Suitable time for a sequel

Vikram Seth, author of a <i>A Suitable Boy</i>. Photo / Supplied

It was a novel that told the story of India in a time of change, as a newly independent country fought to find its way. It was a mammoth tale, told in almost 600,000 words. Detailing an anxious mother's search for a match for her daughter, it was called A Suitable Boy.

Now the poet and novelist Vikram Seth has revealed he is working on a sequel set in today's changing India. It is said to have earned him an advance of £1.7 million ($4 million), and the title alone has been enough to spark anticipation: A Suitable Girl.

Seth revealed details of his new project in the week an Indian court decriminalised gay sex. Seth, who had campaigned for gay rights in India, said his new novel, to be published in 2013, would reflect recent changes.

"There are many, many changes in Indian society but many things remain the same," he said. "The greatest pleasure," he added, "will be to get back in touch with the characters and find out what has happened to them."

In his original book, the main character is the rebellious 19-year-old Lata, whose mother tries to find her a husband. In the sequel, which the 57-year-old writer said he had "doodled" bits and pieces of, she will be in her 80s and searching for a bride for her grandson. The rights have been bought by the Penguin imprint Hamish Hamilton.

The Kolkata-born Seth said that there was a gay sub-plot to his opening shot, but did not say whether in the sequel Lata's grandson might opt for a male partner rather than a young wife.

Seth's original story played out against the backdrop of the years after partition. The newly independent country was struggling to deal with the challenges of famine, mass poverty and uncertainty about its future.

While deprivation and hunger have never left the subcontinent, the India of A Suitable Girl will be markedly different. Economic reforms have created a confident, consumerist middle class, and India is a regional power.

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