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The Great Indian Tee and Snakes & Other Stories
The Commonwealth Short Story Prize, now in its ninth year, is one of the world’s most dynamic literary honours. Spanning fifty-four countries, it is awarded for the best short fiction from the Commonwealth regions of Africa, Asia, Canada and Europe, the Caribbean and the Pacific.
This collection is titled after the overall 2020 winner by India’s Kritika Pandey – a sharp, unsparing tale of two young people whose paths cross briefly before they are separated by hatred and prejudice.
The other winning stories – by Innocent Chizaram Ilo (Nigeria), Reyah Martin (Scotland), Brian S. Heap (Jamaica) and Andrea E. Macleod (Australia) – are haunting and poignant tales of different realities, both starkly familiar and at a slight, dreamlike remove.
This collection is titled after the overall 2020 winner by India’s Kritika Pandey – a sharp, unsparing tale of two young people whose paths cross briefly before they are separated by hatred and prejudice.
The other winning stories – by Innocent Chizaram Ilo (Nigeria), Reyah Martin (Scotland), Brian S. Heap (Jamaica) and Andrea E. Macleod (Australia) – are haunting and poignant tales of different realities, both starkly familiar and at a slight, dreamlike remove.
- GenresShort StoriesFiction
102 pages, Paperback
Published July 24, 2020
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 21, 2021
This story is proof that you can say a lot without needing many words. An unexpected friendship springs up between "a girl with a black bindi" and "a boy in a skull cap" as she starts crushing cardamoms into the chai she makes for him at the stall. It is a poignant tale of the India we have become.
July 6, 2020
"The Great Indian Tee and Snakes" is a short story that is unabashedly post-colonial. It weaves a simple story with simple words and simple metaphors - one that is instantly relatable to many. And then there is also the beautiful wordplay of the title itself!
However, the story hit deeper upon a second reading after a friend pointed out the layers, the nuance, and the depth of the seemingly simple metaphors. Truly, the author manages to weave so many issues that plague modern India in a fashion that never once takes the focus away from the storytelling.
However, the story hit deeper upon a second reading after a friend pointed out the layers, the nuance, and the depth of the seemingly simple metaphors. Truly, the author manages to weave so many issues that plague modern India in a fashion that never once takes the focus away from the storytelling.
October 22, 2020
Wonderfully written and desrvingly getting all the accolades.
January 26, 2025
This was a very fast read. I've just about binge read most of the writings Kritika Pandey has put out. I've always been a bit avoidant around reading Indian authors, not really sure why - but I'm so glad I decided to go on a rabbit hole about this author. The way she writes is so subtle, human and still very political. Her writing style packs a punch in every paragraph. She tunes into this exact kind of experience of living in suburban Indian towns with parents stuck to their Hindu orthodoxies while their children try to get as far away from it as they can.
June 6, 2021
Drama, Mystery The unconventional drama takes place over three summers in the 90s when a beautiful and popular teen goes missing, and a seemingly unrelated girl transforms from a sweet and awkward outlier to the most popular girl. The snake and her tea with book,
August 19, 2020
THE GREAT INDIAN TEE AND SNAKES BY KRITIKA PANDEY*
Set in contemporary small town India, this story speaks about an unconfessed chemistry between a Hindu girl and a Muslim boy in tension fraught times and how their love gets thwarted even before it has a chance to blossom. In a series of tragic events triggered by the simultaneously occuring socio-political upheaval in the country, the author has revealed the ugly face of religion, caste, and power dynamics.
Is there any place for fragile emotions amidst bias and hatred? What is the fate of innocent love in a world where man hates man? With its communal prejudice, intolerance and power politics,this disturbing story holds a mirror to the ever prevalent ugliness in Indian society.
The end packs a punch and raises a pertinent question--In these times of communal disharmony can "happiness" even exist?
Set in contemporary small town India, this story speaks about an unconfessed chemistry between a Hindu girl and a Muslim boy in tension fraught times and how their love gets thwarted even before it has a chance to blossom. In a series of tragic events triggered by the simultaneously occuring socio-political upheaval in the country, the author has revealed the ugly face of religion, caste, and power dynamics.
Is there any place for fragile emotions amidst bias and hatred? What is the fate of innocent love in a world where man hates man? With its communal prejudice, intolerance and power politics,this disturbing story holds a mirror to the ever prevalent ugliness in Indian society.
The end packs a punch and raises a pertinent question--In these times of communal disharmony can "happiness" even exist?
January 5, 2021
Very well written. Truly deserves the honour.
October 26, 2021
Lovely book of short stories, loved them all!
December 11, 2021
featuring the five winning stories of the 2020 commonwealth short story prize, this is a lively and atmospheric collection of writing that hones in on a plethora of contemporary topics in simple yet challenging ways. perhaps coincidentally, each story deals with the theme of social exclusion in different forms and settings: be it through racism and anti-immigrant bigotry, religious discrimination and gender inequality, or generally hostile communities. although it is considerably shorter than most short story collections (it is a small book of only 100 pages), it’s probably one of the best i have ever read, and each story so well-written that i couldn’t pick a favourite. i wholeheartedly recommend this if you’re looking for short but impactful reads.
🇮🇳 ‘The Great Indian Tee and Snakes’— with subtlety and satire, this story explores rising Hindu Nationalism in a small town in India, refracted through a tale of two young people who briefly cross paths at a chai stall, before being separated by anti-Muslim bigotry and hatred.
🇳🇬 ‘When a Woman Renounces Motherhood’— a powerful and poignant denunciation of traditional customs and cultural stigmas that sanction violence against women, this story captures the losses and sacrifices made by a Nigerian woman for the sake of motherhood and marriage.
🏴 ‘Wherever Mister Jensen Went’— set in a neighbourhood in the Deep South and written in experimental prose, this story explores the twisted power of rumour and hysteria in a community and how it affects the way adults and children view the world and those around them.
🇯🇲 ‘Mafootoo’— as her husband lies on his deathbed, a Jamaican woman living in the UK reflects on her Maroon family history, the pressure on immigrant communities to assimilate, experiences of racism, and her strained marriage.
🇦🇺 ‘The Art of Waving’— a woman taught not to wave at people as a child reflects on how this has shaped her social interactions with people around her. the story also explores the many sensationalist perceptions people have of refugee communities.
🇮🇳 ‘The Great Indian Tee and Snakes’— with subtlety and satire, this story explores rising Hindu Nationalism in a small town in India, refracted through a tale of two young people who briefly cross paths at a chai stall, before being separated by anti-Muslim bigotry and hatred.
🇳🇬 ‘When a Woman Renounces Motherhood’— a powerful and poignant denunciation of traditional customs and cultural stigmas that sanction violence against women, this story captures the losses and sacrifices made by a Nigerian woman for the sake of motherhood and marriage.
🏴 ‘Wherever Mister Jensen Went’— set in a neighbourhood in the Deep South and written in experimental prose, this story explores the twisted power of rumour and hysteria in a community and how it affects the way adults and children view the world and those around them.
🇯🇲 ‘Mafootoo’— as her husband lies on his deathbed, a Jamaican woman living in the UK reflects on her Maroon family history, the pressure on immigrant communities to assimilate, experiences of racism, and her strained marriage.
🇦🇺 ‘The Art of Waving’— a woman taught not to wave at people as a child reflects on how this has shaped her social interactions with people around her. the story also explores the many sensationalist perceptions people have of refugee communities.
October 20, 2020
In my opinion, the book does not fail in giving a glimpse of reality of India.
I came across this short story when I read an interview with the author, Kritika Pandey, but that was when she was 'short - listed' for 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize from Asia so I became curious to know how the results go, and guess what! She won! :) She well deserves the title.
The story revolves around a 'tee and snakes' stall which is run by the girl with black bindi and her father. The girl starts liking a boy, who used to visit the stall at weekends and who wanted to become a doctor so that he can treat his mother, but what is seen by others is the boy's preference in eating keema samosas.rather than aloo samosas, his white skull cap and his determination to be what he wants. It was not about just a certain community, it was way beyond the words could ever say.
I would've loved reading a full novel because the more the merrier. However, if it was not supposed to be a full fledged novel then I can understand that.
It is hardly ten or eleven-page-long so I'll recommend this to anyone who is not willing to read a proper book, pick this short story; You won't regret it.
I came across this short story when I read an interview with the author, Kritika Pandey, but that was when she was 'short - listed' for 2020 Commonwealth Short Story Prize from Asia so I became curious to know how the results go, and guess what! She won! :) She well deserves the title.
The story revolves around a 'tee and snakes' stall which is run by the girl with black bindi and her father. The girl starts liking a boy, who used to visit the stall at weekends and who wanted to become a doctor so that he can treat his mother, but what is seen by others is the boy's preference in eating keema samosas.rather than aloo samosas, his white skull cap and his determination to be what he wants. It was not about just a certain community, it was way beyond the words could ever say.
I would've loved reading a full novel because the more the merrier. However, if it was not supposed to be a full fledged novel then I can understand that.
It is hardly ten or eleven-page-long so I'll recommend this to anyone who is not willing to read a proper book, pick this short story; You won't regret it.
February 8, 2021
Neemah & Jody
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews