A techie launched U.S.-based Saaranga Books to
promote Telugu literature, but in seeking to gain a
wider audience, he has brought out his debut novel
in English. Raj Karamchedu’s All Things Unforgiven,
which took a decade to write, involves Anasuya and
Rushi, whose troubled marriage—and the violence in
their Indian city—affects their only son, Arya, driving
him away to America. He returns, however, to confront
his past and find a resolution. Far from being a
typical, angst-ridden story about immigrants straddling
two worlds, Karamchedu notes, the novel
immerses readers in the cultural and moral dilemmas
of modern India.
Born in India, Karamchedu studied
artificial networks in the
U.S. and then worked at tech
companies in Silicon Valley,
where he still lives. Disappointed
by the paucity of outlets
for quality Indian writing, he
started his publishing house
and e-zine in 2010. He’s also a
translator, and some of his
translations of Telugu Dalit
poetry are included in a
forthcoming anthology from
the Oxford University Press.