 It also notes that "the book admirably captures the tenor of the postcolonial period".Tara Sehgal of "India Today" mentions that "Though issues of race, class, identity and belonging loom large and politics permeates every page, [the novel] is also simply a "life and times" story of Vic [aka Vikram]".The novel was shortlisted for the 2003 Scotiabank Giller Prize eventually winning against "Oryx and Crake" (by Margaret Atwood), "The Island Walkers" (by John Bemrose), "Kilter