Dahanu Road

Zairos is a dissolute young landowner’s son living in the town of Dahanu, just outside Bombay, when his life of careless luxury is brought up short by a mysterious death: the sudden suicide of Ganpat, a tribal worker on his family’s estate. Soon he has fallen in love with Ganpat’s daughter, Kusum, and finds himself defying taboos with their relationship. At the same time, his grandfather, Shapur, reveals to him the story of their family and of the land that Zairos stands to inherit. Dahanu Road brilliantly reveals the history of the relationship between the landowning Irani clan and the Warlis, local tribal people like Ganpat and Kusum who work the land for the Iranis. As Zairos’ connection with Kusum deepens, he is drawn further into the mystery of Shapur’s relationship with Ganpat and the other Warlis. Violence and hatred echo through history, and Zairos learns the terrible truth his grandfather has spent a lifetime hiding. With its inimitable mix of earthy humour and searing tragedy, this is Anosh Irani’s most ambitious novel yet.