Narrative Techniques in the Selected Works of Shashi Tharoor

Abstract

The study examines a few of Shashi Tharoor's works such as The Great Indian Novel, Riot: A Novel, and An Era of Darkness: The British Empire in India, focusing on the narrative positions he adopts in these works. Tharoor's writing is a mesmerizing amalgamation of multiple perspectives, satire, historical attempts and mythical allegory, and documentary narrative. Through these approaches, he explores Indian history, nationalism, colonialism, community identity, and the nuances of postcolonial society. The study examines the techniques Tharoor employs – polyphonic and fractured storytelling, the mix of fictional and historical modes of representation, and the adaptation of traditional Indian tales. His narrative skills force the reader to reconsider the linkage between memory, identity, and power and to question the current historical and political narrative. The article argues that Tharoor's literary relation to the political and cultural realities of India is mostly shaped by his narrative approach.