In rural India, two worlds co-exist in extreme contrast to one another. There is the world of the big landowners, extraordinarily wealthy and hungry for power, and there is the world of the underclass - mostly untouchable landless labourers, toiling for a mere pittance and living in virtual thraldom. Prafulla Roy's contemporary masterpiece, translated here as Freedom's Ransom, encompasses these two worlds as he develops the intertwining story of a rich landholder's quest for political power and the touching tale of a young dalit couple and their dream of freedom from years of bonded labour. With remarkable candour and sensitivity, Prafulla Roy depicts the world of the rural underclass in what is a richly detailed social document, a critique of contemporary India and - as in all his works - a powerful story.
