Themes and message

The short story “English Babu” by Vijay Medtia follows the development of Ramesh, an Indian immigrant living in the UK. This overlaps with a family conflict triggered by one of his sons deciding to marry an English girl.

The story explores several important themes: transformation, cultural differences, and immigration.

Immigration

The theme of immigration is explored through the plot of the story and most of the characters. Through the backstory about the Ramesh and his wife’s first experiences in England as immigrants, the story shows some of the challenges related to moving to another country. These challenges include adapting to a new climate, struggling to make a decent living, and feeling lonely: “She hated England from day one; the cold damp climate, the strange white faces and, above all, the loneliness.” (ll. 41-42); “My high hopes of finding a good job over here were met with one rejection after another.” (ll. 21-22).

The story also shows how one of the main causes of immigration is looking for a better life. Ramesh goes to England and stays there for financial reasons initially: “I thought five years was all l needed to strike it rich.”  (ll. 11-12); “ ‘Father I can’t. I’m finally making progress and I’m buying my first house. My son’s got a British passport. I need to make some good money before I return.’ ” (ll. 55-56).

Furthermore, the story shows how, despite struggling to adapt to England, Ramesh and Anita also found it hard to re-adapt to India and make relatives in their home country understand their living abroad experience: “They envied her lifestyle: the international flights, the cars, the pounds. And when she protested that it was a lonely and miserable existence, they dismissed this as a small inconvenience.” (ll. 61-63).

Finally, the story illustrates some of the consequences of immigration...