Wikipedia
Lajja ( Lôjja) (Shame) is a novel in Bengali by Taslima Nasrin, a writer of Bangladesh. The word lajja/lôjja means "shame" in Bengali and many other Indo-Aryan languages. The book was first published in 1993 in Bengali and was subsequently banned in Bangladesh. It nonetheless sold 50,000 copies in the six months after its publication, though Taslima fled her native Bangladesh after receiving death threats from Islamic groups.
Nasrin dedicated the book "to the people of the Indian subcontinent," beginning the text with the words, "let another name for religion be humanism." The novel is preceded by a preface and a chronology of events.
Lajja is a 2001 Hindi drama film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi. The film is based on the plight of women in India. The movie recounts the story of four women, and features an all-star cast including Manisha Koirala, Rekha, Madhuri Dixit, Jackie Shroff, Johnny Lever, Anil Kapoor, Ajay Devgan and Danny Denzongpa. The divas Urmila Matondkar and Sonali Bendre perform item numbers. Samir Soni and Mahima Chaudhry are also starring.
The movie satirises the honour with which women are placed in society and the restrictions on them. The fact that the four women's names (Maithili, Janki, Ramdulaari, and Vaidehi) are all versions of Sita, the ideal Hindu woman's name, is a message in itself. Manisha Koirala is the protagonist of this film.
The film was a flop at the box office in India but was a commercial success outside India.
Rekha and Madhuri Dixit were nominated for the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award, while Madhuri Dixit won the Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Female award for her performance.