Desh

For Aila Begum, marriage is a given, and at twenty four, quite soon. Though London born, Aila’s father is deeply traditional and lives by rules of the remote village in Bangladesh he calls home. So allowed no freedom, Aila’s learnt to play covertly. When life at home spirals she plays hardest. Tension mounts as a family trip to Bangladesh looms. Sensing threat, Aila plays for real during Ramadan, with the men her father hates most. Once in Syhlet, it turns out her instincts were right. Her hand is forced in a makeshift wedding and she slides into despair. Until she learns the Forced Marriage Act has come into effect in the U.K. Back in London, she contacts the Forced Marriage Unit who work behind the scenes, while at night she cruises men and in increasingly predatory encounters until the day her husband’s visa is declined and her father finds out why. All hell breaks out and a vicious fight ensues. Next day at dawn she knows what to do. Shaming her father, she flies to Syhlet alone, confronts the people who drugged, deceived and defrauded her, and returns with a proposal of her own.