For Gen Z and millennials, these novels are both a mirror and a map

As the world celebrates the legendary writer's 250th birth anniversary, Lounge looks at her legacy among contemporary readers in India

- Somak Ghoshal

Growing up as the youngest of four girls, writer Anuja Chauhan always found the fictional world of Jane Austen relatable. But you'd be mistaken to assume that Pride and Prejudice is her favourite among Austen's novels.

"I love her humour, her honest, pragmatic, realistic take on romance. There is nothing breathless about it," Chauhan says. "But I find the sister dynamics in Pride and Prejudice problematic."

It's a sentiment Chauhan has aired before, when her novel Those Pricey Thakur Girls came out in 2013. Perhaps the most autobiographical among her books, it tells the story of four sisters growing up in a bustling Delhi family. Understandably, readers drew parallels with Pride and Prejudice, which revolves around the lives of the five Bennet sisters. But Chauhan was quick to correct them.

"Even if I am an Austen fan, I'm not such a