Theme of Protest in Indian Fiction

Indian literature, in its modern sense, began in the twentieth century and developed inevitably as a protest literature. It is indeed ironic that this protest was registered, especially in the novel form mainly in English, a language introduced by the Britishers in India and articulated as vehemently and artistically by writers like Mulk Raj Anand, Raja Rao, R.K. Narayan, Kamala Markandaya, Nayantara Sahgal and Anita Desai that one might say that is was the Empire striking back. The fiction of all these writers registers a protest against imperialism, exploitation of the poor, suppression of women, and taboos and dogmas in Indian society. This body of literature advocates altruistic aspects of humanism and envisages a society with equality of rights and privileges for all.