The White Tiger

Balram Halwai, the son of a rickshaw puller, narrates his life in a letter written over seven nights and addressed to the Chinese premier. Born in a rural village and taken out of school to work in a teashop, he becomes a driver for the son of a landlord and moves with his employer to New Delhi, where he sees extensive corruption at close hand. He explains how he escaped a life of servitude to become a businessman. The novel offers a darkly humorous view of class struggle in India and examines the caste system, corruption and poverty.