TERM PAPER 1

Book Review

Term paper submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the

degree of Bachelors in Applied Psychology.

Submitted By:
Maheen Aroze
BA (Hons) Applied Psychology
A7406923065
Semester III

Under the guidance of:

Dr Madhu Pandey
Assistant Professor
Amity Institute of Behavioural and Allied Sciences

2023-2026
Amity Institute of Behavioural and Allied Sciences
Amity University Uttar Pradesh
Lucknow Campus
 DECLARATION

I, Maheen Aroze, present the report "TERM PAPER - 1" to the Amity Institute of Behavioural and
Allied Sciences (AIBAS) at the Amity University Lucknow Campus. This submission fulfills a
portion of the criteria needed to get an applied psychology BA (Honours) degree.

Maheen Aroze
A7406923065
BA (Hons) Applied Psychology
Semester III
2023-2026
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank Professor S.Z.H. Zaidi, Head of the Institute, Amity Institute of Behavioural
and Allied Sciences (AIBAS), Amity University Uttar Pradesh Lucknow Campus, for providing
me with the chance to work on this project of my interest and for helping me finish Term Paper 1.
I also want to express my gratitude to Dr. Madhu Pandey, an assistant professor at AIBAS, who
served as my mentor and adviser during this study. Their steadfast guidance and assistance enabled
this project to be completed.

Maheen Aroze
A7406923065
BA (Hons) Applied Psychology
Semester III
2023-2026
 CERTIFICATE

This certifies that Ms. Maheen Aroze student in the Bachelor of Applied Psychology program,
Semester 3, Batch 2023 -26,at the Amity Institute of Behavioural and Allied Sciences, Amity
University Uttar Pradesh Lucknow Campus, has instructed the Non-Teaching Credit Course
(NTCC) titled "Term Paper-1 (Book Review)". Under my direction, this project has been
effectively finished.

Date: 3 July, 2024

Dr Madhu Pandey
Assistant Professor
Amity Institute of Behavioural and Allied Sciences
Amity University Uttar Pradesh
Lucknow Campus
 ABSTRACT

A Suitable Boy (1993) is a novel by Indian author and Stanford economist Vikram Seth. Over
1,400 pages in length, it is a family saga. It is a post-independence story set in India after partition.

The Suitable Boy is the central theme of the novel by that name. The idea comes from the Indian tradition of
arranging marriages for eligible young girls with several points that comprise the ideal match. First, the boy
must be of the same religion as the girl. This becomes the main hindrance between Lata, a Hindu, and Kabir,
a Muslim. The only way they could have married was to elope and marry without their parents permission.
Another consideration is the caste or social standing of the boy and his family.

The theme of The Suitable Boy also brings up the conflict between an arranged marriage and a marriage
escaped on romantic love. Lata raises the question at the wedding of her sister to Pran Kapoor and concludes
that it is good for Savita but possibly not good for her. Mrs. Rupa takes the matter seriously and solicits help
from relatives and close friends to keep an eye out for The Suitable Boy for Lata. To keep peace, Lata
appears to go along with whatever her mother is doing, but she secretly questions whether she will follow
her heart and marry Kabir with or without her mother's blessing. Interestingly, Lata eventually selects
Haresh Khanna to be her husband, even though she does not love him.

She comes to her conclusion, to the horror of her friend Malati, by recognizing religion would eventually
create serious problems for her and Kabir and by the feeling that the love of literature would not be enough
to sustain a marriage between her and Amit.

Lata's reasoning includes the ideas that, eventually she will come to love Haresh, he will be able to support
her comfortably, and she will enjoy stability in her married life. In antithesis to The Suitable Boy theme is
Malati, Lata's friend, who is a free spirit and given to have relationships with whatever boy turns her fancy.
In that regard, the theme of The Suitable Boy stands as a hallmark of traditional Indian customs and culture.

The novel follows the story of four families over a period of 18 months, and centres on Mrs. Rupa Mehra's
efforts to arrange the marriage of her younger daughter, Lata, to a "suitable boy". Lata is a 19-year-old
university student who refuses to be influenced by her domineering mother or opinionated brother, Arun.

Her story revolves around the choice she is forced to make between her suitors Kabir, Haresh, and Amit.
The novel alternately offers satirical and earnest examinations of national political issues in the period
leading up to the first post-Independence national election of 1952 including Hindu-Muslim strife, the status
of lower caste peoples such as the jatav, land reforms and the eclipse of the feudal princes and landlords,
academic affairs, abolition of the Zamindari system, family relations and a range of further issues of
importance to the characters.
Intolerance, reforms, abolition.
 INTRODUCTION

This Indian family/social drama, published in 1993, by HarperCollins (US) Phoenix House (UK)Little,
Brown (Canada) in May 1993 .The author of this book is Vikram Seth. The author brings northwest India’s
climates to verdant life with his descriptions, taking us through gardens decked in bougainvillaea and the
resplendent finery of fiery marigolds.

About the Author

Vikram Seth is among the most celebrated Indian novelists and poets. He was born on 20th of June 1952 in
Kolkata to Leila, a court judge, and Prem Seth, a shoe company executive. He has his roots in Punjab. He
travelled a lot with his family as a child from Batanagar to Danpur to London.

Vikram Seth has educational background beginning from St. Xavier’s High School in India followed by
Corpus Christi College, Oxford where he took his degrees in Economics, Philosophy, and Politics. He then
attempted to gain a Ph.D. in Economics at Stanford University, but switched to creative writing specialising
in classical Chinese poetry at Stanford University and Nan Jing University.

Beginning with poetry, Seth’s first book Mappings, appeared in 1980, followed by ‘The Humble
Administrator’s Garden’, in 1985, which earned him the Commonwealth Poetry Prize. He also penned travel
accounts such as ‘From Heaven Lake.’ Seth started his writing with the novel ‘The Golden Gate’ in 1986,
and then rose to great fame with his novel ‘A Suitable Boy’, published in 1993 which gave a post
Independent India’s social and culture sensibilities. The drama “An Equal Music” 1999 revealing his
passion for the music was praised and won awards. Some of these were writing libretto for the English
National Opera and the fact that he was a multi-lingual man. Being awarded multiple prestigious awards, the
themes of Seth’s works are the issues of the society and the depth of emotions, which makes him one of the
most authoritative contemporary writers.

About the book

Suitable Boy is a novel that narrates life of four families in the fictional town of Brahmpur in the period
leading to the first ever post independent India’s national election of 1952. The main action of the novel
starts with the presentation of Mrs. Rupa Mehra, the head of one of the four families which are central to the
novel: the search for the “suitable boy” for the younger daughter, Lata. Filled with the issues of race,
religious and class oppression, the mother’s trip to find the said man to marry her daughter is quite
complicated and Seth does not fail to draw the family of four such large families amidst their struggles,
highs and woe, their love and their losses.

Quite possibly the book’s biggest asset is its sheer size; this is a novel of Tolkienian proportions, and readers
inevitably develop genuine affection for Seth’s ably sketched ensemble. He makes India look like a lovely
country full of charm endearment but which he is also quick to point out has its weaknesses. Introducing a
beautiful image of India and its multiculturalism, A Suitable Boy is at its base, a love story that will enchant
readers far into the future.
 DETAILED ANALYSIS

Set in Brahmpur, India (a fictional town), A Suitable Boy concerns the fortunes and trials of four elite
families over the course of 18 months: the Mehras, the Kapoors, the Chatterjis and the Khans (the last being
the only Muslim family of the group). It especially focuses on the plight of 19-year-old Lata Mehra, a
talented student at the local Brahmpur University. Throughout the saga, Lata must decide if she is willing to
marry the young Muslim man (Kabir Durrani) she loves, and thus defy (and possibly ostracize herself from)
her stern, wealthy Hindu mother, Mrs. Rupa Mehra. While arranged marriages have been the norm across
India for dozens of generations, in the more secular and tolerant society led by Jawaharlal Nehru (the first
Prime Minister of India), Lata is starting to feel that she can choose for herself who her husband should be.

Lata recently saw her sister, Savita, marry an up-and-coming professor at the local university. His name is
Pran Kapoor, and Rupa Mehra blessed the marriage only because Pran comes from a well-respected and
wealthy family. Privately, Lata questions whether the two will ever be truly happy, as they were forced into
a marriage without ever getting to know one another. She knows that Kabir, the Muslim man she loves, isn’t
"a suitable boy" according to her mother, and that the two will never be allowed to wed; still, she can’t stop
feeling a great passion for Kabir. He is incredibly handsome and kind, and he has inherited great intelligence
from his father, who is a highly accomplished (if socially graceless) mathematician at the university. Better
still, Kabir is also a star on the university cricket team. Lata's older brother, Arun, is married to Meenakshi,
the daughter of a prosperous Muslim family, but Lata is all too aware that she is not afforded the same
privileges as a man; for a woman to choose to marry across religious lines is unprecedented.

One day, one of Rupa’s spies reports to her that Kabir and Lata have been walking around Brahmpur
University in public. Rupa is scandalized at this news—if word got out that her daughter consorted with
Muslims, no prominent Hindu family would want to talk with her. To keep Lata away from Kabir, Rupa
hastily plans a trip to Calcutta, which is hundreds of miles southeast of Brahmpur.

In Calcutta, Rupa Mehra sets her daughter up with various Hindu boys whom she deems worthy of their
caste. But all of the boys Lata's mother digs up are absolute duds. One has been so conditioned by British
imperialism that he refers to his hometown of Kanpur with an English accent. Another has such tiny eyes
and such bad table manners that Lata hardly considers him to be a civilized human. Not all of them are
awful. Amit Chatterji, a well-known poet and writer, gets along well with the worldly and cultured Lata but
is probably gay. However, Amit's father is a prominent judge and his mother a polished socialite. Lata is
also set up with Haresh, a Hindu man who really likes her and whom she deems to be tolerable but slightly
boring. He owns a thriving shoe company.

In the background of Lata’s marital decision is the foreground for the rest of the world: politics. There is
great controversy throughout the country when a Mosque is to be built near a Hindu holy site. After several
riots, the project is abandoned. Various family members are also caught up in different political happenings,
including the movement for equal rights for “untouchables,” country-wide protests for academic freedom,
and the ending of the Zamindar system (a system that favored Indian aristocrats). Within the Kapoor family,
the main conflict is that the youngest son, Maan Kapoor, has fallen in love with an infamous prostitute
named Saeeda Bai.

As the saga concludes, Lata Mehra finally makes her decision: she will not marry Kabir. Instead, she
marries another “suitable boy”—someone who is good enough, but not someone she’s in love with: Haresh.
Family Tree
 CONCLUSION

A ‘Suitable Boy’, written by Vikram Seth, is one of the longest novels in the Indian English writing which
emulates the contours of post-independent India. It depicts the lives of four families in the course of
eighteen months and revolves around the young woman named Lata Mehra, on the quest of finding a
suitable groom.

Lata Mehra at the finale of the novel marries Haresh Khanna a young man with the promise of a prosperous
future rather than the poet Amit her first boyfriend and college sweetheart Kabir. This conclusion is
consistent with the pragmatism that Lata exhibits throughout the narrative because of her family’s pressure
and the socio-economic conditions of the newly independent India.

Impact on Changing Perception:

1. Inter-Religious and Social Marriages:

- Through Chanderi ‘the book portrays the difficulties and the conflicts in the issue of inter religious and
inter caste marriages.’ Lata’s affair with a Muslim man, Kabir Durrani, provides a look at the existing
bigotry and familial expectations, giving a glimpse of the tensions of the period of partition.

2. Women’s Autonomy:
- Coming to the second major theme of women’s emancipation, Seth portrays this aspect through the
character of Lata. The journey of Biji to decide her own husband against societal and family’s wish is a step
against the norms of women in the Indian society.

3. Political and Social Changes:

- It portrays political movements and changes of the independent India such as land reforms, various
political parties and ozination of modern Indian culture. It gives a rather complex approach to how these
changes influenced different layers of the population.

Lessons

1. Balance Between Tradition and Modernity:

- In the novel the author presents idea of the middle ground: the traditions have to be preserved, but some
changes are also good. Lata’s decision at the end of the post symbolizes a balance between maintaining
cultural traditions and calling the shots on one’s life.

2. Complexity of Human Relationships:

- Seth tries to give a detailed description of human relations and presents the concepts of love, duty, and
compromise. The process of interactions of the characters has to do a lot with the complex manifestations of
the human dual nature, both for the feelings and concerning the social role assigned to emotions.

3. Unity in Diversity:
- Thus, “A Suitable Boy” emphasizes the concept of the unity of people’s diverse characters in society.
Nevertheless, focusing on the cultural, religious, and social backgrounds, the film’s characters are shown to
eventually come together, hence reflecting the audience’s desire for unity.

4. Personal Growth and Identity:

- The plot focuses on the main character’s character and their exploration of their personality. Thus, Lata’s
pursuit is not only for marriage with a worthy boy of her choice but self-realization, learning one’s strengths,
wants.

The general theme being conveyed is one of tolerance, acceptance, and the desire for change for the better
coupled with an appreciation for tradition.
 REFERENCES

1. A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth

2. Netflix - Series based on the novel
3. darkerfables.wordpress.com - about A Suitable Boy .