"Momentous Things Happen Elsewhere, In The Big Cities Of Nehru S India. In Dull And Dusty Pipalnagar, Each Day Is Like Another, And There Is Not Exactly Despair, But Resignation . Even The Dreams Here Are Small: If He Ever Makes It To Delhi, Deep Chand, The Barber, Will Open A More Up-To-Date Salon Where He Might, Perhaps, Give The Prime Minister A Haircut; Pitamber Will Trade His Cycle-Rickshaw For The Less Demanding Scooter-Rickshaw; Aziz Will Be Happy With A Junk-Shop In Chandni Chowk. None, Of Course, Will Make That Journey To Delhi.Adrift Among Them, The Narrator, Arun, A Struggling Writer Of Detective Novels In Urdu, Waits For Inspiration To Write A Blockbuster. One Day He Will Pack His Meager Belongings And Take The Express Train Out Of Pipalnagar. Meanwhile, He Seeks Reassurance In Love, And Finds It In Unusual Places: With The Young Prostitute Kamla, Wise Beyond Her Years; And The Orphan Suraj, Homeless And An Epileptic, Yet Surprisingly Optimistic About The Future."