Radhika Iyengar’s Fire on the Ganges: Life Among the Dead in Banaras (published by Fourth Estate India) in 2023describes the activities that are carried out daily by the doms that live in the Chand Ghat in Banaras. Even though the dom’s duties have historically been seen as impure in Hindu society, it is impossible to reject or replace them from a ritual point of view. Through the lens of the social order that exists within Hindu culture, Doms have thus traditionally been seen as persons who are unwanted but necessary.

Doms’ origin stories, mythology, history, and tales are glossed over throughout the book. Instead, the focus is on the everyday contemporary of the lives of Doms.  The author has chosen a handful of people from a Chand Ghat alley and focused on their hardships, aspirations, loves, betrayals, sorrows, and adventures. Radhika Iyengar wrote this book to convey the struggles that doms face daily as a result of living in a culture that condemns them for practising traditions that are centuries old. Readers are made to see life through the eyes of  Bhola, Dolly, Lakshya, Komal, and Shortcut.

The protagonist of the tale is Dolly Chaudhury, a widow who manages to support herself and is the first businesswoman in Chand Ghat. She brought up five kids on her own. When she couldn’t take care of them all, she gave three of them to her relatives. She was left with only her oldest son and youngest daughter to live with. Nobody knows what killed her spouse. She has accepted the circumstances and is doing her best to put it behind her, but it remains unsolved since influential members of the dom world were involved. At the beginning of the tale, the people of the mohalla are furious with her for attempting to be independent financially instead of choosing a man’s protection. In the end, she emerges as a new role model questioning patriarchal norms. Dom women and widows of Chand Ghat in particular see her as an inspiring figure.

Additionally, there is a story that describes the romantic relationship that existed between Dolly’s sister-in-law Komal and her brother Lakshya. Komal was a member of a Brahmin community that lived in Chand Ghat’s Yadav mohalla. The domain of Chand Ghat is where Lakshya resides. Every single tale in the book is linked to another. The story of George Grey and Vikram Mathur, including how Grey reached out to Mathur after seeing his documentary on Chand Ghat and how he expressed his desire to sponsor a few children and provide financial assistance to their families. Lakshya was one of those fortunate persons who had the chance to go to school. After Komal’s relationship became widely known and her neighbours began to harass her, Lakshya gave up his studies and looked for a job to assist Komal in moving and paying for her education. The book includes a description of the 18 rites and traditions that were performed at their wedding, and an afterword provides a glimpse into their perfect life together.

Shortcut is the name of another character introduced in this book who was one of the children who received sponsorship. Throughout the whole of the book, his real name is never mentioned; instead, he is referred to by the nickname Shortcut by everyone familiar with him. The author also uses the same name in different contexts. His story of adversity mirrors that of every other child who was raised in Chand Ghat dom mohalla. His life underwent a major transformation once he was granted financial support for his education. He began achieving academic success but just like any other ordinary teenager, he got distracted and started having an affair with a woman. It was brief, and when it failed, he ended up back at Chand Ghat’s cremation grounds since he had failed his twelfth grade. But after seeing his boyhood buddy succeed and be able to permanently transcend that poverty, he was motivated to give it another go and hope. After retaking his 12th-grade examinations with the support of a non-governmental organization (NGO), he was able to clear them and was admitted into a graduate program that was offered on a part-time basis. This allowed him to work and earn money instead of returning to Chand Ghat. According to what is said in the afterword, he is getting ready to leave Chand Ghat permanently to work for the government.

There is a separate character named Bhola who was given financial support to pay for his education. It was because of the shame associated with caste that he chose to conceal his name, even though he was the most trustworthy student and the first of his family members from Chand Ghat to be accepted into a private institution. He was finally confronted with his worst fear, yet it did not deter him from continuing. Luck, on the other hand, had never been on his side. Every time he was successful in escaping Chand Ghat; Chand Ghat was able to bring him back to his current location. On the other hand, his friend Shortcut saw inspiration in his tenacity and the battle he underwent. The illness that his mother was suffering from handed him the last blow, and he had to leave his lucrative employment. By the time the book concludes, his mother has already gone away as a result of the sickness, and he has already relocated out of Chand Ghat permanently. Despite this, he is thankful to his elder brother, who has never failed to encourage him no matter what obstacles he has faced. There is a passage from the afterword that demonstrates that he is content with his life, but that he is still looking for more.

In addition to the main protagonists, the novel also eloquently describes the onset of COVID the challenges of the epidemic, and everyday concerns. This includes the accumulation of corpses during the pandemic, the first experiences of dread for those who live among the dead, Doms‘ refusal to cremate COVID-infected bodies, the long-closed electric crematorium’s eventual reopening and beneficial effects on the environment and its employees, and more.

The book is long. Yet it is easy to read with an easy flow. The author deftly weaves together and portrays the interwoven storylines of her characters without overlapping them. She ensures anonymity of the characters. Aside from the foreign helper, the filmmaker Ghat was also employing a fictitious identity. The fact that her previous works include all the details released with publicly accessible information suggests that the efforts may have been fruitless. Nonetheless, it proves that the tales weren’t made up, even if the individuals’ identities were. Any reader would benefit from having this book in their collection. For those who like information conveyed via stories, it is an essential read.

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Rana Abhyendra Singh has completed his post-graduation in Sociology from South Asian University, New Delhi. He is working as a research assistant in the Department of History at Banaras Hindu University (BHU).