Spatial Geographies of the Subaltern in Contemporary Indian Fiction: A Study

Abstract

Physical space in literature functions not merely as a neutral background but as an active agent that enforces cultural and socio-economic hierarchies. This paper argues that marginalised characters in contemporary Indian fiction utilise, subvert, and reclaim oppressive architectural spaces to challenge cultural hegemony. While current academic literature frequently focuses on how post-2000 Anglophone Indian novels deconstruct the dominant cultural narratives, research often treats marginalisation strictly as a social or economic condition. It rarely examines marginalisation as a geographical or architectural reality. This study investigates the spatial dimensions of subaltern oppression. The paper examines Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger (2008) to explore class disparity and capitalist confinement. It analyses Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni’s The Palace of Illusions (2008) to understand mythological revisionism and patriarchal architectural control. It studies Arundhati Roy’s The Ministry of Utmost Happiness (2017) to interpret marginalised identities and spatial politics. Through a comparative approach grounded in post-colonial and spatial theory, this research answers how marginalised characters transform spaces from palatial estates to urban graveyards into sites of subaltern agency.