Printed from WriteWords - http://www.writewords.org.uk/archive/6376.asp

Awaiting the dawn

by  Gautama Nathan

Posted: Tuesday, September 7, 2004
Word Count: 187
Summary: An historical fiction that is set in the backdrop of British Colonial India and the post independent period in Sri Lanka and the ongoing ethnic conflict. This is a story of two families that traces its roots going back to three generations.





Awaiting The Dawn
by Gautama Nathan
website:PULPLESSFICTION.COM
Set mostly in the trouble torn island nation of Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon, this story is about two families from totally different ethnic and cultural backgrounds who have been living side by side in the metropolis of Colombo, since long before the racial strife and the civil war broke out.
Elmo De Silva, the honest and upright Sinhala police Superintendent, his wife Marla, and their two little children Travis and Larry constitute the perfect picture of a happy family. Their immediate neighbours, the Tamil family of a former tea estate owner named Rajasekar and his wife Kasthuri, together with their five grown up children, experience a series of emotional upheavals that reveal the diverse character traits, strengths, and weaknesses of each family member. The friendship and closeness of these two families are put to the test, and transcends all barriers, as their trials and tribulations unfold against a backdrop of historical events, like the Communists Insurgents attempt to overthrow the government of Sri Lanka in 1971, the racial riots of July 1983, and the continuing civil ethnic unrest.