Professor Avaran Kuriakose specialises in the history of the Deccan. A former colleague and friend calls him to the erswhile princely state of Arcot to decipher a set of clues contained in a Masonic Lodge Minutes Book and a 250 year old diary. Avaran locates a long-lost family heirloom with a gory past. He is a Freemason and Knight Templar and knows his life is in danger because of his involvement in this assignment. The plot and the characters in the story are fictional, in an historical setting. Everyday political discussions give an insight into some of the tensions created by the spillovers of British rule. These include the English language; and 'Anglo-Indians' of mixed parentage, most of whom have migrated to the UK and Australia. Avaran's life is endangered when he visits the medieval Gingee Fort and again when he is assualted in a moving train by a jealous family member. A historically credible reconstruction of events attempt to explain the mysterious disappearance of the vast treasure of the Vijayanagara Empire.

The Tears of the Rajasis a sweeping history of the British in India, seen through the experiences of a single Scottish family. For a century the Lows of Clatto survived mutiny, siege, debt and disease, everywhere from the heat of Madras to the Afghan snows. They lived through the most appalling atrocities and retaliated with some of their own. Each of their lives, remarkable in itself, contributes to the story of the whole fragile and imperilled, often shockingly oppressive and devious but now and then heroic and poignant enterprise. On the surface, John and Augusta Low and their relations may seem imperturbable, but in their letters and diaries they often reveal their loneliness and desperation and their doubts about what they are doing in India. The Lows are the family of the author's grandmother, and a recurring theme of the book is his own discovery of them and of those parts of the history of the British in India which posterity has preferred to forget. The book brings to life not only the most dramatic incidents of their careers - the massacre at Vellore, the conquest of Java, the deposition of the boy-king of Oudh, the disasters in Afghanistan, the Reliefs of Lucknow and Chitral - but also their personal ordeals: the bankruptcies in Scotland and Calcutta, the plagues and fevers, the deaths of children and deaths in childbirth. And it brings to life too the unrepeatable strangeness of their lives: the camps and the palaces they lived in, the balls and the flirtations in the hill stations, and the hot slow rides through the dust. An epic saga of love, war, intrigue and treachery, The Tears of the Rajas is surely destined to become a classic of its kind.

A born story teller,Dr. Mulk Raj Anand is one of the most outstanding short story writers. His contributions to the Indian short story is truly impressive. These short stories are selected from a collection of his writings over the last forty years. His stories reveal modes such as strong satire, uproarious laughter and acute psychological perception.

About the author: mulk raj anand, an indian english language author who depicted the lives of the poorer castes in a traditional indian society anand, a novelist, short story writer, essayist and an art critic, is frequently referred to as the founding father of indo-english writing anands prolific writing career spanned over 75 years, during which he was widely identified with the quest for a just, equitable and forward looking india anand wrote extensively in areas as diverse as art and sculpture, politics, indian literature and the history of ideas he has been conferred with several awards including the sahitya akademi award in 1972 and the padma bhushan for his contribution to english literature

It is 1936 and Savji is a wealthy, influential landowner who is heir to a vast farmland cultivated by generations of Kanjias since before the British occupation. Savji, who does not support the racist caste system, has a big heart, a beautiful wife, and four children. Unfortunately, his somewhat normal existence is about to be thrown into turmoil. When the British decide to appoint a new Muslim king to govern this rural farm country, Savji becomes deeply concerned about the state of balance in nature that is being disturbed by the greedy ruler. After Savji confronts the might of the king, he is exiled from his home, left destitute, and forced to move to the city. Here, he discovers that there are far greater dangers in the men of ambition than there were on his utopian farmland. One fateful evening he is forced to step outside his character and commit a horrific act that will leave his family scrambling in desperation. Dry Glass Eyes is the compelling story of a humble Indian farmer and landowner who wagers everything he knows and loves to confront the new ruler of his land.

Awadh is synonymous in history with its eventful nawabi reign that lasted for over a century. Awadh’s dynasty was founded in a humble habitat on the banks of the River Saryu near Ayodhya. The place was named Faizabad and grew to become the political capital and a renowned centre of culture and prosperity under its successive nawabs. Faizabad’s tryst with its royalty lasted for over half a century before passing the baton to Lucknow, which became the new capital of Awadh. The new first city shed its old husk to adorn a fresh one. The praxis, customs, etiquettes, poetry, art and craft that its royalty fashioned remain alive to this day.