Parineeta, the betrothed (1914) is the love story of Shekharnath and Lalita, set in early twentieth-century Bengal. Lalita is a thirteen-year-old orphan who lives with the family of her uncle Gurucharan. Gurucharan, though a principled man, is forced to take a loan from his neighbour Nabin Roy due to his impoverished circumstances. The two neighbouring families share a very cordial relationship despite Roy