Looking Through The Glass
1997 Nominated

Looking Through Glass

artwork-image

ABOUT
THE BOOK

In this book, a young photographer in 1980s Delhi is heading somewhere on a train. The train stops on a bridge over a river—and as the man leans over to take a photograph, he falls off the bridge with his camera, falls through time, and when he lands on the river bank, he realises he has time travelled back to 1942. When he meets people, they find his dress and way of speaking a bit funny, but they don’t see him as an alien. They don’t realise he’s from the future, because he’s not carrying too many things – his suitcase has remained in the 1980s. He realises that he can’t escape this time period, and he has to live there. People befriend him, thinking him to be homeless. They think he has memory loss and give him shelter. Except he doesn’t have memory loss. It’s just that he’s from the future and he can see the disasters and trauma these people are heading towards

ABOUT
THE AUTHOR Mukul
Kesavan

Mukul Kesavan is an Indian writer and essayist. He studied History at the University of Delhi and later at Trinity Hall, Cambridge where he received his MLitt. His first book – Looking Through Glass (Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1994) received critical acclaim. He teaches social history at Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi. He’s keen on the game of cricket but in a non-playing way. His credentials for writing about the game are founded on a spectatorial axiom: distance brings perspective. Kesavan’s book of cricket,Men in White, was published by Penguin India in 2007. He wrote a blog by the same name on cricinfo.com. Later in the year he wrote, The Ugliness of the Indian Male and Other Propositions published by Black Kite. The book is a collection of essays on a wide variety of themes ranging from Indian films to Indian men to travel writing and even political commentary.

Mukul Kesavan is an Indian writer and essayist. He studied History at the University of Delhi and later at Trinity Hall, Cambridge where he received his MLitt. His first book – Looking Through Glass (Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1994) received critical acclaim. He teaches social history at Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi. He’s keen on the game of cricket but in a non-playing way. His credentials for writing about the game are founded on a spectatorial axiom: distance brings perspective. Kesavan’s book of cricket,Men in White, was published by Penguin India in 2007. He wrote a blog by the same name on cricinfo.com. Later in the year he wrote, The Ugliness of the Indian Male and Other Propositions published by Black Kite. The book is a collection of essays on a wide variety of themes ranging from Indian films to Indian men to travel writing and even political commentary.

We're sorry, but we couldn't find any translators matching your search. Please try using different keywords or check back later as we regularly update our collection.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Country
United Kingdom
Author
Publisher
Chatto & Windus
Nominating Library

RELATED FEATURES

News February 17 2026

2026 Dublin Literary Award Longlist is Revealed

Delve into the 20 novels longlisted this year.
Video December 31 2025

Bidding farewell on our 30 Years Anniversary Year

Let's take a look back at some highlights from past years.
News November 19 2025

2026 Nominations Revealed

69 titles have been nominated by 80 libraries from 36 countries for the 2026 Award
News November 19 2025

2026 Dublin Literary Award Judges Announced

Meet our judging panel for 2026 Dublin Literary Award

STAY CONNECTED

Stay in touch and sign up to our newsletter to receive all the latest news and updates on the Dublin Literary Award.