The Treatment of Bibi Haldar

Bibi’s cousin, Haldar, owns the cosmetics shop that Bibi works in. He is the head of the household and supposedly responsible for Bibi, though he does little beyond the bare minimum. Out of familial obligation, he feeds and clothes her but resents her all the while. He is frustrated by her frequent attacks and often leaves her alone in the street to suffer fits. The townswomen are disgusted by his unfeeling attitude and stingy behavior, taking Bibi’s side against him. When a doctor suggests Bibi get married, he ignores her pleas, claiming that she “has caused enough worry, added enough to expenses, sullied enough the family name.” Throughout the story, Haldar thinks entirely in his own self-interest and seeks to maintain order as the head of the household. When the women eventually drive him out of town through a collective boycott in solidarity with Bibi, he disappears without a trace or care for who he left behind.