In a time when echoes of freedom have started reverberating through the streets of colonial India, The Zamindar, the Rebel and the Revolutionary unfolds as a saga of a Bengali Brahmin landlord family’s relentless pursuit of a sovereign India.
In the 1880s, Keshav, the zamindar of Madaripur, near Dhaka, challenges oppressive societal norms while wielding his printing press as a weapon to empower revolutionaries fighting for the nation. His son Mukund is determined to continue this legacy, but a treacherous marriage agreement forces him into the role of ghar jamai, shackling his ambitions.
Just as Mukund escapes his in-laws’ machinations, an attack on their estate threatens to obliterate everything they cherish. Undeterred, Mukund revives Keshav’s printing business to rebuild their lives and fuel the national cause.
In the early 20th century, Mukund’s son Aneek joins Calcutta’s underground armed movement, taking up the mantle of resistance.
Through this polyphonic narrative, Jyotiska Ganguly weaves together the lives of three generations of a family, exploring the enduring forces of love, resilience and revolution against a backdrop of violence, betrayal, caste prejudice and the fervent struggle for India’s independence.
About the Author
Jyotiska Ganguly is an aerospace engineer based in Los Angeles, USA. His educational journey began at St Xavier’s, an American Jesuit boarding school in Patna, India and continued with a BE in mechanical engineering from NIT, Durgapur. He then completed his MS from the University of Texas, Arlington, with a full scholarship.
Currently, he works for a major American aerospace company where he specializes in designing subsystems for a wide array of aircraft, space and defence systems.
This is Jyotiska’s first novel, based on ancestral lore.