Characters

The main characters in the short story “Karma” by Khushwant Singh are Sir Mohan Lal and his wife, Lachmi. The two English soldiers –Bill and Jim– who kick Sir Mohan out of the train, as well as the luggage bearer and the coolie are secondary characters. As opposed to the bearer and the coolie, the soldiers are given names. This emphasises the native Indian bearer and coolie’s low status in society, suggesting that they are only seen as servants and not as individuals, and the English soldiers' higher social status.

Sir Mohan Lal is prejudiced and sees things in black-and-white: he cannot see the negative aspects of the English society and culture, or the good aspects of India and of his life there. The story suggests that being kicked out of the train brings Sir Mohan face to face with reality, and he learns a lesson because of his own arrogance. 

Lachmi is depicted mostly as her husband’s opposite, which helps define each of the characters in the story. Lachmi is portrayed as an obedient Indian woman and is not a developing character, as she does not change by the end of the story.

You can find their characterisations in the next pages.