Hi! Can you recommend me some Indian literature? I saw your post about indian academia, but i couldn't find half of the books on Amazon
Amazon is maya. Libgen and zlib is truth.
Indian literature is such a vast category. There is no possible way to make a recommendation list that would encompass all of the various categories of genres and representation. Here are some books, mainly Indian literature in English, for easier access via Amazon and other sites:
If you want to explore Kashmiri politics: The Book of Gold Leaves by Mirza Waheed tells the love story of a papier-mache artist and a beautiful young romantic against the backdrop of the Kashmir insurgency. Politics, faith and longing intertwine in this beautiful novel, reminiscent of Fitoor.
If you are looking for LGBTQ representation: Kari by Amruta Patil is a graphic novel about a butch lesbian who survives a botched suicide pact and is left alone in the aftermath of her failed relationship. Dreamy art style, lots of musing on body, mortality and urban loneliness.
If you want an easy read on Hindu mythology: The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni is a feminist retelling of the Mahabharata from Draupadi's perspective. It's a powerful novel, full of female rage, and doesn't shy away from portraying moral ambiguity.
If you are seeking diasporic Indian perspectives: The Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri is a collection of stories about NRIs as well as mainlanders navigating relationships, familial trauma and cultural disconnection. Not a single bad story here.
If you want to read about female icons: Heroines: Powerful Indian Women of Myth & History by Ira Mukhoty combines folklore and actual history to bring you intimate portraits of some icons of Indian culture. I recommend all of Mukhoty's works really, she is immensely readable.
If you want an introduction to the classics: A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry brings together multiple characters into a narrative set against the Emergency of 1975. Now considered a classic in the canon of Indian literature in English. Be warned though, it has a super depressing end.
If you are searching for an anti caste read: Annihilation of Caste by B.R. Ambedkar is a seminal work in Dalit literature and anti caste studies. Intended to be delivered as a lecture that was cancelled last minute due to offending a Hindu society, this treatise is short, crisp and scathing in its condemnation of caste system and the evils perpetuated by Brahminical supremacy.
If you prefer memoirs: A Childhood in Malabar by Kamala Das is a leisurely, meandering recollection of the author's time in her mother's ancestral house in Kerala. Peopled colourful characters like fortune tellers and their parrots, irate cousins, folk dancers and pretty maidservants. Whimsical and just a nice, soothing read.
If you seek voices from the North East: A Respectable Woman by Easterine Kirk is set in the Naga hills and follows the aftermath of the withdrawal of the Japanese forces from North East India following Second World War. In general all of Kirk's works provide insight into Naga society and I cannot recommend them enough.
If you want to try independence-era literature: Ghare Baire (translation. Home and the World) is a classic by Rabindranath Tagore penned to express his disapproval with militant nationalism and exclusionary politics during the Non Cooperation movement. I think this is one of Tagore's best and most controversial works.
If you are looking for books set in the heart of nature: Literally any book by Ruskin Bond, but I recommend Once Upon a Monsoon Time and Our Trees Still Grow in Dehra. Bond, who grew up in the Dehra valley and continues to live in the mountains, spent his lifetime at peace with the flora and fauna of the Garwhal hills and his writing is tranquil, introspective and kind.
If you want to read contemporary YA: Potato Chips by Anshuman Mohan is a smart, funny and ultimately incredibly heartwarming book about a young boy who is forced to leave his old school and join the strict Catholic institution of St. Xavier's. Written when the author himself was a young student, the book contains discussions of class inequality, the Indian education system, friendship and urban Bengal life.
Hope you find something to your liking from here!
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