Atiq Rahimi's Novel 'Kabuliwalla, c'est moi' Explores Exile Between Afghanistan and India

Franco-Afghan author and filmmaker Atiq Rahimi has published a new novel titled 'Kabuliwalla, c'est moi' on March 31, 2026. The work tells the story of an Afghan filmmaker living in Kolkata, India, who contemplates suicide due to existential weariness following an abandoned film project. As he prepares to take his own life, he spots a distant figure on a boat whom he recognizes as Kabuliwalla—the very character he had failed to portray in his film. The novel employs a mirroring technique, drawing parallels between the exiled filmmaker and the historical figure of Kabuliwalla, an Afghan fruit seller in India. Rahimi's narrative is inspired by Rabindranath Tagore's 1892 short story 'Kabuliwallah,' which features Rahmat, an Afghan dry fruit vendor exiled in India. The book delves into themes of exile, guilt, and identity, reflecting Rahimi's own experiences as an Afghan refugee who fled to Pakistan before settling in France in 1984. Rahimi, born in Kabul in 1962, is a naturalized French citizen known for works that blend personal narrative with political history. He gained recognition for his Persian-language novels, including 'Terre et cendres,' which was adapted into a film presented at the Cannes Festival. In 2008, he received the Prix Goncourt for 'Syngué sabour. Pierre de patience,' his first novel written directly in French. The novel's structure involves a layered narrative where the protagonist recounts the story of a past writer and his character, creating a doubling effect. It examines the interconnected fates of a filmmaker and his protagonist, both refugees in Kolkata, to explore the experience of displacement.