Bazaar-e-Husn
| Author | Munshi Premchand |
|---|---|
| Original title | Urdu: بازارِ حُسن, Hindi: सेवासदन |
| Country | British India |
| Language | Hindustani |
| Genre | Novel |
|
Publication date
|
Calcutta (Hindi, 1919) and Lahore (Urdu, 1924) |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
Bazaar-e-Husn (Urdu: بازارِ حُسن) or Seva Sadan (Hindi: सेवासदन) is a Hindustani novel by Munshi Premchand.
It was originally written in Urdu under the title Bazaar-e-Husn ("Market of Beauty" or Red-light district) but was first published in Hindi from Calcutta as Seva Sadan ("The House of Service"), in 1919. It was published in Urdu, in 1924, from Lahore.
Bazaar-e-Husn was Premchand's first major novel; before it, he had published four novellas in Urdu of about 100 pages each.
K. Subramaniam adapted the novel as a Tamil movie, Sevasadanam (1938), which was the first film for the famous Carnatic music singer, M. S. Subbulakshmi.
An English translation of this book was released by Oxford University Press, India in New Delhi in 2005. The year is stated to be significant, being the 125th anniversary of Munshi Premchand's birth.
Bazaar-e-Husn is a tale of an unhappy housewife who is beguiled away from the path of domestic virtue into becoming a courtesan. She then reforms herself and atones by serving as the manager of an orphanage for the young daughters of courtesans, the seva-sadan of the Hindi title.
The setting is in the orthodox Hindu religious city of Varanasi, around the turn of the 20th century. The British Raj had introduced Local self-government in India to municipalities, in some cities. The main protagonist is a Brahmin lady named Suman who is married into a loveless union, because of her family's social and financial obligations. She leaves this marriage to become a courtesan, in the "kothas" of the city. In a twist to the tale, the local municipal corporation, a feature of the then-modernising India, orders these to be relocated outside the city, for social morality. Suman finds her social position is causing problems to her sister's marriage. She then joins to serve a home for widows, and teach them religion. When this becomes untenable — as also a stay with her sister who is married to a former admirer — Suman finally joins as a teacher, in a home that houses the children of former courtesans. The home is named Seva Sadan (the house of service), from which the title of the novel seems to be derived.
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