Burial At Sea

In this, his fifth novel, one of Indias most widely read authors returns to territories he knows best: twentieth-century Indian history, bogus religion and sexuality. After Nehru, Victor Jai Bhagwan is Mahatma Gandhis favourite Indiana brilliant young man with the temperament of a leader and fiercely committed to his country. Though Victor adores and respects Gandhi, he disagrees with the Mahatmas vision for the future of India. He returns from university in England determined to bring the benefits of modern industry to the subcontinent, and within a few years of Indias independence, becomes the countrys biggest tycoon. But this is not the only ideal of Gandhis that he defies: facing a midlife crisis, he falls passionately in love with a tantric god-woman (who keeps a tiger as her pet and has a dubious past). She introduces him to the pleasures of unbridled sexuality, but also becomes the reason for his downfall. Comic, tender and erotic by turns, Burial at Sea is vintage Khushwant Singh.