Some of the most interesting fiction in the world -- many prize-winning -- have beautiful Indian locales.
Rudyard Kipling's Kim
Set in British India -- Lahore, the magnificent Himalayas, Grand Trunk Road, bustling bazaars -- it follows an Irish boy on a spiritual and espionage journey, packed with colonial intrigue.
E M Forster's A Passage To India
Unfolding in quaint fictional Chandrapore, inspired by a mofussil Bihari town, close to the Marabar Hills & their mystical caves, which are the scene of events highlighting British-Indian tensions and the cultural divide.
Paul Scott's The Jewel In The Crown
A colourful final-Raj-days saga centred in make-believe Mayapore. The city is starkly split between clubs, bungalows of the British civil lines and the dark Bibighar Gardens of the 'native' areas.
Salman Rushdie's Midnight’s Children
Blending magical realism with India’s political history, the chaos of a city mirrors the chaos of the nation just birthed, with scenes from Bombay, Delhi, Pakistan, Kashmir.
Dominique Lapierre's City Of Joy
It follows a rickshaw puller, a priest, doctor. Calcutta's gritty but lively streets speak to you about poverty, resilience plus deep human spirit.
Rohinton Mistry's A Fine Balance
The location of this second Mistry novel is not identified but it seems to be Bombay during the Emergency. It is the story of four characters sharing a flat, facing a city’s harshness, struggling to survive.
Vikram Seth's A Suitable Boy
Set in imaginary Brahmpur in 1950s India, it follows family life, politics, the search for love across several towns and villages, including Kolkata, Delhi, Lucknow.
Yann Martel's Life Of Pi
The novel kicks off in peaceful Pondicherry and then shifts to the turbulent Pacific Ocean. It's an epic survival-at-sea tale -- Pondicherry’s calm is a contrast to the ocean’s vast danger.
Arundhati Roy's The God Of Small Things
Set in lush Ayemenem, Kerala, near the Meenachal River, the novel's landscape is banana trees, loads of rain, family secrets and looks at themes of caste, love and decay.
Gregory David Roberts's Shantaram
Based in 1980s Bombay, Roberts, a Leopold Cafe regular, presents a story whose plot moves through slums, prisons, markets, Afghan war zones. Mumbai’s energy and extremes affect the inner journey of an Australian fugitive.
Aravind Adiga's The White Tiger
From a poor Bihar village to flashy New Delhi, Balram’s rise from servant to entrepreneur is about breasting India’s class divide. It tells you about rural stagnation and urban ambition.
Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake
Most of the novel is set in Cambridge, Massachusetts, but Kolkata shines through during family visits home -- her energetic streets, festivals, sumptuous food, rain... and tug at heartstrings of the characters.