9 - Inside ‘The Temple of Modern Desire’: Recollecting and Relocating Bombay

Summary

Preparing the Ground

An article published in the Economist in 2005 announced that ‘at times of great change, nations inevitably become introspective. In India's case, one recent consequence of a rapidly growing and globalizing economy has been an outpouring of books with titles like ‘Remaking India’, ‘Shaping India of our Dreams’, ‘The Great Indian Dream’, ‘Rising Elephant’ and ‘Rethinking India’. Among the authors who have managed to outline the fast-changing nature of the Indian nation-state are Suketu Mehta and Vikram Chandra, whose popularity is attributed to their ability to ‘transcend the interests of the English-speaking elite’. The authors of Maximum City (2004) and Sacred Games (2006), Suketu Mehta and Vikram Chandra respectively, have enjoyed increasing popularity in the West, especially among the members of the South Asian diaspora. As the article points out, Mehta's text in particular has managed to reach wider audiences due to its ability to present ‘a remarkable documentary of life in India's largest city, now known as Mumbai’. Presenting what has been defined a realistic portrayal of the Indian city, the book received a major literary award in 2005: the Kiriyama Prize, given for those texts that encourage a greater understanding of the nations of the Pacific Rim and South Asia; and it is soon to be made into a film by UK director Danny Boyle, who spoke of how Mehta's book provided him with a lucid insight into the city of Mumbai for his Oscar-winner film Slumdog Millionaire.