It is 1938, the twilight of colonial India, as Gandhi's protests begin to change Indian society. But for some women, things may never change. As widows, they are condemned by Hindu law to spend the rest of their lives in an ashram, to live out their lives in poverty, chastity, and humble obscurity. Then Chuyia, a bewildered 8-year-old who doesn't even remember being married, arrives and upsets everything. Madhumati, the head of the house; Shakuntala, an assistant to a local holy man; and quiet, gorgeous Kalyani are all moved--in very different ways--by her arrival. For these women, the question remains: how far--and for how long--can this cruel injustice be continued in the name of tradition?