GemArts Masala Festival: Saraswati, Gurnaik Johal

Award-winning short story writer Gurnaik Johal reads from his debut novel Saraswati, in conversation with Preti Taneja.

Centuries ago, the myths say, the holy river Saraswati flowed through Northern India. When Satnam returns to his ancestral village for his grandmother’s funeral, he’s astonished to find water in the long-dry well behind her house. This discovery sparks a contentious plan to unearth the lost river and build a gleaming new city on its banks. Adrift from his job, girlfriend, and flat in London, Satnam is drawn into the upheaval unfolding around him.
 
Brimming with love, lust, violence and loss, Saraswati reveals buried ties between six relatives across the globe. Johal’s magisterial debut explores the passions that bind us to our histories, our lands, and each other.
 
‘Saraswati most certainly delivers, darting thrillerishly around the world to fold chewy themes of empire, populism and global warming into a cross-generational epic’ – The Observer
 
'Saraswati is a major achievement, and Johal a huge talent. This should be one of the biggest novels of the year’ - Martin MacInnes, Booker-longlisted author of In Ascension
 
Presented by GemArts, Newcastle Centre for Literary Arts and Northern Stage
 
GemArts award winning Masala Festival returns from 14th – 20th July celebrating a mix and blend of the finest South Asian Arts and Culture, packed full of performances, exhibitions, events, workshops, talks, pop ups and delicious Indian food in venues, places and spaces across the Northeast. For full Masala Festival 2025 programme visit gemarts.org.