The Village by the Sea 

is set in a small village called Thul in Western India and focuses on a family trying
to make ends meet. The main protagonists are Lila, the eldest child who is 13 years old, and her 12 year
old brother Hari.

They also have two younger sisters, Bela and Kamal. They live with their mother, who has been
chronically ill and is bed ridden. Their father is an alcoholic, which forces Hari and Lila to manage the
family.

With two younger sisters to take care of, life for Lila and Hari is too hard. Hari decides that he has had
enough and leaves for Bombay to find work. Lila is left alone to take care of her family, and struggles to
do so. Help comes from an unexpected source, the rich De Silvas.

Meanwhile, Hari is new in the great city of Bombay and all alone. A kind watchman at an apartment where
the De Silvas live, The Seabird, brings him to a restaurant owned by Jagu who gives Hari a job there. Hari
builds a strong friendship with Mr. Panwallah, the lovable watchmaker. Through his experience with Mr.
Panwallah and Jagu and the chain of events that take place in Bombay, Hari realizes that he could
actually make a career as a watchmaker.

Meanwhile, Lila, Bela and Kamal are forced to admit their sick mother in town hospital through the help of
the De Silvas. Their father turns over a new leaf, and accompanies their mother throughout her 7 month
treatment. Meanwhile Hari returns home to the changing environment.

Anita Desai has explicitly described in her very own style of writing, how Hari in the dilapidated conditions
of the Sri Krishna Eating House finds warmth and affection through Mr Panwallah-owner and watch
mender of the Ding-Dong watch shop. Mr Panwallah instills confidence in Hari and comforts him when he
is terribly home sick. He even gives Hari a vivid and inspiring future and teaches him watch mending. This
shows that even in one of the busiest, rickety and ramshackled cities such as Bombay there is still hope,
love and affection.

The Village by the Sea is set in a small village called Thul, which is 14 kilometres from Bombay. Lila, the
eldest child among four siblings, is thirteen years old, yet she already has the maturity of an adult. Her
brother Hari, twelve, is the only person with whom she can share her troubles. Their mother is ill and
needs constant care and nursing. She is aneamic due to malnourishment and she grows weaker and
weaker with each passing day. Their father, who has been out of work for months, is in a permanent
drunken stupor, from which he arises occasionally to shout at his family.

Women pray to a rock for the safety of the fishermen.

With two younger sisters to take care of as well as their mother, life for Lila and Hari is not easy. Their
father is not very useful as he is often away at the local toddy shop, getting drunk. There is a constant
need for money as the family is almost always in debt. Then one day, Hari decides he has had just about
enough and leaves for Bombay– the Bombay where dreams come true and ambition yields.

Lila is left alone to manage her sisters Bela and Kamal, as well as her mother, and somehow keep the
family strings together. Help comes from an unexpected source, the rich DeSilva's. Meanwhile, Hari is
new in the great city of Bombay, and all alone. A kind restaurant proprietor, Jagu, takes pity on him and
welcomes him to work in his restaurant, Sri Krishna Eating House. There, Hari builds a strong friendship
with Mr. Panwallah, the lovable watch repairer whose shop is just beside Jagu’s. Through his experience
with Mr. Panwallah and Jagu and the chain of events that take place in Bombay, Hari realises that he
should return to his village with savings and help his family overcome their hardships.

Meanwhile, Lila, Bela and Kamal are forced to admit their sick mother in town hospital through the help of
the DeSilvas. Their father turns over a new leaf, and accompanies their mother throughout her 7 month
treatment without drinking and without having any debts. While Hari returns, he returns as a child who is
adapted to the changing environment like the birds that are symbolized.

Anita Desai has explicitly described in her very own style of writing ,how Hari in the dilapidated conditions
of the Sri Krishna Eating House finds warmth and affection through Mr Panwallah-owner and watch
mender of the Ding-Dong watch shop .Mr Panwallah instills confidence in Hari and comforts him when he
is terribly home sick.He even gives Hari a vivid and inspiring future and teaches him watch mending .This
shows that even in one of the most busiest , rickety and ramshackled cities such as Bombay there is still
hope ,love and affection