Kamala Markandaya's 1969 novel 'The Coffer Dams' republished by Small Axes

Small Axes has republished Kamala Markandaya's 1969 novel 'The Coffer Dams,' originally released when the Indian author was largely forgotten by critics and publishers. Markandaya, who died in 2004, wrote under the pen name Kamala Purnaiya Taylor and spent most of her life in Britain. Her debut 'Nectar in a Sieve' from 1954 was an award-winning bestseller about rural love in modernizing India. Later works addressing interracial relationships and immigrant experiences in Britain failed to sustain interest. A resurgence began last year when Small Axes republished her 1972 novel 'The Nowhere Man,' focusing on racism faced by an elderly Indian immigrant. 'The Coffer Dams' explores dam construction in Karnataka's hills, contrasting English builder Clinton with his wife Helen and involving British engineers, Indian laborers, and indigenous Malnad people. The narrative examines racism, colonialism, class systems, indigenous rights, environmental concerns, and modernity's homogenizing forces. Set against impending monsoons, the story highlights conflicts between academic and traditional knowledge systems, races, and cultures. Markandaya's insight into social conditions remains relevant today, with the novel addressing justification and adaptation to change. The plot centers on a community facing displacement and cultural clashes during rapid development.