Who wrote the novel 'Chokher Bali'?

"Chokher Bali" ("A Grain of Sand", literally "sand in the eye", meaning a constant irritant) is a Bengali novel by Rabindranath Tagore, first serialised in 1902-03 and published as a book in 1903.

About the novel:

• It tells the story of Binodini, a young, educated and beautiful widow who comes to live in the household of Mahendra, his mother Rajlakshmi and his wife Ashalata.
• It explores the complex relationships between Binodini, Mahendra, Asha and Mahendra's friend Bihari.
• The novel deals with the restrictions placed on widows in 19th-century Bengali society, their emotional and social suffering, and human desire and jealousy.
• It is considered one of the first modern psychological novels in Indian literature.
• In 2003, it was made into a film by Rituparno Ghosh, with Aishwarya Rai as Binodini.

Tagore's other novels:

• "Gora" (1910): on identity, religion and nationalism.
• "Ghare Baire" ("The Home and the World", 1916): set during the Swadeshi movement; made into a film by Satyajit Ray (1984).
• "Nastanirh" ("The Broken Nest"): made into the film "Charulata" by Satyajit Ray (1964).
• "Shesher Kobita" and "Chaturanga".

About Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941):

• He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913 for "Gitanjali", becoming the first Asian Nobel laureate.
• He wrote the national anthems of India ("Jana Gana Mana") and Bangladesh ("Amar Shonar Bangla").
• He founded Visva-Bharati at Santiniketan.

Other famous Bengali novelists:

• Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay: "Anandamath" (containing "Vande Mataram"), "Durgeshnandini", "Kapalkundala".
• Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay: "Devdas", "Parineeta", "Srikanta".
• Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay: "Pather Panchali", "Aparajito", "Aranyak".

Why not the other options?

• ✗Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote "Devdas" and "Parineeta".
• ✗Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay wrote "Anandamath".
• ✗Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay wrote "Pather Panchali".