A Day in the Life of Mangal Taram

Mangal Taram, a Gond tribal boy, is a beat forest guard in the dense and mysterious forest of Central India, spread at the foothills of the Maikal mountain range. While he observes, watches, and keeps record of the wildlife, flora, and fauna of the all-encompassing forest, his mind is trapped in inexplicable fear and anxiety. At Batasia Loop in Darjeeling, a young hill girl, Hema, lost in the childhood memories of a middle-aged man, resurfaces and transforms his life irreversibly. A possessive lover and a ruthless husband treasure his first love, in the brick and mortar cage of his ancestral house. Anita Agnihotri’s stories traverse a wide range of human emotions, discover the myriad complexities of relationships, and also take the reader through a journey into the dynamics of an Indian reality, where the unheard voices still wait to be deciphered by a sensitive writer. A Day in the Life of Mangal Taram is a careful selection of 14 stories out of over 200 short stories written by Anita Agnihotri spanning over three decades.