particularly with respect to Mymensingh and Dhaka, two prominent cities of Bangladesh. The author takes off the proverbial veil from her life as she narrates her experience of living in a despotic democracy.