A Burning by Megha Majumdar
Jivan is a young Muslim woman from the slums who is falsely accused of being involved in the attack and is arrested by the police. Lovely is a hijra, a member of India's transgender community, who dreams of becoming a Bollywood star. PT Sir is a physical education teacher at a school for girls who becomes politically ambitious and begins to use his influence to advance his own career.
As the novel progresses, the lives of these three characters become increasingly entwined and the consequences of their choices become more and more dire. Jivan must navigate the corrupt and biased legal system to prove her innocence, while Lovely and PT Sir must confront the ways in which their own desires and ambitions are intimately connected to the larger structures of power and oppression in Indian society.
Majumdar's writing is beautiful and evocative, bringing to life the vivid sights, sounds, and smells of urban India. Her characters are complex and fully realized, each with their own flaws and contradictions. The novel raises important questions about the nature of justice, the complexities of identity, and the role of power and privilege in shaping our lives and our choices.
One of the most striking things about A Burning is its portrayal of the violence and instability that often accompany political upheaval. The terrorist attack that sets the novel in motion is just one example of the many forms of violence that are woven into the fabric of Indian society, from communal riots to police brutality to sexual assault. Through the experiences of Jivan, Lovely, and PT Sir, the novel forces us to confront the ways in which violence and oppression are, to use a phrase from the book, "baked into" the system.
At the same time, A Burning is also a deeply human book, one that explores the intimate relationships and connections that bind us together even in the midst of violence and chaos. Jivan, Lovely, and PT Sir are all flawed and imperfect, but their struggles and their dreams are also deeply relatable. In this way, the novel manages to be both a powerful critique of society and a moving portrait of the human experience.
Overall, A Burning is an exceptional debut novel that announces Megha Majumdar as a major new voice in Indian literature. It is a gripping, thought-provoking, and deeply moving book that will stay with readers long after they have finished it. Highly recommended.