Baumgartner’s Bombay follows Hugo Baumgartner, a German Jew who escapes Nazi Germany and eventually settles in Bombay (Mumbai), where he remains a perpetual outsider, unable to fully belong anywhere. After fleeing persecution, enduring internment in India as an "enemy alien," and grappling with repeated displacement, Hugo lives out his later years in a shabby flat behind the Taj Hotel, caring for stray cats and trying to carve out a life amid loneliness and cultural dislocation. Through a series of flashbacks, the novel traces his fractured identity, the emotional and historical wounds of war and exile, and his complex relationships—with locals, with fellow expatriates like Lotte, and with the city itself—culminating in his tragic murder by a troubled young German, underscoring themes of alienation, memory, and the elusive search for belonging. 

About the Author

Anita Desai's previous novel, In Custody, was shortlisted for Booker Prize.

Published: 1988
Pages: 230
Format: Hardcover
Publisher: Lester & Orpen Dennys (UK)