The English Problem A Novel
The English Problem A Novel by Beena Kamlani, published by Random House on January 28, 2025, is a 480-page work written in English. This novel follows the journey of Shiv Advani, an eighteen-year-old Indian man chosen by Mahatma Gandhi to study British law in England as part of India’s fight for freedom. As Shiv navigates his new life, he grapples with the complexities of colonialism and personal identity, torn between his duty to his country and his growing connection to the very culture he is meant to oppose.
Readers will find a richly detailed narrative that explores themes of migration, love, and the impact of historical events on individual lives. Set against the backdrop of the Indian independence movement, the story features appearances by notable historical figures, including Virginia and Leonard Woolf. The English Problem delves into the multifaceted nature of colonialism, examining how it influences not only societal structures but also personal relationships and self-identity. This debut novel presents a profound exploration of the challenges faced by those caught in the tumult of history.
Official synopsis Publisher
A young Indian man is tapped to help his country’s fight for freedom—but his heart engages him in a different war.
“Grand, sweeping, mesmerizing . . . a richly detailed, politically profound story of love, of migration, of individuals caught up in the great convulsions of history.”—Joseph O’Neill, PEN/Faulkner Award–winning author of Godwin
Shiv Advani is an eighteen-year-old growing up in India. But he is no ordinary young man. Shiv has been personally chosen by Mahatma Gandhi to come to England, learn their laws, and then return home and help drive the British out of India. Before he leaves, his family insists he fulfill his arranged marriage, and he is hastily betrothed to a young woman he hardly knows.
He arrives in London and soon discovers a world he is both repelled by and drawn to. Shiv knows his duty: get in, learn the letter of the law, get out. But as anyone who has ever lived in a British colony can tell you, “the English Problem” is multifaceted. The racist colonialism of “the empire on which the sun never sets” seeps into everything—not just landed territories, but territories of the mind: literature, language, religion, sexuality, self-identity. Soon the people Shiv sought to be liberated from will be the people he desperately wants to be a part of. In the end, Shiv must fight not only for his country’s liberation but also his own.
Set against the backdrop of the Indian independence movement, with appearances by historical figures such as Virginia and Leonard Woolf and Mahatma Gandhi, The English Problem is so self-assured and ambitious, it is hard to believe it is a debut.
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