Dr. Sini Jose, Dr. Denny Joseph
Abstract
Place
is perceived as a dynamic force and a social product in the present-day
academic discourses. Place as a literary element, draws considerable attention
in contemporary fiction. Gregory David Roberts’ ‘Shantaram’, published in 2003,
thrives with the spirit of an urban space. The novel, influenced by the real
events in author’s life, depicts the central character Lindsay’s escape from an
Australian prison, his arrival in Mumbai, his imprisonment in Arthur Road
Prison, and his dealings with Mumbai underworld. The novel is considered as an
epic narrative that mirrors the material and human geography of Bombay/Mumbai.
It offers an insight into the culturally produced nature of places. Spatiality
is presented as being caught up in the unending process of cultural production.
The landscape that ‘Shantaram’ presents is a product of cultural forces. The
novel projects diverse places in the everyday city that are subject to the
process of cultural writing. The novel underlines the political, dynamic and
relative nature of the urban geography. The urban space presented in the novel
is in a state of constant spatial transformation. It is constantly marked with
the presence of diverse spatiality. A cultural geographic reading of Roberts’
‘Shantaram’ with a spatial frame work underscores the fluid nature of urban
landscape.
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Published: May 2025 [Vol. 08, No. 05]