Category: Fiction
Publisher: Penguin Random House India (forthcoming)
Rights: World rights available (excluding Indian subcontinent)
Arthur de Fonseca falls in love at the tender age of fifty-eight with village beauty Chanchala, twenty-three. Is he grooming her? Is this a classic case of money pursuing beauty? Or is she the one manipulating him? (‘I let your father chase me two whole years,’ her mother says. ‘Till I caught him.’)
When Covid strikes their village Kalabola, the inhabitants are outraged. It is obviously the work of Karma: what have they done to be singled out in this shameful – no shameless! – manner? There is a mad scramble for Miracle Water, a Covid cure promoted by no less than a government minister. (True story.) The poor queue long hours for it. The rich bathe their dogs in it (even the large ones).
In this very black ensemble comedy, Covid brings out the best in some, the worst in others. At its heart stands the real hero of the book, Karma. Because in these difficult times, you can let your Karma rule you, or you can take command. Because if you don’t ride your Karma, you may find one day your Karma riding you.
The author: Ashok Ferrey