About Gaban
Gaban — meaning embezzlement — is Munshi Premchand's brilliant exploration of greed, vanity and moral collapse. Ramanath, a government clerk, is trapped between his obsession with his jewellery-loving wife Jalpa and his inability to afford the lifestyle she desires. One bad decision leads to another until embezzlement, flight and catastrophe follow.
But Premchand, as always, refuses to leave his characters as simple moral failures. Jalpa's own journey — from vain, jewellery-obsessed young wife to mature, courageous woman — is one of the most remarkable character arcs in Hindi literature. Gaban is both a gripping narrative and a profound examination of middle-class anxiety, the corruption bred by poverty and aspiration, and the possibility of redemption.
Listen free to Gaban by Munshi Premchand — the great Hindi novel about ambition and its consequences, read in Hindi.