Why RK Narayan's Malgudi Days still feels like a slice of real India

India Today

13-05-2025

On a warm afternoon in the 1930s, a young man in Madras sealed a letter to his friend in Oxford. Inside was a manuscript he believed had little chance. He even joked that it could be tossed into the Thames.But destiny, as it often does in good stories, had other plans.That manuscript became Swami and Friends, and it gave birth to Malgudi, one of India's most beloved fictional towns.advertisement
With this book, RK Narayan built a universe that would live in the hearts of millions of Indians for decades to come.Set somewhere between Madras and Mysore, Malgudi wasn't a real town. But to readers, it might as well have been. You could almost smell the hot pakoras by the roadside, hear the chatter from the Board High School, and spot Swaminathan loitering with his friends under the shade of a tamarind tree.
(Photo: thefamouspeople.com)
Narayan introduced Malgudi in his first novel, Swami and Friends (1935), published thanks to the help of his friend and legendary author Graham Greene, who recommended it to a publisher in London.advertisementIt was the kind of world that didn't rely on political drama or larger-than-life heroes. Malgudi was about ordinary people -- rickshaw pullers, shopkeepers, schoolboys, astrologers -- and their quietly moving lives. It was a microcosm of Indian life.BORN TO TELL STORIESRasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami was born on October 10, 1906, in Madras. His father was a school headmaster, facing frequent job transfers. Narayan spent much of his childhood with his grandmother, learning early lessons in mythology, music, and storytelling.
RK Narayan with his family in the 1920s. RK Laxman is around 4 years old here (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
After a rather unremarkable time at school, and he even failed the university entrance exam on his first attempt. However, he eventually graduated from Maharaja's College in Mysore with a degree in arts.He began working as a journalist and teacher, but his heart was set on writing. After multiple rejections, his first big break came with Swami and Friends, and it set the tone for the rest of his career.CHARACTERS WHO FELT LIKE NEIGHBOURSadvertisementNarayan's books never screamed for attention -- they quietly tapped on your shoulder. And once you opened the door, they pulled you in.Swami was just a schoolboy, but in him, generations of readers saw their own childhood mischief and innocence.In The Guide, Raju the tourist guide transforms into a reluctant spiritual leader -- a journey filled with irony, humour, and reflection.Then there was Jagan in The Vendor of Sweets, an old-fashioned father trying to understand his westernised son. Each of these stories carried a strong emotional undercurrent, without ever becoming sentimental.These characters were less like characters, and more like people you knew.
WHEN MALGUDI CAME TO TVIn 1986, Malgudi Days hit Indian television screens -- and a new generation fell in love.Directed by Kannada actor-director Shankar Nag, and with iconic sketches by Narayan's brother RK Laxman, the series was filmed in Agumbe, Karnataka, a sleepy town that looked like it had stepped straight out of the pages of the book.advertisementEach episode adapted a different short story, from 'A Hero' to 'The Missing Mail', and the theme music by L Vaidyanathan still rings nostalgic in the ears of Indian millennials.The series aired on Doordarshan, but its magic has lasted for decades -- reruns, YouTube uploads, and even an Amazon Prime listing continue to draw in viewers.PERSONAL LOSS, WRITTEN QUIETLYIn 1933, Narayan married Rajam, a happy union that ended in heartbreak when she died of typhoid in 1939. He was devastated, and it deeply affected him and influenced his writing.
RK Narayan with his wife, Rajam (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
Out of that pain came The English Teacher, a novel that captured his grief with unflinching honesty. The book reads like a conversation with his lost love. It was raw, beautiful, and deeply human.He remained devoted to their daughter, Hema, and never remarried. Narayan's philosophy emphasised the importance of simplicity and authenticity, both in life and literature.A LEGACY BUILT ON SIMPLICITYOver the decades, Narayan wrote 14 novels, countless short stories, essays, and even memoirs like My Days. His writing was never flamboyant. There were no fireworks in his prose, just a steady flame that kept readers warm.advertisementHe was often called 'India's answer to Chekhov' -- though Narayan himself was modest about such comparisons. He once said he simply wanted to 'write about ordinary people going about their lives'.AWARDS, HONOURS, AND A SEAT IN PARLIAMENTRecognition came, slowly but surely.
Lyle Blair of Michigan State University Press (Narayan's U.S. publisher), RK Narayan and Anthony West of The New Yorker (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)
Narayan was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1964 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2000. In 1986, he was nominated to the Rajya Sabha, where he voiced concerns about education, especially the burden of heavy schoolbags on children -- a classic Narayan concern.He received honorary doctorates from multiple universities and was shortlisted for the Nobel Prize, though he never won it.A QUIET GOODBYERK Narayan passed away on May 13, 2001, at the age of 94. But Malgudi didn't die with him.advertisementIt lives on -- in dusty old paperbacks passed down in families, in nostalgic TV reruns, and in new readers discovering Swami, Raju, and Jagan for the first time. It feels more real than many places on the map.Malgudi wasn't just a setting. It was a feeling. And through it, Narayan gave us the rarest of gifts: stories that felt like home.