Nivedita (a.k.a. Identitti), a doctoral student who blogs about race with the help of Hindu goddess Kali, is in awe of Saraswati, her outrageous superstar
post-colonial and race studies tutor. But Nivedita’s
life and sense of
self begin to unravel when it emerges
that Saraswati is actually white. Hours before learning the truth Nivedita praises her tutor in a
radio interview, jeopardising her reputation and igniting an angry backlash
among her peers and online community.
In her complex and genre-bending debut, Mithu Sanyal collages commentary
from real-life intellectuals, blogs,
articles, race theory and academic warfare, combining campus novel and
coming-of-age drama. A darkly comedic tour de force
astutely translated, Identitti showcases the outsized
power of social media in the current debates around identity
politics and the power of claiming your own voice.