Pyre

Pyre is a novel by Perumal Murugan that describes a love story within social caste-induced hatred. It was originally published in Tamil in 2013 and subsequently translated into English by Aniruddhan Vasudevan in 2016. The novel was longlisted for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2017. It was also selected for the International Booker Prize longlist 2023. The Tamil version is dedicated to R. Ilavarasan, a young Dalit man who was discovered dead on a railway track after his inter-caste marriage had brought about violence from his community. Plot summary The novel is set in Kattuppati, a remote Tamil Nadu village in Southern India. Kumaresan and Saroja, newly married, arrive by bus to live at Kumaresan's house on a rock in the village. Their marriage is an inter-caste one, performed in secret after they eloped from Saroja's house in Tholur, and Kumaresan believes that no one shall know about Saroja's different caste if they deny it. When they reach their house, Marayi, Kumaresan's mother, curses her ill-luck that her son married Saroja. Her dirge attracts the attention of many village residents who flock to the house to see the new bride and tease her about the marriage. They do not believe that a person as fair as Saroja would belong to the same caste as them. As days pass by, Saroja has to put up with Marayi's constant insults and the village folks' questions and comments about her caste. A visit to Kumaresan's grandparents turns sour as his grandfather hits him and says that he has brought disgrace upon the family. Saroja is reminded about their affair in Tholur where Kumarasen had come to work with Bhai Anna's help. Kumarasen worked in a soda-bottle packing and distributing unit for Soda Bottle Bhai and was Saroja's neighbor. They often stole glances at each other until some soda bottles exploded in Kumaresan's hands and Saroja left him some food. Knowing that her father and brother would never approve of their marriage, Saroja ran away with Kumarasen to get married.