How did the writer represent Nazeen?

Nazneen is the protagonist in the book. She lives in a village in Bangladesh until she is eighteen and then moves to London when she gets married to Chanu. Nazneen is the sister of Hanisa, and the mother of Raqib (who dies as an infant), Shahana, and Bibi.

As a Bangladeshi girl, Nazneen experiences an arranged marriage to her husband, Chanu. Chanu is a kind husband, but he subscribes to gender norms, assuming that Nazneen's priorities will be taking care of the home and children. Nazneen has no control over her important life decisions as she is the subject of her husband's will.

By the end of the novel, Nazneen has shown herself to be able to contribute economically and make decisions about her own life. Noemie Pereira-Ares notes that "the main female personae are constantly struggling against patriarchal constraints, eventually succeeding in becoming independent subjects and active agents in their migrating experience" (204).