For the colonial administrators, the Novel provided a good source to understand the life and social hierarchy in India. It was easy for them to understand different scenarios of the Indian society through the help novels. Few of them were translated into English; by British administrators or Christian missionaries. Many novels highlighted the social ills and provided solutions for the same. Many novels told stories about the past so that people could connect with the past.

Pleasure of Reading

Needless to say, novels soon became the very popular medium of entertainment among the middle class. Novels seemingly helped in spreading silent reading. In the nineteenth century and probably in the early twentieth century, people often read out loudly for several other people to hear. Eventually, people adapted to read in silence. Detective and mystery novels often had to be sent for reprints to meet the demand of readers. Many novels were printed as many as twenty-two times.

Women and Novel

Reading novels was prohibited for women and children. It was believed that novels were having a negative impact on the minds of women and children. Parents started keeping novels in secret places so, out of children’s reach. Young people had to read them in secret. Older women who could not read took the help of their grandchildren to enjoy listening to a novel.

In an early twentieth century, women in India also began to write novels and short stories. Many women writers had to write the novel in secret because the society saw it as blasphemy. However, many women turned into writers and wrote poetry, essays and autobiographies despite the resistance from the society.

Caste Practices

Few authors started to highlight the struggle of lower caste people in their writings. The theme of multiple novels was about the conflicts arising out of the marriage between a lower caste and an upper caste. People from the lower caste became authors; like Potheri Kunjambu from Kerala. Many lower class communities got space in the literary era through novels.

Nation and its History

In Bengal, many novels were about Marathas and Rajputs. These novels showed the nation to be full of adventure, heroism romance and sacrifice. Novel allowed the colonized subjects to give shape to their desires. Bhudeb Mukhopadhyay’s Anguriya Binimoy (1857) is about Shivaji’s adventures against Aurangzeb. Bankim’s Anandamath (1882) is a novel about secret Hindu militia which fights Muslims to establish a Hindu kingdom.

These novels inspired many kinds of freedom fighters. Many of these novels also reveal the problems associated with thinking about the nation. We know that India cannot be a nation of only a single religious community.