Megha Majumdar’s electric novel, A Burning, is the taut, riveting tale of three individuals whose lives become entangled in the aftermath of an horrific terrorist attack in Kolkata. Each have ambitions for themselves – Jivan, clawing her way out of the slum in which she lives, Lovely, the hijra intent on becoming a star, and PT Sir, a PE teacher who stumbles into right-wing political activism. But after a careless Facebook post, Jivan finds herself caught up in India’s corrupt legal system and her life hangs in the balance.

Chaired by Linda Jaivin