Diksha Basu is a writer and actor. Originally from New Delhi, she holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University and now divides her time between New York and Mumbai. Her writing has appeared in the New York Times, Cosmopolitan, Buzzfeed and the BBC.

@dikshabasu

From actress Diksha Basu comes a sparkling comedy of manners about social climbing, social rivalry and social anxiety in the New India

Anil Kumar Jha has worked hard and is ready to live well. After thirty years in a modest flat, he and his family are moving to Gurgaon, one of Delhi's richest areas. But his wife, Bindu, is heartbroken about leaving their neighbours, and doesn't want to wear designer saris or understand interior decoration. Meanwhile their son, Rupak, is failing business school in the US - and secretly dating an American girl.

Once installed in their mansion, the Jhas are soon drawn into a feverish game of one-upmanship with their new neighbours, the Chopras, as each couple seeks to outdo the other with increasingly lavish displays of wealth. As an imitation Sistene Chapel is pitted against a crystal-encrusted sofa, Bindu wonders where it will all end.

A sharply observed tale of social aspiration and anxiety, The Windfall is a thoroughly modern comedy of manners about family, friendship and what it means to belong in a rapidly changing India.

I almost fell out of bed laughing

I so loved this novel - laugh-out-loud funny and yet deeply touching. Like a blingy version of A Diary of a Nobody it demonstrates that whatever our nationality or wealth we're all prey to fathomless insecurity

The funniest novel to come out of India in years, Diksha Basu's Delhi Riche is a timely snapshot of Delhi families on the way up, down and sideways.

Wry and witty with understated pearls of joy in one deliciously observed tale

A complete joy from start to finish

A comedy of manners for the globalized 21st century, Delhi Riche is equal parts heart and laugh by a writer who is a new star.

Hilarious comedy of manners

Uproarious, beady-eyed social comedy with a big heart