Postmetropolis spatial reconfigurations of Mumbai in recent Indian English literature

Abstract

The cities are at the centre of political as well as intellectual debate in the twenty-first century as the majority of the world s population lives in cities and is thus affected by urban processes. The formation of the postmetropolis, as stated by Edward Soja, is the latest stage in the geohistory of city space. In light of the six discourses proposed by Soja, the current project undertakes a critical study of the impact of postmodernity on the spatiality of Mumbai through a close study of three primary texts namely Suketu Mehta s Maximum City, Jeet Thayil s Narcopolis and Manil Suri s The City of Devi. The thesis attempts to explore the transition of Mumbai from a Fordist to a post-Fordist city; its emergence as a cosmopolis; the expansion of suburbs; the existence of socio-economic and spatial inequalities; the rise of gated communities and surveillance systems; the increasing hyperreality of everyday life of the citizens. The selected texts offer postmodern readings of the physical realities of Mumbai and examine the complexities of an ever-changing, ever-developing, and, in several ways, persistently-deteriorating city from cultural, and geographical perspectives. newline