What do you think?
Rate this book
Railsong
Sweeping, elegiac and at times wonderfully comic, Railsong is a powerful portrait of a woman forging a life for herself amid the social and political upheavals of twentieth-century India.
In a young country charged with national vigour, Charu, the motherless child of a railway worker, pines for a life freed of oppressive domesticity. As diesel engines replace steam, and the calamitous churn of drought, famine, strike, chokes the railway township, she dares to imagine a different future for herself. Boarding a train she flees westwards to Bombay, even as the country rumbles towards Emergency. In the frenetic landscape of the great modern metropolis, Charu, the budding adventuress, seeks the means to live on her own terms.
Tenaciously she fills the blanks in her life – the idealistic, artistic father Animesh whom she abandoned; the enigmatic mother Jigyasa long gone; her funny surname Chitol that no one recognizes; her bank balance – with her own material. Negotiating the treacherous planes of love, she marries a sheltered easy-goer. Fighting tragedy and loss, she becomes, after all, a railway woman. Against the rapidly clarifying prejudices around her, unfazed by everyday discriminations, she remains a small hero, an Everywoman who keeps her heart open – sometimes guilelessly – to her nation’s vast possibility.
In a young country charged with national vigour, Charu, the motherless child of a railway worker, pines for a life freed of oppressive domesticity. As diesel engines replace steam, and the calamitous churn of drought, famine, strike, chokes the railway township, she dares to imagine a different future for herself. Boarding a train she flees westwards to Bombay, even as the country rumbles towards Emergency. In the frenetic landscape of the great modern metropolis, Charu, the budding adventuress, seeks the means to live on her own terms.
Tenaciously she fills the blanks in her life – the idealistic, artistic father Animesh whom she abandoned; the enigmatic mother Jigyasa long gone; her funny surname Chitol that no one recognizes; her bank balance – with her own material. Negotiating the treacherous planes of love, she marries a sheltered easy-goer. Fighting tragedy and loss, she becomes, after all, a railway woman. Against the rapidly clarifying prejudices around her, unfazed by everyday discriminations, she remains a small hero, an Everywoman who keeps her heart open – sometimes guilelessly – to her nation’s vast possibility.
402 pages, Hardcover
Published November 4, 2025
About the author
Rahul Bhattacharya
19 books45 followersRahul Bhattacharya was born in 1979. A cricket journalist since 2000, he is now a contributing editor with Wisden Asia Cricket and has been writing for the Wisden Almanack since 2003, when he compiled the series overview of India in England, 2002. He also writes for the Guardian.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 24, 2025
This novel is a beautifully crafted tapestry of personal longing, political undercurrents, and the quiet revolutions that take place inside ordinary lives. Rooted in social history and alive with the spirit of change, the book follows its protagonist through the rhythms of everyday existence—railway journeys, domestic moments, inner conflicts—and turns them into something luminous and memorable.
What stands out most is the lyrical quality of the prose. The writing is gentle yet powerful, full of emotional intelligence and an unhurried depth that lets you settle into the character’s world. The narrative moves with a subtle elegance, blurring the line between the personal and the political—echoing a time when freedom, identity, and the longing for more shaped the texture of daily life.
There’s a quiet courage in the storytelling. Instead of relying on dramatic twists, the author explores the profound in the ordinary—capturing the tenderness, humour, and tragedies that unfold over days and years. The result is a novel that feels both intimate and expansive, one that honours the weight of history while never losing sight of the human heart at its centre.
A deeply evocative, gorgeously written book—perfect for readers who love character-driven stories, poetic writing, and narratives grounded in real social landscapes.
What stands out most is the lyrical quality of the prose. The writing is gentle yet powerful, full of emotional intelligence and an unhurried depth that lets you settle into the character’s world. The narrative moves with a subtle elegance, blurring the line between the personal and the political—echoing a time when freedom, identity, and the longing for more shaped the texture of daily life.
There’s a quiet courage in the storytelling. Instead of relying on dramatic twists, the author explores the profound in the ordinary—capturing the tenderness, humour, and tragedies that unfold over days and years. The result is a novel that feels both intimate and expansive, one that honours the weight of history while never losing sight of the human heart at its centre.
A deeply evocative, gorgeously written book—perfect for readers who love character-driven stories, poetic writing, and narratives grounded in real social landscapes.
Displaying 1 of 1 review