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Twilight in Delhi set in nineteenth century Delhi brings history alive, depicting most movingly the decay of an entire culture and way of life. The British are to be the rulers of the country and change is inevitable. Vivid and captivating, it is truly a masterpiece. In the words of Bonamy Dobree, 'Mr. Ahmed makes us hear and smell Delhi . . . hear the flutter of pigeons' wings, the cry of itinerant vendors, the calls to prayer, the howls of mourners, the chants of qawwals, smell jasmine and sewage, frying ghee and burning wood.' When it was first published in 1940, Twilight in Delhi was widely acclaimed by critics and hailed in India as a major literary event. It has since become a classic. It has been translated into Urdu, French, Portuguese, Spanish and German . 'It is beautifully written and very moving . . . At the end, one has a poignant feeling that poetry and daily life have got parted, and will never come together again' --E.M. Forster 'The writing provides a curiously pictorial effect, yet is itself as clear as water. The end where innocence is drowned by experience is intensely moving' --Edwin Muir ,The Listener
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
Product Description
Depicts the attempt to decay an entire culture and way of life.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
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First Sentence
NIGHT envelops the city, covering it like a blanket. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
NIGHT envelops the city, covering it like a blanket. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
For any fans of Indian fiction this is the pinnacle. It tells of the last days of Delhi under the influnece of Muslim culture. Its essecntially a family novel told against an unfolding political backdrop. Highly reccomend it. This book recieves mention in Dalrymple's City of Djinns also.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This evocative re-released classic novel should be read by anyone brought up on the British version of Indian colonial history. Ostensibly a story of Muslim family in Delhi at the turn of the 20th century and the marriage of the son Asghar, its more enduring theme is the inhabitants resentment of their British rulers even 50 years after the 1857 `Mutiny'.
Set against the political backdrop of George V's coronation durbar in 1911, the general decay of Old Delhi after the decline of the Moghul courts - even the son of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah is reduced to begging on the streets - and the marginalizing effect on Old Delhi's Muslim population is vividly portrayed. The sense of futility at their predicament and the general resentment of the British is palpable and more revealing than any historical account can ever be. From this resentment grows the independence movement that finally ejects the British in 1948.
While this is not a literary work of art, in just 200 pages we get a picture of life in Delhi as the British prepare to shift their capital from Calcutta. But its other theme is the transient nature of Empire rule whether by the Moghuls or the British. The British barely lasted 40 years beyond 1911, but the beginnings of their end had roots that began much earlier in the minds of the dispossessed citizens as this novel shows.
Set against the political backdrop of George V's coronation durbar in 1911, the general decay of Old Delhi after the decline of the Moghul courts - even the son of the last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah is reduced to begging on the streets - and the marginalizing effect on Old Delhi's Muslim population is vividly portrayed. The sense of futility at their predicament and the general resentment of the British is palpable and more revealing than any historical account can ever be. From this resentment grows the independence movement that finally ejects the British in 1948.
While this is not a literary work of art, in just 200 pages we get a picture of life in Delhi as the British prepare to shift their capital from Calcutta. But its other theme is the transient nature of Empire rule whether by the Moghuls or the British. The British barely lasted 40 years beyond 1911, but the beginnings of their end had roots that began much earlier in the minds of the dispossessed citizens as this novel shows.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
A superb book! Dalrymple's latest book, 'The Last Moghul' tells us a lot about the end of Muslim rule in India, but this work conveys the pathos of the failed Mughals and Muslims much more effectively. Also by allowing the reader into the doggering, but still proud, Muslim aristocracy this book led me to understand why the partition (for which I had no empathy, till now) was a necessary evil. In its own way this book teaches at least as much as Dalrymple's. It is indeed a beautifully written book about a fascinating and important subject.
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