See my page on the Krishnaswami-Krishnaswamy confusion.

Chapter 1: “What’s In a Name?”

The protagonist, ANIL DIKSHIT, can’t come to terms with the fact that his name is, coincidentally, the conjugation of three of the most commonly used profanities amongst his second-grade peers. Plagued by the troubling permanence of his fate, he haphazardly introduces a number of petnames like “Dicks” and “Shitty” that only further worsen his existing misfortune. Chapter 4: “You’re So…Strange”

Anil has finally developed a quasi-respectable identity, despite it’s purely nominal nature, as he’s officially shed “Anal” for a much prouder “Anil”. Only now, he begins to experience how his friends and teachers objectify certain aspects of his life, like the cucumber sabji sandwich he brings in for lunch, whose pungent smell is accused of having come from a fart. or the queer looking bracelet he wears to the playground one hot summer day, dazzling from the tinsel and sequins that adorn its length but make him appear suspiciously gay. “Dont make fun! I’m not a girl! It’s for RAKHI. it’s something that we just do. l!”, he objects eith fastidious unease, knowing that it’s all but too late and that they’d call him GIRL for the rest of the summer.

Chapter 8: After School

For the first time, Anil is allowed to venture beyond the environs he’s only known of up until now: home and school. He quickly makes up for lost time as he befriends Billy, known as a “bad boy” who does unspeakable things, like chew bubble gum and shout curse words like “fucker” with great frequency. Billy’s dad is an alcoholic who reads Playboy after work, sometimes sneaking off to grab his wife’s ass when he thinks Billy’s not looking. “What time does your family sing bhajans? And who plays the harmonium? Is it your Mom or your Dad?” Anil asks he does not, afraid and still baffled by the mysteries of this alien household.

Chapter 9: I Hate You

The same nasty boy, of “your momma’s a dot-head”, “I heard you worship cows” and “do you use your hand to wipe your ass?” fame, starts spreading rumors about Anil’s penis, suggesting that it’s “messed up” and different from the other boys, because it’s not circumsized. Violence ensues as Anil can take no more. He thrashes the kid who, after that, never bothers him again. Later that day, Anil’s father retrieves him from the principal’s office where he too gives a piece of his mind to the school’s staff and provides for them a socioreligious snapshot of Anil’s heritage, encouraging the administration to make frequent and thorough use of corporal punishment as a disciplinary panacea, citing the effectiveness of the “thappad”, “ek chanta” and ear-pulling as favorites from his own collection of beatdown essentials.

Chapter 12: Ohh, me so horny …desi!

Anil feels as though he’s mastered the subtle nuances of puberty and is ready to move on from the JC Penny underware catalog he’s been using thus far to pleasure himself in the corner of the basement. He engages in his first ever sexual relationship with a caucasian pot-smoking hippie whose ironic use of incense confounds his now crippled sense of religion that once identified the burning of a scented stick, or agarbatti, with a prayer to Lord Rama and not to mask the stench of weed produced by an eight foot long bong. One becomes two and two becomes …oops! He discovers a pesky itch by his groin, worried but distressed from the thought of telling his parents who most certainly won’t understand, or so he thinks. He seeks medical attention; something he’s never done at any point during his life other than the occassional “malish” or a not-so-therapeutic “thappad” across his head.

Chapter 14: Party On!

After being on his own for several semesters, Anil feels compelled to start sharing more and more about what he does and does not do, with his parents. But each time he leads into a topic that interests him, like an intramural sport he’s become fond of, or the flirtatious brunette that asks him to join her for lunch from time to time, it quickly digresses to “when are you coming home?” or “how do i watch my hindi movie? it says VIDEO1 on screen but i don’t see picture. what button do i press?” or better yet, “WHEN WILL YOU BECOME BIG BOY?”. Flustered, he adopts a radically new ideology that espouses booze and cocaine as its core tenets. Soon, he drops out of college and embraces a life rife with degenerates including drug mules and pregnant smokers.

Chapter 20: ?

The family is now in turmoil, doomed with a mid-term uncertainty that’s created a vacuum of panicked emptiness. No longer do Anil’s parents attend parties and gatherings and all knowledge of his family filters through third hand sources. What was once an Ivy League-roster household has officially “fallen off the map” into a silently harrowing despair . GASP

Chapter 24: All in the Family

The delicate bonds within his family that have longed to be strengthened through love and unmitigating affection finally see the light of day. Anil has miraculously managed to come full circle, but still can’t, for the life of him, understand exactly what it takes to graduate from the circle of hell that is the “kiddie” table during family functions and get-togethers. Married and in his late 30s with a well-paying job, he pulls up a seat besides “Bablu”, the next-generation super-wonder who just scored a perfect SAT and asks what he’d like to pursue as he becomes older. “I WANT TO BE A VASCULAR SURGEON”, responds Bablu. Anil pats him on the back, delighted by Bablu’s steadfast commitment to the boundless possibilities afforded through hard work and industry, as he lures him into the bathroom to smoke a freshly packed bowl. Bablu gets his ass kicked from his Papa, but Anil is now unstoppable and squarely takes the blame. But then Anil gives Bablu “ek chanta” for engaging in such wreckless and bad behaviour. “I WAS ONLY TESTING YOU”, he snickers.

… … …

I agree with the sentiment, but is the lack of children’s literature aimed at south asians really a cause of the problem? I certainly think it will help, but when I was a child in the late 70s/early 80s, I don’t recall ever having read any children’s books with a cultural slant. Where there Italian-American, or Irish-American, or Jewish-American children’s books? I don’t ask this to play devil’s advocate. I ask because I just don’t know. Honestly, I think with or without the literature, the “C” will disappear with time, as it has with other immigrant populations. That said, I applaud what these authors are trying to accomplish.

What a great idea to get desi lit out there for kids so they don’t have to go through the Mowgli-like experiences that we suffered, or the tokenism of the ‘Patil’ (ah, the perfect blending of Indian names and Mockney proununciation, innit?) twins in the Harry Potter books, or much worse, the Winds that recently gave birth to Shabanu. I wonder if brown people generally are seen as being v connected with the wind because I distinctly remember Pocohantas knowing all its colours.

Also she isn’t desi… Faiza Guene who has published her excellent first novel ‘Just Like Tomorrow’ was born and grew up in the immigrant suburbs of Paris with her Algerian migrant parents. Her book is great for young adults and a really original take on the immigrant kid experience; turns out there’s a whole world of other confused Bananas, Coconuts and Bounty bars out there are plagued by the same ‘white on the inside’ confusion as the Oreos.

For a comprehensive, historical survey of children’s literature for/about/set in Desiland, check out The Indian Subcontinent in Literature for Children and Young Adults: An Annotated Bibliography of English-Language Books by Meena Khorana. This book was published in 1991, so it’s not all that current, but a very interesting look at what was being published vs. what is being published in this category.

On the subject of desi kids’ lit, Sawnet has also put together a list. Check it out at http://www.sawnet.org/kidsbooks. My daughter is a quarter desi (also two quarters Jewish, one quarter Catholic, and an honorary quarter French) and I’m looking forward to reading this stuff with her in another year or two. Siddhartha, thanks for starting this thread.