Character Analysis Of Sripathi Rao

dispersal. In this thesis Sripathi’s shocking loss of his daughter and his journey to Canada that forced him to remember and recreate the past and eventually mark him as a diasporic sensibility character.

The novel’s main narrative focussed on the relationship between Sripathi Rao, a middle-aged copy-writer and family man, Nandana, and Arun, his son. At the beginning of the novel Sripathi Rao appeared as a scornful, selfish, and paternalistic character. Embarrassed by his son’s work as an environmental activist and unable to forgive his daughter Maya for having married a white Canadian rather than the man of his choice, Sripathi Rao has isolated himself from his wife and children instead of facing that situation. Sripathi Rao found it easier to express his deepest thoughts and emotions in letters to the editors of various local newspapers. Ironically, he wrote these letters under his chosen false name “Pro Bono Publico.” The signature “on behalf of the people”, he imagined, himself as a secret hero, a supporter of the world in pen and ink. When, in fact, his letters ironically contrast his future unemployment as a writer and stressed his increased alienation from his family and social community, Sripathi dedicated a letter to the environmental pollution of his neighbourhood. His mother considers having a TV as a social status symbol, and the “traffic policemen” no longer wear turbans because “the latest chief minister had a passion for Hollywood westerns” and changed the