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Novelist Karan Mahajan joins the show to talk with Chris about his new work, The Complex. They discuss the novel’s memorable characters, settings, and themes, as well as Karan’s literary influences and the challenges of writing about Indian culture and politics for a non-Indian audience.
Show notes:
- Karan’s novel, The Complex
- “The True Margaret,” a short story excerpted from The Complex in The New Yorker
- Chris’s review of The Complex in the Washington Examiner
- Karan’s previous novels, The Association of Small Bombs and Family Planning
Time stamps:
5:08 – The Complex’s cast: The Chopra clan
17:58 – Laxman Chopra & literary villainy
32:27 – Karan’s literary influences, Tolstoy and Naipaul
42:55 – Experimenting with narrative perspective
48:54 – Modern readers & writers
Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.
Produced by Sean Doolan.
Christopher J. Scalia